Tim Webber has degrees in news/internet journalism and computer science from Drake University in Des Moines, IA, and has interned with NPR in Washington, D.C. and The Kansas City Star.
Originally from Olathe, KS, Webber was the editor-in-chief of Drake’s student-run campus newspaper, the Times-Delphic during his junior year at Drake.
In addition, Webber has also worked as a freelance journalist, submitting work to various websites, as well as a social media moderator, controlling Facebook and Twitter accounts for websites and organizations.
Journalism
Webber has been interested in journalism from a young age. In elementary school, Webber created and printed custom newspapers for his family containing whatever news he found interesting, as well as lots and lots of printer ink.
In middle and high school, Webber worked on staff at school publications, including the newspaper and yearbook.
NPR
In fall 2017, Webber interned on the national desk at NPR headquarters in Washington, D.C. At NPR, he helped develop a message forwarding system through Slack to improve the efficiency of breaking news coverage. He also wrote digital stories on Hurricane Maria and the NFL, and provided research and data mining/analysis for numerous other pieces.
Urban Plains
Urban Plains is Drake’s senior capstone publication, for which Webber was an articles editor in spring 2017. In this position, he guided stories from pitch to publication. He also occasionally wrote articles, including this piece on cybercrime. This iteration of Urban Plains won a Pacemaker award from the Associated College Press.
The Times-Delphic
As the editor-in-chief of the Times-Delphic, Webber oversaw a staff of fifteen students and managed the production of the weekly, 12-page paper. His time at the helm of the paper included coverage of the Iowa caucuses and a presidential debate.
In the spring of 2014, Webber joined the Times-Delphic as the Student Senate beat writer, covering the organization’s weekly meetings for the publication. Due to scheduling conflicts, Webber dropped that beat in the fall of 2014, but continued to write for the publication, covering stories in the news, features, and opinions sections.
The following semester, Webber became a regular member of the Times-Delphic staff, in the position of multimedia editor. His responsibilities in this role include maintaining the Times-Delphic website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts. Webber also wrote the weekly TD+ e-newsletter, which debuted in March 2015 to positive reviews and won awards from the Iowa College Media Association.
A full archive of Webber’s work with the Times-Delphic can be found here.
The Kansas City Star
In summer 2016, Webber interned on the copy desk at The Kansas City Star. The internship was part of the Dow Jones News Fund internship program, and included a week-long editing boot camp at the University of Missouri. At the Star, Webber fulfilled the duties of a professional copy editor.
Drum Corps International
Webber spent the summer of 2015 in Indianapolis interning with Drum Corps International (DCI). DCI is a non-profit organization which holds annual competitions across the country. It’s perhaps best described as professional marching band, but it may be simpler to see an example than read a description.
Webber’s roles with DCI included writing event recaps and feature stories throughout the summer, as well as assisting with social media accounts at select events. He also gained experience in photography and multimedia reporting.
Other work
Webber is a writer for Royals Review, a blog about the Kansas City Royals on the SB Nation network. He writes both analytical and satirical pieces for the site. He also regularly contributes to Arrowhead Pride (covering the Kansas City Chiefs) through “fanposts.” A full archive of his work can be found here.
Webber has contributed work to a number of other websites. He has been a freelance reporter for WisPolitics.com, covering Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker when he eyed a presidential run in Des Moines in 2015.
Computer Science
While Webber primarily focuses on journalism, he is also proficient in computer science. Webber’s work in computer science leans towards web development, data analytics and machine learning, and his capstone used machine learning algorithms to compare and create baseball projection systems.
