COM 2600 Exam 1

elements of journalism

OBJECTIVITY; an obligation to tell the truth, loyalty to citizens, discipline of verification, independence from those covered, monitor to power, forum for criticism, make significant interesting and relevant, and comprehensive and proportional

copy editing

a multistep process, "fact checkers," use reference books (stylebook, dictionaries, fact books, phonebooks, maps, and internet); if done poorly, can change a reporter's or source's intent

what is style?

a set of rules governing punctuation, abbreviation, capitalization, spelling choices, and number format

journalism

a set of transparent, independent procedures aimed at gathering, verifying, and reporting truthful information of consequence to citizens in a democracy; a craft, method of research, part of public discourse, rough draft of history, popular art, giant struggling industry, crucial corner of the Iron Triangle (causes, government, and journalism), job, confusing academic subject, and a vocation

note-taking

a skill that requires understanding of what you're doing and practice

AP style: addresses

abbreviate St., Ave., and Blvd.; abbreviate compass points; use figures for an address number; spell out street, avenue, and boulevard when alone

AP style: months

abbreviate months used in a full date; spell them out otherwise (Aug. 29, 1987 or August 2010); don't abbreviate months under 5 letters

summary lede

all w5h in the lede; breaking news

motivated reasoning theory

confirmation bias and disconfirmation bias

news

constructed and timely, but does not verify information

information

created by anyone, but not timely or fitting with other "news values"

taking notes for class

definitions, examples, lists, concepts, and slides

marketplace of ideas metaphor

deliberate and decide on ideas; put out all ideas and the best ones rise to the top; a forum for debate; representation, deliberation, and conflict resolution

picture lede

descriptive lede

symbolic detail lede

detail that symbolizes the heart of the story

tips for note-taking

don't try to get verbatim, paraphrase, integrate knowledge you already have, be an aggressive listener

AP style: commas

drop the serial comma (no Oxford comma); unless series concludes with an element with a conjunction

information deficit fallacy

giving citizens more facts does not always change their opinions

the key to finding stories

go to events, pay attention to organizations that create events, pay attention to people at these organizations that create events

truth

goes beyond facts; VERIFIED facts

why is an article organized the way it is?

in order to avoid the line being cut, the most important information would be sent first on a telegram

independence

journalists must maintain space between themselves and those they cover

taking notes for communications

keep your pen moving, really listen, don't get lost, go over your notes, and observe

AP style: titles

lowercase and spell out all stand alone titles; formal titles go in front of the name capitalized; professor is ALWAYS lowercase

power of particular sources

more likely to accept new factual assertions from sources perceived as trustworthy and have some values; this change only happens in person

history of news

news is old: beacon fires, smoke stacks, town criers; literacy and roads changed it by speeding it up; scribes played a big role; the Protestant Reformation brought moveable type and spread literacy so more people could read and create news; 1800s: the penny press was cheap, what we know as today, and made money from classifieds, department store ads, and subscriptions; written into the founding documents of America

professionalism

no licensing, oaths or special certification; integrity

temporal bias

no mention of time in definition; we love the news so much; we falter when covering on-going, long-term stories

lede problems

no questions, no quotes, no cliche, no good news/bad news, no crystal ball, and no nightmares

partial quote lede

paraphrase most of the lede but quote important part

belief perseverance dynamics

people forget if something is true or false over time

fact checking

people hate sources like PolitiFact because they don't want to break their filter

citizen journalism

produce news on personal blog; fact check articles; post videos on YouTube

argument culture

reconfirm what they already think with hostility; "outrage discourse": insulting language, exaggeration, and mockery (EVERY cable network)

mirror metaphor

reflects who we are back to us; information dissemination and representation; establishes who is an us and who is a them; has the power to unite and alienate people

parajournalists

someone who creates info and news by gathering other info and news; do not use the journalism process, but work can be complimentary/supplementary to journalisim

after the lede...

source EVERYTHING, use a max of 1/3 direct quotes and 2/3 paraphrased material, corporations and organizations don't talk

AP style: numbers

spell out 1-9; figures for 10 and up; ages are numerical except at the beginning of the sentence; time is numerical (10 am); addresses are numerical; dimensions are numerical; spell out numbers at the beginning of sentences; spell out words like noon and midnight

AP style: state names

spell out in the body of a story; abbreviate if listed in tabular material or in short form listings of party affiliations; do not abbreviate Alaska, Maine, Ohio, Hawaii, Idaho, Texas, Iowa, or Utah; use AP abbreviations

one liner/novelty lede

the "creative" lede

objectivity

the newsroom must be diverse and the information must be accurate and verified

watchdog metaphor

the press stands alert and stands guard to the citizens; they watch the power (financial and political), right now always focused on politics; represent out interests and hold the government and large corporations accountable; accountability

news values

timeliness, impact, currency, conflict, prominence, proximity, and *novelty emotion

the functions of journalism

to create conversation, a type of accountability, to inform, to investigate, and to create social empathy

AP style: days of the week

use the day alone if within 7 days; use the date if past 7 days; do not use yesterday or tomorrow; do use today

stepping stone stories

utilized when topics are bigger than us

transparency

where does this information come from? how did you get it?

paraphrase quote lede

word most interesting thing understandably

triangle of jobs in the field of journalism

1. culture changer (1) make the news 2. elite jobs (10) implied credibility 3. national-level jobs (25) advertising crisis hit here because only source of income was subscriptions, department store ads, and classifieds 4. regional-level jobs (50) 5. community-level jobs (100) lousy

things you should know as a journalist

1. how to use multi and social media 2. how to write well and tell a story 3. how to use AP style 4. other: resumé, take notes, professional skills, etc.

organization of an article

1. most newsworthy information (wwwwwh) 2. important details 3. other general background information (inverted pyramid form)

8 rules for a summary lede

1. only one sentence in a lede, then a new paragraph 2. aim for crisp and clear sentence structure and avoid passive voice 3. avoid introductory dependent clauses, prepositional phrases, and participle phrases (avoid commas) 4. aim for active verbs 5. think about w5h 6. place time element after the verb or direct object 7. put attribution at the end 8. be specific and use interesting details

4 purposes of note-taking

1. provides a written record for review 2. forces the listener to pay attention 3. requires organization, which involves active effort not he part of the listener 4. listener must condense and rephrase, which aids understanding

what does a news article look like?

500-700 words, past tense (print), present tense (broadcast), third person, AP style, spellchecked, *clear attribution, and built on your OWN reporting