CONTENT: On Tuesday, we slowed down to digest some of the material we have been working with: attribution, plagiarism, sourcing, interviewing, leads, quotes, nut graph etc.
The California Primary assignment was handed out. It is also posted on the blogsite.
On Thursday, we began to discuss and work with the “inverted pyramid” the basic structure for a news story. We will continue with this on Tuesday.
QUIZ: We went over the quiz from Week 2. We also had an open book quiz on letters A-F in the AP stylebook.
QUOTE OF THE DAY: “When in doubt, leave it out.” That means, it is better to delete a piece of information or a quote if you can’t remember where you got it and are unable to attribute it, than to take a chance and print it. Also, it is better to omit a statement of your own that you cannot back up with evidence or examples in your story, than to go out on a limb.
READING: Ch.7 in the Carol Rich text and page 174 of Ch. 8 (the inverted pyramid).
It is very important that you are well versed in the different styles of lead, and what a nut graph is. As well, please go back over Chapter 5 if you need to review interviewing styles and how to write up interviews in your articles.
- Please look over G – L in the AP stylebook.
- Please read the California Primary Assignment.
- Please pick up the Jan. 18 edition of the Moorpark Acorn and read the set-up piece on page 9, by Daneil Wolowicz, under the headline: “California Primary Approaches on Fast Track.” If the edition is no longer on the stands, please look up the article online:
http://www.moorparkacorn.com/news/2008/0118/Community/019.html
ASSIGNMENT: Please do exercises 1, 3, 5 on pages 147 – 148. These must be typed and submitted in hard copy form on Tuesday. (10 pts).
(If you have not yet handed in the previous two homework assignment, please submit them in hard copy at the beginning of class. Written assignments will not be accepted more than one week after they are due.)
- Please come to class prepared to tell us at what polling station you intend to interview voters on Feb. 5th.
- Those of you who can access the textbook website, please try to do the online exercises and quizzes. This will help you master the material.
Have a great weekend. You may email the instructor at nmorris@vcccd.edu if you have any questions.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Assignment - California Primary Election (Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2008)
This assignment is also being done by the Monday-Wednesday class.
This is a two-part assignment:
DEADLINES and DETAILS
1. A set-up piece (700 words) due no later than the morning of Tuesday, Feb. 5.
2. Coverage of the election (800 words), due on Thursday, Feb. 7.
3. All work must be typed, double-spaced and follow AP style. Accuracy, spelling and grammar count.
ADVANCE WORK:
Start researching the background to the primary in California.
You may wish to:
1. Consult internet sites such as those of the Democrat and Republican parties, the various candidates who will be on the ballots and newspapers such as the Ventura County Star, Los Angeles Times and Daily News. (Remember: if you cut and paste from websites and store it on your computer as background string, always write down the source of the material right above or below it so you will be able to attribute it correctly if you later draw on that material. Do not plagiarize.)
2. Begin reading a local news source daily, so you are up to speed when the big day comes.
3. Write down questions you would like to ask in your advance interviews.
4. Interview professors of political science, students on campus, local representatives of the various parties or important voter groups, acquaintances or whomever you think you wish to focus on in your story.
5. Decide which polling station you wish to visit on voting day, make sure you know its hours and location and whether you need anyone's permission to interview people after they leave the premises. Knowing your own schedule, plan to do interviews for one hour at or near the polling station on Feb. 5th.
6. Think about whether any photos, graphics or other visual material is appropriate to the story and if so, how you would go about getting it. Your photo or graphic assignments should accompany your stories.
7. Decide who your reader is (for example: a Moorpark student, any resident of southern California, a resident of the area immediately around your chosen polling station). Once you know who your audience is, it will be easier to know which information to include and which to leave out.
A) THE SET-UP:
A set-up piece (sometimes called an advance, an advancer or a situationer) is usually published the day of an event or even a day or two before. The reporter explains the event about to take place and its significance.
REPORTING THE SET-UP:
a) Interviews (face-to-face, telephone and/or Internet)
b) Monitoring television coverage
c) Reading news and organizational sources.
WRITING THE SET-UP:
1. Once you have finished your advance interviews and read up on the topic, decide what you angle is. Possible angles include: who the most important voter group may be in your polling area (women, youth, minorities), whether your area stands to differ from the nation as a whole, how the candidates have finished up campaigning in California, how the California primary fits into the total election process, whether the result looks like a foregone conclusion or an open question, what the most important voter issues in California are.
2. Once you have decided what your angle is, choose what will be your lead, your nut graph, your background, and how your will structure the flow of your story [Do not write a lead that predicts the outcome of the vote even if you think there is a clear trend.]
3. Include any practical information about voting rules in California that you think the reader may need, if it is appropriate. Also about propositions on the ballot that don't have to do with the primary candidates.
4. Try to write a kicker that sums up your story and looks to the future.
B) THE DAILY NEWS STORY
Your news coverage article will report what the results of the voting are. Use the inverted pyramid and feel free to include analysis and context in the lead, nut graph and body. Your photo or graphic assignments should accompany your stories.
REPORTING THE ELECTION DAY STORY:
1. Monitor the news as much as possible during the day. This includes listening to the car radio on the way to college, checking the web, and watching television coverage at home after the polls close. Note: if you hear a great quote on the nightly news that you wish to use, you must have the person's name and cite who interviewed that person, such as "TK, TK…, "said John Smith of Thousand Oaks, as reported on ABC television news OR "TK, TK…," John Smith of Thousand Oaks told ABC television.
2. Write down the questions you would like to ask the voters (such as how they voted, whether they are members of a party, whether their vote was set for a long time or changed quickly, what their reasons were, what their most important issues are, details about their life, how they voted four years ago).
3. Spend one hour interviewing people as they leave the polling station. (We will go over in class again how you make a 'cold' approach to people and get all the quotes and background you need. Review all the interview tips in Chapter 5 of the text.) Live interviews are always best. But if you feel you did not get satisfactory material in person, you may do follow up phone calls to acquaintances, after you get home (a local shop or restaurant owner, your barber, your parents' accountant. Do not interview close friends or family.) Once the results are known, you may also wish to call up some people -- such as those you interviewed for the set-up story – to get their reaction to the results.
WRITING THE NEWS STORY:
1. Decide on your angle and your lead. The lead should definitely include who won and whether it was by a large or slim margin, even if you draft your wording as an interpretive lead.
2. With your angle in mind, transition from the lead to the nut graph, the body and background of your story (the import of those results or whether they demonstrated something interesting or different) Make sure the body of your story includes reporting what happened that day, voter interviews etc.
3. Please use the inverted pyramid structure as a guide, even if the body of your story contains analysis and context.
4. Finish your story with a kicker that sums up your angle and looks to the future.
5. Include information on the photos or graphics that you have chosen to include, if any.
Strive for accuracy, meet your deadlines and have fun!
This is a two-part assignment:
DEADLINES and DETAILS
1. A set-up piece (700 words) due no later than the morning of Tuesday, Feb. 5.
2. Coverage of the election (800 words), due on Thursday, Feb. 7.
3. All work must be typed, double-spaced and follow AP style. Accuracy, spelling and grammar count.
ADVANCE WORK:
Start researching the background to the primary in California.
You may wish to:
1. Consult internet sites such as those of the Democrat and Republican parties, the various candidates who will be on the ballots and newspapers such as the Ventura County Star, Los Angeles Times and Daily News. (Remember: if you cut and paste from websites and store it on your computer as background string, always write down the source of the material right above or below it so you will be able to attribute it correctly if you later draw on that material. Do not plagiarize.)
2. Begin reading a local news source daily, so you are up to speed when the big day comes.
3. Write down questions you would like to ask in your advance interviews.
4. Interview professors of political science, students on campus, local representatives of the various parties or important voter groups, acquaintances or whomever you think you wish to focus on in your story.
5. Decide which polling station you wish to visit on voting day, make sure you know its hours and location and whether you need anyone's permission to interview people after they leave the premises. Knowing your own schedule, plan to do interviews for one hour at or near the polling station on Feb. 5th.
6. Think about whether any photos, graphics or other visual material is appropriate to the story and if so, how you would go about getting it. Your photo or graphic assignments should accompany your stories.
7. Decide who your reader is (for example: a Moorpark student, any resident of southern California, a resident of the area immediately around your chosen polling station). Once you know who your audience is, it will be easier to know which information to include and which to leave out.
A) THE SET-UP:
A set-up piece (sometimes called an advance, an advancer or a situationer) is usually published the day of an event or even a day or two before. The reporter explains the event about to take place and its significance.
REPORTING THE SET-UP:
a) Interviews (face-to-face, telephone and/or Internet)
b) Monitoring television coverage
c) Reading news and organizational sources.
WRITING THE SET-UP:
1. Once you have finished your advance interviews and read up on the topic, decide what you angle is. Possible angles include: who the most important voter group may be in your polling area (women, youth, minorities), whether your area stands to differ from the nation as a whole, how the candidates have finished up campaigning in California, how the California primary fits into the total election process, whether the result looks like a foregone conclusion or an open question, what the most important voter issues in California are.
2. Once you have decided what your angle is, choose what will be your lead, your nut graph, your background, and how your will structure the flow of your story [Do not write a lead that predicts the outcome of the vote even if you think there is a clear trend.]
3. Include any practical information about voting rules in California that you think the reader may need, if it is appropriate. Also about propositions on the ballot that don't have to do with the primary candidates.
4. Try to write a kicker that sums up your story and looks to the future.
B) THE DAILY NEWS STORY
Your news coverage article will report what the results of the voting are. Use the inverted pyramid and feel free to include analysis and context in the lead, nut graph and body. Your photo or graphic assignments should accompany your stories.
REPORTING THE ELECTION DAY STORY:
1. Monitor the news as much as possible during the day. This includes listening to the car radio on the way to college, checking the web, and watching television coverage at home after the polls close. Note: if you hear a great quote on the nightly news that you wish to use, you must have the person's name and cite who interviewed that person, such as "TK, TK…, "said John Smith of Thousand Oaks, as reported on ABC television news OR "TK, TK…," John Smith of Thousand Oaks told ABC television.
2. Write down the questions you would like to ask the voters (such as how they voted, whether they are members of a party, whether their vote was set for a long time or changed quickly, what their reasons were, what their most important issues are, details about their life, how they voted four years ago).
3. Spend one hour interviewing people as they leave the polling station. (We will go over in class again how you make a 'cold' approach to people and get all the quotes and background you need. Review all the interview tips in Chapter 5 of the text.) Live interviews are always best. But if you feel you did not get satisfactory material in person, you may do follow up phone calls to acquaintances, after you get home (a local shop or restaurant owner, your barber, your parents' accountant. Do not interview close friends or family.) Once the results are known, you may also wish to call up some people -- such as those you interviewed for the set-up story – to get their reaction to the results.
WRITING THE NEWS STORY:
1. Decide on your angle and your lead. The lead should definitely include who won and whether it was by a large or slim margin, even if you draft your wording as an interpretive lead.
2. With your angle in mind, transition from the lead to the nut graph, the body and background of your story (the import of those results or whether they demonstrated something interesting or different) Make sure the body of your story includes reporting what happened that day, voter interviews etc.
3. Please use the inverted pyramid structure as a guide, even if the body of your story contains analysis and context.
4. Finish your story with a kicker that sums up your angle and looks to the future.
5. Include information on the photos or graphics that you have chosen to include, if any.
Strive for accuracy, meet your deadlines and have fun!
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Summary-Week 2
WEEK II- SUMMARY
CONTENT: Interviewing. The role of blogs in the current media environment. The characteristics of a news story. Announcement of the California primary assignment. Accuracy and responsibility (curiosity + accuracy + fairness = professionalism). Attribution and sourcing. Plagiarism.
READING: By Tuesday, you should have completed reading chapters 1, 2 and 5. Please also jump ahead and read pages 296 and 297 on plagiarism. Please also familiarize yourself with the AP stylebook, letters A-F. This is the weekend to get caught up on reading. New reading material will be assigned on Tuesday.
ASSIGNMENTS: Profile of a Moorpark student, 400 wds, due Tuesday, Jan. 22. (Those that missed the in-class interview exercise are to do it by telephone and email.)
Note: Tuesday, Jan. 22 is also the last day to submit Week 1 assignment on the instructor/first day of class.
QUIZZES: Thursday’s quiz covered the first week’s lectures and the first two chapters of the book, as well as terms on the glossary.
There will be a quiz on Tuesday, Jan. 22 dealing with A-F in the AP Stylebook
LOOK AHEAD: The California primary takes place on Tuesday, Feb. 5th. You will have a major two part assignment pegged to that event 1) a setup piece due on Tuesday, Feb. 5th. 2) coverage of the primary, due on Thursday, Feb. 7th. Note: I have changed the grading on the syllabus to reflect 25 points for this two-part assignment. Please start thinking about and researching which polling station you intend to visit on that Tuesday.
Have a great weekend and don’t forget to read some media! Juicy bonus points are available to anybody who brings in some examples to discuss with the class.
CONTENT: Interviewing. The role of blogs in the current media environment. The characteristics of a news story. Announcement of the California primary assignment. Accuracy and responsibility (curiosity + accuracy + fairness = professionalism). Attribution and sourcing. Plagiarism.
READING: By Tuesday, you should have completed reading chapters 1, 2 and 5. Please also jump ahead and read pages 296 and 297 on plagiarism. Please also familiarize yourself with the AP stylebook, letters A-F. This is the weekend to get caught up on reading. New reading material will be assigned on Tuesday.
ASSIGNMENTS: Profile of a Moorpark student, 400 wds, due Tuesday, Jan. 22. (Those that missed the in-class interview exercise are to do it by telephone and email.)
Note: Tuesday, Jan. 22 is also the last day to submit Week 1 assignment on the instructor/first day of class.
QUIZZES: Thursday’s quiz covered the first week’s lectures and the first two chapters of the book, as well as terms on the glossary.
There will be a quiz on Tuesday, Jan. 22 dealing with A-F in the AP Stylebook
LOOK AHEAD: The California primary takes place on Tuesday, Feb. 5th. You will have a major two part assignment pegged to that event 1) a setup piece due on Tuesday, Feb. 5th. 2) coverage of the primary, due on Thursday, Feb. 7th. Note: I have changed the grading on the syllabus to reflect 25 points for this two-part assignment. Please start thinking about and researching which polling station you intend to visit on that Tuesday.
Have a great weekend and don’t forget to read some media! Juicy bonus points are available to anybody who brings in some examples to discuss with the class.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Week 2 - Interview Assignment: Moorpark Student
Week 2 - Assignment:
1. Interview a fellow student and write a 400-word profile about this person. Due on Tuesday, January 22, 2008. Please submit a hard copy, double spaced, with your name and the date on the top.
At the end of your story, please type: -30- OR endit so your editor (instructor) can be sure she received the whole thing.
Figure it will take each of you about 15 minutes to conduct your interview. Using the information in Ch. 2 about the elements and ordering in a story, organize your thoughts and plan your story. You will begin to tell (write) your story, of course, with the most interesting aspect or experience, rather than a chronological recounting of the person’s life. (I.E. don’t begin with your subject’s birth, unless, it was in itself somehow remarkable.) So this story is likely to begin somewhere in the middle of the person life, or possibly with an anecdote about a life goal, a life-changing experience or an inspiration, or even what brought the person to journalism.
Name your file: Profileyourlastname. Word count minimum: 400 words
Audience: Your campus community
Story must include: Full name of subject, date and place of birth, family information, year at MC, education and career goals, at least three direct quotes. Remember that direct quotes are verbatim, or word for word.
Quote style as follows: “I have always loved marine life,” said James Ramirez, 18, a Ventura College marine biology major. “I hope to study the migration of the gray whale. They are intensely interesting animals.” (Open quote, sentence, comma, attribution, period. Open quote, 2nd sentence. Period. Third sentence. Period. Close quote. Use your subject’s last name on second and subsequent references. Remember, this is not a first-person account, so there should be no ‘I’s’ in the story, unless they are in a quote. (It’s not about you the author, it’s about your subject.)
Review notes: Take 10 minutes to review your notes. Go through and underline the quotes you think you’ll use. Clarify your writing where it’s a little difficult to read. Ask more questions if you forgot something.
TO WRITE YOUR STORY:
1) Lead: Pick out something interesting or exciting about this person to lead with. Could be unusual hobbies, career goals or obstacles overcome to get here. Make this lead ONE SENTENCE. That will take some work to compile it into one sentence, but you can do it.
2) Support your lead with more interesting info that will flow into your first quote.
3) Use a direct quote from your subject here. (Follow quote style: “I love music,” Wagner said. “It speaks to me. It takes me to another world.” Note that the quote begins the sentence, followed by attribution. Then a second or third sentence.
4) Nut graf: How is this person’s life relevant to your reader? Connect us. That will probably be through her role as a student at VC, OC or MC. It’s your focus paragraph.
5) Background: Now you go to when and where she was born, a little about family.
6) Transition: Take the reader back to the present.
7) Body of the story; Give the reader the rest of the facts about her that are interesting, including more about her studies, career, any other interesting information and at least two more full quotes.
1. Interview a fellow student and write a 400-word profile about this person. Due on Tuesday, January 22, 2008. Please submit a hard copy, double spaced, with your name and the date on the top.
At the end of your story, please type: -30- OR endit so your editor (instructor) can be sure she received the whole thing.
Figure it will take each of you about 15 minutes to conduct your interview. Using the information in Ch. 2 about the elements and ordering in a story, organize your thoughts and plan your story. You will begin to tell (write) your story, of course, with the most interesting aspect or experience, rather than a chronological recounting of the person’s life. (I.E. don’t begin with your subject’s birth, unless, it was in itself somehow remarkable.) So this story is likely to begin somewhere in the middle of the person life, or possibly with an anecdote about a life goal, a life-changing experience or an inspiration, or even what brought the person to journalism.
Name your file: Profileyourlastname. Word count minimum: 400 words
Audience: Your campus community
Story must include: Full name of subject, date and place of birth, family information, year at MC, education and career goals, at least three direct quotes. Remember that direct quotes are verbatim, or word for word.
Quote style as follows: “I have always loved marine life,” said James Ramirez, 18, a Ventura College marine biology major. “I hope to study the migration of the gray whale. They are intensely interesting animals.” (Open quote, sentence, comma, attribution, period. Open quote, 2nd sentence. Period. Third sentence. Period. Close quote. Use your subject’s last name on second and subsequent references. Remember, this is not a first-person account, so there should be no ‘I’s’ in the story, unless they are in a quote. (It’s not about you the author, it’s about your subject.)
Review notes: Take 10 minutes to review your notes. Go through and underline the quotes you think you’ll use. Clarify your writing where it’s a little difficult to read. Ask more questions if you forgot something.
TO WRITE YOUR STORY:
1) Lead: Pick out something interesting or exciting about this person to lead with. Could be unusual hobbies, career goals or obstacles overcome to get here. Make this lead ONE SENTENCE. That will take some work to compile it into one sentence, but you can do it.
2) Support your lead with more interesting info that will flow into your first quote.
3) Use a direct quote from your subject here. (Follow quote style: “I love music,” Wagner said. “It speaks to me. It takes me to another world.” Note that the quote begins the sentence, followed by attribution. Then a second or third sentence.
4) Nut graf: How is this person’s life relevant to your reader? Connect us. That will probably be through her role as a student at VC, OC or MC. It’s your focus paragraph.
5) Background: Now you go to when and where she was born, a little about family.
6) Transition: Take the reader back to the present.
7) Body of the story; Give the reader the rest of the facts about her that are interesting, including more about her studies, career, any other interesting information and at least two more full quotes.
Monday, January 14, 2008
Print is Dead:Long Live Print
From The Times of London - Online
January 7, 2008
Print is dead: long live print
Jonathan Weber
We all know by now that the future of media is online, and I'd be the last person to deny the significance of the changes wrought by the Internet. But I think one of the most interesting things to emerge in the media business this year will be a comeback of sorts for print.
Print, of course, hasn't exactly gone away – magazines and newspapers still account for more then a third of worldwide ad revenues – but the chatter in the industry suggests its death is just around the corner.
In the U.S. especially, the newspaper business appears to be in a free-fall, with many big papers reporting year-over-year revenue and circulation declines of ten per cent or more - shocking numbers indeed for century-old businesses. The big magazine companies, and especially kingpin Time Inc., are under ever-growing financial pressure; nobody would be surprised if the new CEO of Time Warner sold the magazine unit.
Yet the story in the field, especially outside of the big coastal media hubs, is quite different from what the media news websites would lead you to believe. If you want publicity in Anytown, USA, the best way to get it, still, is a story in the local newspaper. And if you're selling advertising to local businesses, a lot of your clients still want to be able to hold that ad in their hands.
At NewWest.Net, we're actually launching a print magazine in a few weeks; print was always part of the plan, and everything we have experienced so far suggests that this is a sound strategy. Even though, as a company, we are "online first" in almost every respect, we still expect the print magazine to generate substantially more ad revenues in its first year than our three-year-old online publication.
Another project that I'm involved with, a local newspaper startup in northwestern Montana called the Flathead Beacon, also illustrates this point emphatically. Even though a strong website was launched concurrently with the print paper last spring, and online is considered central to the strategy in every way, the print accounts for the vast majority of the revenue. I'm sure that will change eventually – but not this year, or next, or even the year after that.
I think a big part of the gap between perception and reality when it comes to print media has to do with a set of expectations that have developed from what were, in retrospect, very specific and unusual circumstances.
Newspapers have been in steep decline for half a century, when measured by the percentage of the population that regularly reads a newspaper. But in the U.S. that decline in readership has been accompanied by consolidation, with most cities being reduced to one newspaper from two or three or four. The surviving ones, not surprisingly, became extremely profitable; the issue for most newspapers today is not that they are not profitable, but that they are much less profitable than they were before.
Similarly, it's not that newspapers today no longer have influence, it's that they have relatively less than they had before. Magazines had a golden age back in the 1960s, when publications like Esquire and Playboy almost defined their era, intellectually and culturally. The fact that they no longer carry the clout they once did doesn't mean they have no future. The success of Felix Dennis' The Week suggests that even the hoary newsmagazine, seemingly the most antiquated species in the entire magazine firmament, can be reinvented and made relevant.
Media consumption is extraordinarily habit-driven, and old habits die hard. Maybe, once the people who grew up on Facebook are running all the local businesses in town, those businesses will lose their affection for the slick, well-produced color print advertising that still dominates many markets. But that time is quite a ways off still. And in the meantime, as the excitement surrounding new forms of media begins to wear off a bit, there will be a renewed appreciation for the power of a highly flexible, portable, shareable, high-definition technology known as print.
---
Jonathan Weber is the founder and editor in chief of NewWest.Net, a regional news service focused on the Rocky Mountain West in the United States. He was previously the co-founder and editor in chief of the Industry Standard
January 7, 2008
Print is dead: long live print
Jonathan Weber
We all know by now that the future of media is online, and I'd be the last person to deny the significance of the changes wrought by the Internet. But I think one of the most interesting things to emerge in the media business this year will be a comeback of sorts for print.
Print, of course, hasn't exactly gone away – magazines and newspapers still account for more then a third of worldwide ad revenues – but the chatter in the industry suggests its death is just around the corner.
In the U.S. especially, the newspaper business appears to be in a free-fall, with many big papers reporting year-over-year revenue and circulation declines of ten per cent or more - shocking numbers indeed for century-old businesses. The big magazine companies, and especially kingpin Time Inc., are under ever-growing financial pressure; nobody would be surprised if the new CEO of Time Warner sold the magazine unit.
Yet the story in the field, especially outside of the big coastal media hubs, is quite different from what the media news websites would lead you to believe. If you want publicity in Anytown, USA, the best way to get it, still, is a story in the local newspaper. And if you're selling advertising to local businesses, a lot of your clients still want to be able to hold that ad in their hands.
At NewWest.Net, we're actually launching a print magazine in a few weeks; print was always part of the plan, and everything we have experienced so far suggests that this is a sound strategy. Even though, as a company, we are "online first" in almost every respect, we still expect the print magazine to generate substantially more ad revenues in its first year than our three-year-old online publication.
Another project that I'm involved with, a local newspaper startup in northwestern Montana called the Flathead Beacon, also illustrates this point emphatically. Even though a strong website was launched concurrently with the print paper last spring, and online is considered central to the strategy in every way, the print accounts for the vast majority of the revenue. I'm sure that will change eventually – but not this year, or next, or even the year after that.
I think a big part of the gap between perception and reality when it comes to print media has to do with a set of expectations that have developed from what were, in retrospect, very specific and unusual circumstances.
Newspapers have been in steep decline for half a century, when measured by the percentage of the population that regularly reads a newspaper. But in the U.S. that decline in readership has been accompanied by consolidation, with most cities being reduced to one newspaper from two or three or four. The surviving ones, not surprisingly, became extremely profitable; the issue for most newspapers today is not that they are not profitable, but that they are much less profitable than they were before.
Similarly, it's not that newspapers today no longer have influence, it's that they have relatively less than they had before. Magazines had a golden age back in the 1960s, when publications like Esquire and Playboy almost defined their era, intellectually and culturally. The fact that they no longer carry the clout they once did doesn't mean they have no future. The success of Felix Dennis' The Week suggests that even the hoary newsmagazine, seemingly the most antiquated species in the entire magazine firmament, can be reinvented and made relevant.
Media consumption is extraordinarily habit-driven, and old habits die hard. Maybe, once the people who grew up on Facebook are running all the local businesses in town, those businesses will lose their affection for the slick, well-produced color print advertising that still dominates many markets. But that time is quite a ways off still. And in the meantime, as the excitement surrounding new forms of media begins to wear off a bit, there will be a renewed appreciation for the power of a highly flexible, portable, shareable, high-definition technology known as print.
---
Jonathan Weber is the founder and editor in chief of NewWest.Net, a regional news service focused on the Rocky Mountain West in the United States. He was previously the co-founder and editor in chief of the Industry Standard
Saturday, January 12, 2008
WEEK 1 Summary
Buy: Carole Rich - 1. Writing and Reporting News, fifth edition 2. The AP Stylebook
Reading: Chapter 1 of Carole Rich textbook: the new media environment
Writing assignment : Write up Tuesday's opening class, focusing on background of the instructor, as told to the class. 500 wds, due upon arrival at class on Tuesday, Jan. 15th, in hard copy form with your name and the date on the top
Viewing: The blog I set up as a Bulletin Board for our class: mcreporters.blogspot.com
The blog set up by the instructor of our companion class: moorparkmedia.blogspot.com
Specifially, please scroll down and view the 10 minute video entitled Journalism in the 1940's -- if you haven't already done so.
Bonus Points : bring in examples of things you have seen on the web or in print which you would like to discuss. (whether something works, doesn't work, or something you have a question about)
Reading: Chapter 1 of Carole Rich textbook: the new media environment
Writing assignment : Write up Tuesday's opening class, focusing on background of the instructor, as told to the class. 500 wds, due upon arrival at class on Tuesday, Jan. 15th, in hard copy form with your name and the date on the top
Viewing: The blog I set up as a Bulletin Board for our class: mcreporters.blogspot.com
The blog set up by the instructor of our companion class: moorparkmedia.blogspot.com
Specifially, please scroll down and view the 10 minute video entitled Journalism in the 1940's -- if you haven't already done so.
Bonus Points : bring in examples of things you have seen on the web or in print which you would like to discuss. (whether something works, doesn't work, or something you have a question about)
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
GLOSSARY: terms and phrases
JOUR MO2 GLOSSARY: NEWSROOM TERMS AND EXRESSIONS
NEWS - Events and information of interest or concern to the public. Factors that make something newsworthy include: timeliness, newness, proximity (the closer to the audience, the more newsworthy), public interest, human interest. Basic types of hard news stories include: crime and court stories, politics and policy stories (including local council meetings), weather and disaster stories, accidents and fires, items of local, national or international import.
HARD NEWS STORY - Coverage of timely events or decisions. Best written with a SUMMARY LEAD telling who, what, where, and when at the top. How and why follow quickly. May be written with a FEATURE LEAD as long as the nut graph comes very near the top.
NEWS FEATURE STORY - Can be pegged to a recent or ongoing news event or issue of interest. May also be a human interest feature with no hard news peg.
ANALYSIS - Also known as an insight story, this is one in which the journalist interprets the events on a deeper more comprehensive level. The object is to elaborate on the significance or context of a large news story.
COLUMN - a personal opinion piece. It is usually an ongoing regular in-house column by a staffer, but may be a guest column by a freelancer or community member.
EDITORIAL - the collective opinion of the newspapers editorial board. Although editorials are unsigned, they are the result of a meeting of writer/editors who come to an agreement about what the newspaper is comfortable saying on an issue. The editorial is then assigned to one particular writer to actually compose.
OP-ED/OPINION PIECE - an opinion piece written by somebody from outside the newspaper. Usually appears opposite the editorials that are written by the newspaper's staff writers.
BEAT - a particular subject area that a reporter specializes in. Examples: the education beat, the police beat, the health beat, the science beat.
LEAD (LEDE) - The first sentence of your article.
HOOK - a twist, or snappy opening to hook the reader. Often it is a short sentence before the straight news lead.
ANECDOTAL LEAD - a lead that recreates a setting, event, situation, place or atmosphere as a way into the story. May be from a few sentences to a few paragraphs. Usually requires a nut graph to ground the reader. Also known as a NARRATIVE LEAD.
NUT GRAPH - a paragraph that steps back and lets the reader know the context and importance - some times the hard news aspects - of the issues or events being dealt with in the article.
BODY - the main section of the article, after the lead and before the kicker.
FLOW - how the paragraphs transition from one idea or topic to the next.
BRIDGE - a word, phrase, sentence or written image that logically connects one paragraph or section of the article to the one that immediately follows. Also known as a 'segue' (prounounced segway). A bridge helps the reader's mind make the leap from one thought or concept to another.
POPCORN QUOTE - a partial quotation set off in the middle of a sentence.
TICK TOCK - a story that is mainly a chronology leading up to an important event or decision. Usually written after the fact, it seeks to fill in the details of how we got to the point where the story became news.
KICKER - the ending - usually one that doesn't just trail off, but sums up or closes up the story. Preferably either peppy or poignant, and often with a view to the future.
PROFILE - A feature article about someone.
TAKE-OUT - An in-depth look at a particular subject or event. Comprehensive in scope.
PACKAGE - A collection of stories linked together by a common subject, that appear on the same day as.
SERIES - a collection of stories linked together by a common theme, published on subsequent days or in subsequent editions.
SIDEBAR - A second story, linked in theme or subject to the main story. Usually shorter and more specific than the main.
MAINBAR - The main story which may be supplemented with one or more sidebars. The term is usually used when editors and reporters are preparing a package.
SLUG - the placeholder title of a story that the reporter and editors use internally, as the story makes its way through the computer system. Remember, the actual headline is written by editors toward the end of the process.
TIGHT WRITING - Eliminating excess words. Direct writing with action verbs instead of many adjectives. Usually in the active, rather than passive voice.
ADVANCING THE STORY - going beyond the who-what-where-why-when of the original news event. These used to be second day stories, but are increasingly initial stories, given that the public has already heard the basics on radio or seen the headline news on television or the web.
ADVANCE COPY - Known as "Zed" copy in Britain and Canada, because it is a placeholder copy, in which the body of the story can be written in advance, to be re-topped with the actual news when it happens. Often used for election results on a tight deadline. Obituaries of famous people are also often written in advance and held on hand until the person dies, and those details are put at the top.
SECOND DAY STORY - the second, or follow-up article to the original news event, most often when the subject matter is still developing or still of interest.
REAX/REACTION PIECE - an article base on the response of affected parties to a particular news event or government decision. These used to be second day stories, but are increasingly initial stories, given that the public has already heard the basics on radio or seen the headline news on television or the web.
SATURATION COVERAGE - when a news organization throws many resources at a story so that it is covered from every possible angle, usually in several articles, sometimes over several pages and several days. When a news story is particularly huge (such as the 9/11 bombing of the World Trade Center) this approach is common.
MAKING IT SING - writing in such a way that the piece flows effortlessly for the reader, like a piece of music, with each transition automatically taking the reader where his/her curiousity would naturally go.
BUMPF - material handed to the reporter by agencies, institutes organizations, and public relations officers, so the reporter has the background facts and figures at hand.
FLACK - an unflattering nicknamed for public relations professionals and spokespeople who are in charge of dealing with the media for their particular organization or employer.
WRITE-THRU - an edit of a story that is essentially a top-to-bottom rewrite.
COLOR - human interest details and visual descriptions that bring a story to life.
STRINGER - a foreign correspondent who is working as a freelancer rather than a staff writer for a particular news organization.
SAVED STRING - background research material, usually from other publications.
ON SPEC - Usually refers to freelance work. Writing and submitting an article when the editor has not agreed to publish the article. You could either be sending it to the editor 'cold' OR have at least gotten some interest in the idea for the article, and a commitment that the editor will look at what you wrote before deciding whether to buy it.
HARD-NOSE - a tough, hammer-at-the-subject, style of interviewing.
SOFT-TOUCH - a friendlier, chattier interview style. Often can be more effective at drawing out the most sensitive information.
HOLES IN THE STORY - Questions that arise either when writing the story or when the story is edited. The reporter must go back and do extra research to fill in the holes.
A SCOOP - Also known as an exclusive, this is when a news organization is the only one to have the story or break the story at a particular time.
OWNING THE STORY - When a news organization is the one which clearly has the best, most timely information on a given news event or issue, usually because it has decided to commit the most resources to that story.
BYLINE - The name of the reporter or writer that goes on the story.
DATELINE - The name of the place where the story originates: usually written in capitals at the beginning of the story.
HEADLINE - The title on an article. Headlines are written by editors as the page is laid out, not writers. Never withhold information on the assumption it will be covered in the headline.
BLURB - An introductory few sentences that sum up the article. Most often on the web, but increasingly seen in newspapers.
BRIEF - a short synopsis of a story. Often on the web, but also in newspapers. Often briefs are collected in a NEW DIGEST, a column or two of short paragraph news items.
NEWS - Events and information of interest or concern to the public. Factors that make something newsworthy include: timeliness, newness, proximity (the closer to the audience, the more newsworthy), public interest, human interest. Basic types of hard news stories include: crime and court stories, politics and policy stories (including local council meetings), weather and disaster stories, accidents and fires, items of local, national or international import.
HARD NEWS STORY - Coverage of timely events or decisions. Best written with a SUMMARY LEAD telling who, what, where, and when at the top. How and why follow quickly. May be written with a FEATURE LEAD as long as the nut graph comes very near the top.
NEWS FEATURE STORY - Can be pegged to a recent or ongoing news event or issue of interest. May also be a human interest feature with no hard news peg.
ANALYSIS - Also known as an insight story, this is one in which the journalist interprets the events on a deeper more comprehensive level. The object is to elaborate on the significance or context of a large news story.
COLUMN - a personal opinion piece. It is usually an ongoing regular in-house column by a staffer, but may be a guest column by a freelancer or community member.
EDITORIAL - the collective opinion of the newspapers editorial board. Although editorials are unsigned, they are the result of a meeting of writer/editors who come to an agreement about what the newspaper is comfortable saying on an issue. The editorial is then assigned to one particular writer to actually compose.
OP-ED/OPINION PIECE - an opinion piece written by somebody from outside the newspaper. Usually appears opposite the editorials that are written by the newspaper's staff writers.
BEAT - a particular subject area that a reporter specializes in. Examples: the education beat, the police beat, the health beat, the science beat.
LEAD (LEDE) - The first sentence of your article.
HOOK - a twist, or snappy opening to hook the reader. Often it is a short sentence before the straight news lead.
ANECDOTAL LEAD - a lead that recreates a setting, event, situation, place or atmosphere as a way into the story. May be from a few sentences to a few paragraphs. Usually requires a nut graph to ground the reader. Also known as a NARRATIVE LEAD.
NUT GRAPH - a paragraph that steps back and lets the reader know the context and importance - some times the hard news aspects - of the issues or events being dealt with in the article.
BODY - the main section of the article, after the lead and before the kicker.
FLOW - how the paragraphs transition from one idea or topic to the next.
BRIDGE - a word, phrase, sentence or written image that logically connects one paragraph or section of the article to the one that immediately follows. Also known as a 'segue' (prounounced segway). A bridge helps the reader's mind make the leap from one thought or concept to another.
POPCORN QUOTE - a partial quotation set off in the middle of a sentence.
TICK TOCK - a story that is mainly a chronology leading up to an important event or decision. Usually written after the fact, it seeks to fill in the details of how we got to the point where the story became news.
KICKER - the ending - usually one that doesn't just trail off, but sums up or closes up the story. Preferably either peppy or poignant, and often with a view to the future.
PROFILE - A feature article about someone.
TAKE-OUT - An in-depth look at a particular subject or event. Comprehensive in scope.
PACKAGE - A collection of stories linked together by a common subject, that appear on the same day as.
SERIES - a collection of stories linked together by a common theme, published on subsequent days or in subsequent editions.
SIDEBAR - A second story, linked in theme or subject to the main story. Usually shorter and more specific than the main.
MAINBAR - The main story which may be supplemented with one or more sidebars. The term is usually used when editors and reporters are preparing a package.
SLUG - the placeholder title of a story that the reporter and editors use internally, as the story makes its way through the computer system. Remember, the actual headline is written by editors toward the end of the process.
TIGHT WRITING - Eliminating excess words. Direct writing with action verbs instead of many adjectives. Usually in the active, rather than passive voice.
ADVANCING THE STORY - going beyond the who-what-where-why-when of the original news event. These used to be second day stories, but are increasingly initial stories, given that the public has already heard the basics on radio or seen the headline news on television or the web.
ADVANCE COPY - Known as "Zed" copy in Britain and Canada, because it is a placeholder copy, in which the body of the story can be written in advance, to be re-topped with the actual news when it happens. Often used for election results on a tight deadline. Obituaries of famous people are also often written in advance and held on hand until the person dies, and those details are put at the top.
SECOND DAY STORY - the second, or follow-up article to the original news event, most often when the subject matter is still developing or still of interest.
REAX/REACTION PIECE - an article base on the response of affected parties to a particular news event or government decision. These used to be second day stories, but are increasingly initial stories, given that the public has already heard the basics on radio or seen the headline news on television or the web.
SATURATION COVERAGE - when a news organization throws many resources at a story so that it is covered from every possible angle, usually in several articles, sometimes over several pages and several days. When a news story is particularly huge (such as the 9/11 bombing of the World Trade Center) this approach is common.
MAKING IT SING - writing in such a way that the piece flows effortlessly for the reader, like a piece of music, with each transition automatically taking the reader where his/her curiousity would naturally go.
BUMPF - material handed to the reporter by agencies, institutes organizations, and public relations officers, so the reporter has the background facts and figures at hand.
FLACK - an unflattering nicknamed for public relations professionals and spokespeople who are in charge of dealing with the media for their particular organization or employer.
WRITE-THRU - an edit of a story that is essentially a top-to-bottom rewrite.
COLOR - human interest details and visual descriptions that bring a story to life.
STRINGER - a foreign correspondent who is working as a freelancer rather than a staff writer for a particular news organization.
SAVED STRING - background research material, usually from other publications.
ON SPEC - Usually refers to freelance work. Writing and submitting an article when the editor has not agreed to publish the article. You could either be sending it to the editor 'cold' OR have at least gotten some interest in the idea for the article, and a commitment that the editor will look at what you wrote before deciding whether to buy it.
HARD-NOSE - a tough, hammer-at-the-subject, style of interviewing.
SOFT-TOUCH - a friendlier, chattier interview style. Often can be more effective at drawing out the most sensitive information.
HOLES IN THE STORY - Questions that arise either when writing the story or when the story is edited. The reporter must go back and do extra research to fill in the holes.
A SCOOP - Also known as an exclusive, this is when a news organization is the only one to have the story or break the story at a particular time.
OWNING THE STORY - When a news organization is the one which clearly has the best, most timely information on a given news event or issue, usually because it has decided to commit the most resources to that story.
BYLINE - The name of the reporter or writer that goes on the story.
DATELINE - The name of the place where the story originates: usually written in capitals at the beginning of the story.
HEADLINE - The title on an article. Headlines are written by editors as the page is laid out, not writers. Never withhold information on the assumption it will be covered in the headline.
BLURB - An introductory few sentences that sum up the article. Most often on the web, but increasingly seen in newspapers.
BRIEF - a short synopsis of a story. Often on the web, but also in newspapers. Often briefs are collected in a NEW DIGEST, a column or two of short paragraph news items.
SYLLABUS:Writing and Reporting for Media (TuesThurs)
Writing and Reporting for the Media
Instructor: Nomi Morris
Contact: nmorris@vcccd.edu
COURSE DESCRIPTION AND OVERVIEW
Course Goals: At the end of the semester, students know how to conceive, report, write and produce basic news, features and opinion stories in appropriate formats for print, online and broadcast.
Course Overview: Through weekly assignments, together with in-class exercises, lecture, review and critique, student newsgathering and writing skills will improve quickly. Students will write stories from exercises as well as from facts they have gathered about community news and events.
Texts: “Writing and Reporting News” Fifth Edition, by Carole Rich
Supplemental required text: Associated Press style guide. The AP stylebook is the guide of daily news writing and must be brought to class each meeting.
Class Policies: Assignments must be submitted in hard copy format. Save copies of original, as well as any marked work in case of disputed or missing grade. Clip all published copies of your stories and save with date to include in a portfolio due the final week of classes.
Grading: Course grades will be assigned according to college structure, using the A-F scale. Late papers accepted up to one week lose a full letter grade. The course grading structure is as follows, but may vary slightly during the course of the semester:
Writing assignments 150
Stories submitted to VOICE 25
California Primary Assignment 25
Class attendance and participation 50
Class exercises and quizzes 150
(These are timely and must be done on
time as the class progresses. No make-ups.
Final Exam 100
Total 500
BONUS POINTS: bringing in examples of published news stories for “what works and what doesn’t work.”
NOTE: Students must demonstrate competency of the Inverted Pyramid writing format on the final with a ‘B’ or better in order to earn an ‘A’ in the course, regardless of cumulative semester points.
Class procedures: Students must attend class and, if absent, find out what the assignments are. Assignments cannot be made up beyond the week grace period. Late exercises and quizzes are not accepted beyond the posted expiration time.
Class Etiquette: Students who behave inappropriately in class will be warned once before they are excused from the class for good.
Plagiarism: Plagiarism and other forms of cheating are not tolerated. Anyone caught cheating will be reported to the dean and receive a failing grade for the course.
Diversity: Students in this course are encouraged to make every effort, with the instructor’s help, to include people in their assignments who have been traditionally overlooked by mainstream media.
Students with Disabilities: Students who may need accommodations in this
class are encouraged to contact ACCESS at 378-1461.
tudents with disabilities, whether physical, learning, or psychological, who believe that they may need accommodations in this class, are encouraged to contact ACCESS as soon as possible to arrange for these accommodations. Authorization, based on verification of disability, is required in the form of a "Confidential Memo" before any disability accommodation will be made in this class. The phone number for ACCESS is (805) 378-1461 and their office is located in the building just to the right of the Campus Center. Drop-in hours are available.
Students enrolled in this course are encouraged to use The Learning Center, The Math Center, and the Writing Center services to support their efforts in this class. The Learning Center, Math Center, and Writing Center, located in Library 322, will provide tutorial services and supplemental instruction based on course goals. When using these services, students need to state their instructor’s name for tracking and reporting purposes. Students will also need to provide their student ID numbers when receiving tutorial services. For further information call The Learning Center (805) 378-1556 or the Writing Center (805) 378-1400 ext 1696.
Smoking Policy: Moorpark College is a non-smoking campus.
Weekly Syllabus: Writing and Reporting for the Media, Jour M02
NOTE: The weekly summary printed here is a guideline open to change as we go. Most important are the textbook reading assignments, particularly the pages listed. Writing assignments will be posted separately.
Week I Introduction. Review course requirements,
Sources, assumptions, attributions, ethics and fairness
Read Text: Ch. 1: Changing concepts and media
What makes news? Get familiar with Associated Press Styleguide A-F
Week II Text: Ch. 5 Interviewing
Interview class exercise
Accuracy & neutral reporting, Pages 277-279; Plagiarism Pages 296-297
Text, Ch. 2: Tell a Friend. Writing to be read: The focus, lead, the backup, the nut
Using Quotes; Read Pg. 93
Week III More on Ch. 2: Finding Focus
Ch. 8: Inverted Pyramid
Using quotes. Attribution, background, elaboration
It’s not about You: Keeping yourself out of the story.
Week IV Writing a news story: Ch. 7: Leads and NutGraf
Hard and soft leads/more on inverted pyramid
Active and Passive Voice /Story organization
Special session on California Primary assignment
Week V More on story structure
Ch. 6: grammar
Ch. 20: Covering crime Robbery exercise
Lead types: soft, hard, summary, mystery; Attributions
Week VI Choose meeting to cover; plan to attend a student government or city council meeting
Writing a story pitch: Pitch 1st story for publication
Week VII Ch. 18: Covering Campus meetings, speeches and events
Council exercise
Covering meetings, writing the advance; getting to know the agenda
Agenda exercise and quiz
Week VIII Ch. 18 Covering meetings; writing the story
Week IX Ch. 9: Storytelling and Feature Techniques: Writing a feature story; Choose topic for feature; write story, coordinate art
Week X: Feature writing
Week XI: Feature Writing cont'd
Week XII: Media Law and Libel Lecture and Quiz Ch. 13, Media Law on Public Figures (Pg. 282), Fairness (Pg. 288) Use of name or picture without permission (Pg. 289)
Week XIII Ch. 11: Writing for broadcast. Rewrite story for broadcast. Ch. 12: Writing for web.
Week XIV Ch. 21: Writing opinion stories. Finalize feature stories; Student Voice submissions.
Week XV: Guest speaker. Ch. 22: Writing a Profile. Receive material for final exam.
Week XVI: Review, grade check, Present portfolios
Week XVII: FINAL EXAM
Instructor: Nomi Morris
Contact: nmorris@vcccd.edu
COURSE DESCRIPTION AND OVERVIEW
Course Goals: At the end of the semester, students know how to conceive, report, write and produce basic news, features and opinion stories in appropriate formats for print, online and broadcast.
Course Overview: Through weekly assignments, together with in-class exercises, lecture, review and critique, student newsgathering and writing skills will improve quickly. Students will write stories from exercises as well as from facts they have gathered about community news and events.
Texts: “Writing and Reporting News” Fifth Edition, by Carole Rich
Supplemental required text: Associated Press style guide. The AP stylebook is the guide of daily news writing and must be brought to class each meeting.
Class Policies: Assignments must be submitted in hard copy format. Save copies of original, as well as any marked work in case of disputed or missing grade. Clip all published copies of your stories and save with date to include in a portfolio due the final week of classes.
Grading: Course grades will be assigned according to college structure, using the A-F scale. Late papers accepted up to one week lose a full letter grade. The course grading structure is as follows, but may vary slightly during the course of the semester:
Writing assignments 150
Stories submitted to VOICE 25
California Primary Assignment 25
Class attendance and participation 50
Class exercises and quizzes 150
(These are timely and must be done on
time as the class progresses. No make-ups.
Final Exam 100
Total 500
BONUS POINTS: bringing in examples of published news stories for “what works and what doesn’t work.”
NOTE: Students must demonstrate competency of the Inverted Pyramid writing format on the final with a ‘B’ or better in order to earn an ‘A’ in the course, regardless of cumulative semester points.
Class procedures: Students must attend class and, if absent, find out what the assignments are. Assignments cannot be made up beyond the week grace period. Late exercises and quizzes are not accepted beyond the posted expiration time.
Class Etiquette: Students who behave inappropriately in class will be warned once before they are excused from the class for good.
Plagiarism: Plagiarism and other forms of cheating are not tolerated. Anyone caught cheating will be reported to the dean and receive a failing grade for the course.
Diversity: Students in this course are encouraged to make every effort, with the instructor’s help, to include people in their assignments who have been traditionally overlooked by mainstream media.
Students with Disabilities: Students who may need accommodations in this
class are encouraged to contact ACCESS at 378-1461.
tudents with disabilities, whether physical, learning, or psychological, who believe that they may need accommodations in this class, are encouraged to contact ACCESS as soon as possible to arrange for these accommodations. Authorization, based on verification of disability, is required in the form of a "Confidential Memo" before any disability accommodation will be made in this class. The phone number for ACCESS is (805) 378-1461 and their office is located in the building just to the right of the Campus Center. Drop-in hours are available.
Students enrolled in this course are encouraged to use The Learning Center, The Math Center, and the Writing Center services to support their efforts in this class. The Learning Center, Math Center, and Writing Center, located in Library 322, will provide tutorial services and supplemental instruction based on course goals. When using these services, students need to state their instructor’s name for tracking and reporting purposes. Students will also need to provide their student ID numbers when receiving tutorial services. For further information call The Learning Center (805) 378-1556 or the Writing Center (805) 378-1400 ext 1696.
Smoking Policy: Moorpark College is a non-smoking campus.
Weekly Syllabus: Writing and Reporting for the Media, Jour M02
NOTE: The weekly summary printed here is a guideline open to change as we go. Most important are the textbook reading assignments, particularly the pages listed. Writing assignments will be posted separately.
Week I Introduction. Review course requirements,
Sources, assumptions, attributions, ethics and fairness
Read Text: Ch. 1: Changing concepts and media
What makes news? Get familiar with Associated Press Styleguide A-F
Week II Text: Ch. 5 Interviewing
Interview class exercise
Accuracy & neutral reporting, Pages 277-279; Plagiarism Pages 296-297
Text, Ch. 2: Tell a Friend. Writing to be read: The focus, lead, the backup, the nut
Using Quotes; Read Pg. 93
Week III More on Ch. 2: Finding Focus
Ch. 8: Inverted Pyramid
Using quotes. Attribution, background, elaboration
It’s not about You: Keeping yourself out of the story.
Week IV Writing a news story: Ch. 7: Leads and NutGraf
Hard and soft leads/more on inverted pyramid
Active and Passive Voice /Story organization
Special session on California Primary assignment
Week V More on story structure
Ch. 6: grammar
Ch. 20: Covering crime Robbery exercise
Lead types: soft, hard, summary, mystery; Attributions
Week VI Choose meeting to cover; plan to attend a student government or city council meeting
Writing a story pitch: Pitch 1st story for publication
Week VII Ch. 18: Covering Campus meetings, speeches and events
Council exercise
Covering meetings, writing the advance; getting to know the agenda
Agenda exercise and quiz
Week VIII Ch. 18 Covering meetings; writing the story
Week IX Ch. 9: Storytelling and Feature Techniques: Writing a feature story; Choose topic for feature; write story, coordinate art
Week X: Feature writing
Week XI: Feature Writing cont'd
Week XII: Media Law and Libel Lecture and Quiz Ch. 13, Media Law on Public Figures (Pg. 282), Fairness (Pg. 288) Use of name or picture without permission (Pg. 289)
Week XIII Ch. 11: Writing for broadcast. Rewrite story for broadcast. Ch. 12: Writing for web.
Week XIV Ch. 21: Writing opinion stories. Finalize feature stories; Student Voice submissions.
Week XV: Guest speaker. Ch. 22: Writing a Profile. Receive material for final exam.
Week XVI: Review, grade check, Present portfolios
Week XVII: FINAL EXAM
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