IF NO QUESTIONS, THEN REVIEW THE CLASS BLOG POSTS TITLED

“CREATING & UPDATING YOUR RESUME”

Blog Setup Help and Dashboard Tutorial

HTTP://TWITTER.COM/#!/KLANDREVILLE

I WILL TWEET RELEVANT LINKS AND INTERNSHIPS

Follow Me On Twitter!

DR. KRISTEN LANDREVILLEAUGUST 24, 2011

The Attributes of Objective Journalism

What is News?

Class Discussion: What is news to you? What is NOT news to you?

What about cable news vs. network news?What about bloggers vs. journalists?What about comedic news vs. traditional

news?

What is News?

• Impact• Prominence• Proximity• Timeliness• Conflict• Novelty

Go to CNN.com What is the main story and news values does it

reflect?

ACCURACY, FAIRNESS, OBJECTIVITY, & CLARITY

News Values

Accuracy

• Accuracy is tied with credibility.

• Every detail must be correct.

• 24-hour news cycle puts stress on accuracy.

Fairness

A story cannot be accurate without being fairAll sides of the story must be presented in a storySeek out diverse opinions from like-groups as

well. Example: Some Muslims might not want a mosque built by

Ground Zero.

Example of Unfair Story: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/08/29/president-

says-hes-worried-muslim-rumors/ Note headline and url name See the actual survey report at http://people-press.org/

Objectivity

• Journalists must arrive at the best obtainable version of the truth

• All journalists do have their own biases (beliefs, spirituality, political views, etc), but these biases should not be evident in his or her writing

• Draw boundaries if necessary • If you’re a strict vegetarian and think people

who eat meat are destroying the planet, then remove yourself from a story about the beef industry.

Clarity

Research and knowledge of the topic are essential. If you don’t get it, you won’t write it well, and you’re

audience won’t get it either.

Stories should: Be simple and understandable Explain complex issues or processes with ease Be complete so that readers should not be left with

any questions Be specific and not assume readers have read all of

the previous stories about the subject/event

As a Journalist …

• Your basic obligation is to the reader. The next obligation is to the company you’re representing.

• Don’t allow your story to be released until you understand everything

• Never assume anything

Plan your stories, interviews, etc., but be prepared to make major changes.

Make every word you write count – space is limited.

AUGUST 24, 2011

Basics of Online Journalism

AdvantagesAdvantages SignificanceSignificance

Audience ControlNonlinearityStorage, Retrieval, &

Unlimited SpaceImmediacyMultimedia CapacityInteractivity & UGC

Stories need to be even more engaging

Stories need to be organized in chunks

You need to triple-check facts

You need to know print, web, audio, video, & photography!

Advantages of Online Journalism

Approaches to Online Journalism

Freestanding Journalism (e.g., Slate.com)Already-associated Journalism (e.g.,

CNN.com)Convergence Sites (e.g., TBO.com)News Aggregators (e.g., Digg.com, Google

News)Hyperlocal Sites (e.g., NewWest.net)Backpack Journalists or Mojos (i.e., YOU!)Legacy Media (e.g., LaramieBoomerang.com)

Shovelware + multimedia, links, UGC, or Web extras

Evaluating the Quality of Online Journalism

Who is the author?What is the content?Is the information accurate?When was it updated?What does it look like?

Online Journalism Terminology

Understanding the Web

ARPANET and “packets”Internet vs. Web (see “The Web is Dead”)Web browsers use the URL (address) to find

the requested information.The URL looks like http://www.klandreville.com

What does http stand for?

The website contains the html files that visually/graphically present the page to you. What does html stand for?

RSS stands for what?

Understanding Digital Media

Why go digital? Analog vs. digitalTypes of digital media from smallest to

largest file size. File size affects bandwidth usage. Text = ASCII Graphics = GIF, BMP, TIFF, EPS, JPEG, PNG PDFs preserve original formatting that may include

both text and graphics Sound = WAV and AIFF are larger than MP3 Video = MPEG, QuickTime, Flash Video, and AVI Rich Content = Java, Flash, AJAX, XML

Online Journalism 2.0

Web 2.0 Platforms allow users to

easily post and share content

User-generated content Community and connecting

“The news is a conversation, not a lecture.” Bloggers, CNN’s iReport YouTube, MySpace,

Facebook, Flickr, Twitter Digg, Newsvine, Reddit,

and Slashdot

Mobile 2.0 smartphones, iPods, iPads,

and variations of each now connect to the Internet

Implications for journalism? Be even more aware of the

participant (i.e., the audience)

Use RSS feeds and Twitter to keep tabs on stories all over the Web

Need content available for these users in “podcasts” and “vodcasts”