Chapter 11 is on News Releases. I found it interesting in this chapter that the book says release dates are often broken by newspapers. It says that, as a courtesy, most newspapers honor release dates, but then adds that if one newspaper breaks a release date, the others will follow. I am really surprised to learn that this happens. I would expect honoring release dates to be a strict rule in newsrooms.
I also thought that it was interesting that the book recommends checking all of the information in a news release. I would expect that a news release would be assumed correct. I also was surprised that the book recommends the writer to check all of the information, rather than the copy desk.
I am glad that the book pointed out the importance of not taking quotes from news releases. A lot of my writers at The Ithacan get into the bad habit of quoting documents. A call to the person in the document will yield better quotes and bring credibility and depth to your writing.
Chapter 12 covered speeches, news conferences and meetings. The sections on preparing for covering the different events was very helpful to me. I find that I have a hard time preparing for not only events, but interviews as well. I have a tendency to slack on preparation, which leads to awkward interviews with little raport and bad quotes.
I also was glad the book included a comment on watching the speakers gestures and facial expressions. I haven't covered very many speeches, but I imagine that a story with those descriptive details would be much more interesting for the reader. I am actually covering the Dalai Lama's visit to Ithaca in a few weeks and am hoping to write a story with these important details.
The book stated that sometimes what happens at news conferences or meetings is more interesting than what is being presented, and I agree. Comments from and about those in attendance will make the reader feel as though they were at the event, which is one of the purposes of the story.
Friday, September 28, 2007
XM Radio launches new station
XM radio launched a new channel on September 24th, which will be devoted only to the 2008 Presidential election.
According to CNN, the station, titled POTUS '08, will give 24 hour coverage of the elections. It will broadcast shows produced by XM radio, as well as those produced by other publications and well-known journalists.
The station is channel 130 on XM radio.
According to CNN, the station, titled POTUS '08, will give 24 hour coverage of the elections. It will broadcast shows produced by XM radio, as well as those produced by other publications and well-known journalists.
"We want this to be a town square where people can come to hear the candidates, listen to the debates, get the news, and gather opinions from all sides," said Kevin Straley, senior vice president of news, talk, and sports programming, XM Satellite Radio. "You can hear diverse views across the political spectrum, including voices you don't typically hear on traditional media. There's an enormous amount of interest in this particular election, and people across the country can tune in anytime, wherever they are, as the campaign unfolds."
On Sunday's, the station will broadcast audio of the following shows: "FOX News Sunday" "This Week with George Stephanopoulos" and CNN's "Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer," among others.
The station is channel 130 on XM radio.
Find out more information at www.xmradio.com/potus.
Monday, September 24, 2007
Thoughts on the readings
I found the information in Chapter 10 on obituaries to be really interesting. I had truly never thought about obituary writing as a crafted form of journalism.
The book gave the tip of checking the newspaper library when writing an obituary. The deceased may have given an interview earlier in his or her life. Their quotes may be pertinent and make for a good addition to their obituary.
The section on interviewing the family also was very helpful. I would personally worry about approaching a family for an interview during the difficult time, but it is good to remember that many families may want to share stories and memories of the deceased, in hopes that he or she will have a worthy obituary.
This chapter really showed me that obituary writing is an art. I expected obituary writers to fall back on form journalism, which I'm sure, some do. But it's the one's who take the duty as a responsibility to the deceased who are doing the job justics.
The book gave the tip of checking the newspaper library when writing an obituary. The deceased may have given an interview earlier in his or her life. Their quotes may be pertinent and make for a good addition to their obituary.
The section on interviewing the family also was very helpful. I would personally worry about approaching a family for an interview during the difficult time, but it is good to remember that many families may want to share stories and memories of the deceased, in hopes that he or she will have a worthy obituary.
This chapter really showed me that obituary writing is an art. I expected obituary writers to fall back on form journalism, which I'm sure, some do. But it's the one's who take the duty as a responsibility to the deceased who are doing the job justics.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Unions give record funds to 2008 election
According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), a group of 55 national and international unions, announced Friday that they would devote $53 million to the 2008 election, a figure that is up 11% from the amount in the 2004 election. It also plans to mobilize 200,000 volunteers who knock on doors and make phone calls in hopes of a higher voter turnout.
According to an article from the Associated Press, much of that budget is going to be dedicated to battleground states, such as Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
While the AFL-CIO has not endorsed a specific party, it has given its members the right to do so. According to a New York Times blog, however, nearly 90% of the candidates the group endorses on a given year are democrats.
The Laborers International Union of North America, a union which is part of AFL-CIO, will spend nearly double what they did in 2008, much of it on new outreach methods.
Why are they doing all of this?
In the WSJ article, Gary Chaison, a labor expert at Clark University in Worcester, Mass., answered that question.
According to an article from the Associated Press, much of that budget is going to be dedicated to battleground states, such as Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
"Today the AFL-CIO is sending a powerful message that we are going to change the course of our country in 2008 by electing a president and candidates at all levels who are committed to restoring the promise of America to working people," AFL-CIO President John Sweeney said.According to the WSJ article, much of the money from the AFL-CIO will go to text-messages and emails, a new technique to pull in more voters.
While the AFL-CIO has not endorsed a specific party, it has given its members the right to do so. According to a New York Times blog, however, nearly 90% of the candidates the group endorses on a given year are democrats.
The Laborers International Union of North America, a union which is part of AFL-CIO, will spend nearly double what they did in 2008, much of it on new outreach methods.
The union will send text messages to members' cellphones and will tailor messages to retirees and Hispanic members, among others, via email and online documents.
Why are they doing all of this?
In the WSJ article, Gary Chaison, a labor expert at Clark University in Worcester, Mass., answered that question.
"This is the all-or-nothing election for them. They can't have another four years of not having the White House," he said.
Monday, September 17, 2007
Thoughts on the readings
E-Media Tidbits - Poynter Institute Online
As a person who fears online journalism, I have to give credit to what the folks over at the Michigan State Knight Center for Environmental Journalism did, in creating on online community and fully functioning citizen journalist forum.
I am really intrigued by citizen journalism, and an RSS feed is a form of that which I haven't really looked into. In the case of the Knight Center, the feed was able to connect people from all over the country to a topic that they otherwise wouldn't have known about. And it gave them a space to share their own ideas with the other members.
Using a timeline to tell a story
At The Ithacan, we have actually been using timelines a lot. Really, we've been thinking about what is the BEST way to tell a story. We we are now able to start thinking outside of the article. We have online multimedia to add to the online story, and for the print, we are using other kinds of sidebars to add to the story.
I find that timelines are really useful when there are a lot of dates in the story, or a clear progression of an idea or organization. By pulling that information out of the story and into a timeline, it gives the reader a clearer way to take in the information.
Chapter 4 in News Reporting and Writing
Quotes are like candy for the reader. They break up informative text and offer flavor to an article. Many new journalists, however, sprinkle cheap candy all over their articles. Rather than paraphrasing what can be easily paraphrased, they get into the trap of thinking they need a quote every other paragraph. I think it is much more effective to hold off for a really good quote. I try to quote people when they say things better than I could paraphrase it, or with colorful language that shows their personality.
The section on quotes really reminded me just how important it is to RECORD EVERYTHING. Even the most seemingly straight forward interviews should be recorded. This is constantly stressed at The Ithacan. I also just found out last week that in NY state, the law says that you do not have to tell someone you are doing a phone interview with that you are using a taping devices. I'm not sure on the other state laws, but hearing my editors talking about that reminded me of how important it is to check that.
Quoting brings a whole new possibility of libel into the picture, and the only way to fully avoid that is to tape everything, and never misquote what you've taped.
As a person who fears online journalism, I have to give credit to what the folks over at the Michigan State Knight Center for Environmental Journalism did, in creating on online community and fully functioning citizen journalist forum.
I am really intrigued by citizen journalism, and an RSS feed is a form of that which I haven't really looked into. In the case of the Knight Center, the feed was able to connect people from all over the country to a topic that they otherwise wouldn't have known about. And it gave them a space to share their own ideas with the other members.
Using a timeline to tell a story
At The Ithacan, we have actually been using timelines a lot. Really, we've been thinking about what is the BEST way to tell a story. We we are now able to start thinking outside of the article. We have online multimedia to add to the online story, and for the print, we are using other kinds of sidebars to add to the story.
I find that timelines are really useful when there are a lot of dates in the story, or a clear progression of an idea or organization. By pulling that information out of the story and into a timeline, it gives the reader a clearer way to take in the information.
Chapter 4 in News Reporting and Writing
Quotes are like candy for the reader. They break up informative text and offer flavor to an article. Many new journalists, however, sprinkle cheap candy all over their articles. Rather than paraphrasing what can be easily paraphrased, they get into the trap of thinking they need a quote every other paragraph. I think it is much more effective to hold off for a really good quote. I try to quote people when they say things better than I could paraphrase it, or with colorful language that shows their personality.
The section on quotes really reminded me just how important it is to RECORD EVERYTHING. Even the most seemingly straight forward interviews should be recorded. This is constantly stressed at The Ithacan. I also just found out last week that in NY state, the law says that you do not have to tell someone you are doing a phone interview with that you are using a taping devices. I'm not sure on the other state laws, but hearing my editors talking about that reminded me of how important it is to check that.
Quoting brings a whole new possibility of libel into the picture, and the only way to fully avoid that is to tape everything, and never misquote what you've taped.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
The possible first ladies ... and the possible first man
Earlier today, republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney said that his wife would make a prettier first lady than former president Bill Clinton.
The comment was in reference to a TIME MAGAZINE article, "The Real Running Mates." The
According to a CNN blog, Romney said,
Check out the article in TIME to learn more about the campaign styles of the other possible first ladies (and first men.)
The comment was in reference to a TIME MAGAZINE article, "The Real Running Mates." The
According to a CNN blog, Romney said,
"It has a picture of five of the possible first ladies," the former Massachusetts governor said. "In the upper left hand corner it has my wife, and then next to it, it has Bill Clinton. And she is a much prettier first lady than Bill Clinton, I can tell you that!"Regardless of what a pretty first lady shew would make, Ann Romney has been a visible part of her husband's presidential campaign. According to an article in the Desert Morning News, she's hitting to trail to aid her husband, who as of now is most well known as being the races only Mormon candidate.
Since April, she has maintained her own campaign schedule, pitching her husband's presidential bid to mostly Republican women's organizations throughout the South as well as in California and other states.
And Ann Romney is convinced there will come a time when the campaign can move on from discussing religion. "That's exactly what happened in Massachusetts," she said, referring to her husband's term as that state's governor.
Check out the article in TIME to learn more about the campaign styles of the other possible first ladies (and first men.)
Monday, September 10, 2007
Thoughts on the readings
Chapter 1 of News Reporting and Writing writes that the newest form of journalism is based on two main points:
1) Democracy isn’t working as well as it should
2) Journalists have a responsibility to do something about that.
Traditional journalists, the book writes, would believe that simply because public life does not work well, dose not mean that it is our responsibility to make it work. It adds that traditional journalists would find this kind of thinking to be dangerous.
Truthfully, I think that the idea that journalists have a responsibility to fix democracy is crazy. We have a responsibility to report the news. We tell the public what is happening, and we do so in an unbiased fashion.
Chapter 2 describes the layout of a typical newsroom. The chapter also talks about the changing nature of reporting. One of the most fascinating changes I have seen in the newsroom is the addition of the citizen journalists, a non staff writer who is used by mid-sized newspapers to cover town events.
I have put al of thought into the reality of citizen journalists and decided that in years to come, a restructuring of the newsroom may be needed. There would, in fact, be another tier added to the newsroom (editor-in-chief, section editors, reporters, citizen journalists). More copy editors would be needed to deal with style issues from the citizen pieces, possibly one for each section. Staff reporters in the newsroom should also be expected to assist in editing, with citizen writers reporting to a staff journalist. For example, each town in the newspaper’s area could have one reporter assigned to it who would oversea all of the citizen reporters from that area. Their job would be to cover the town’s main events and to help assist the citizen journalists on their pieces, doing the first edits.
From the interviewing tips section of Chapter 3, I was reminded that I really need to work on keeping my questions short and concise. I tend to ramble too long in my questions to make sure that I have gotten the point across right.
My favorite interview technique is to simply act like I don’t know what I'm talk about. I find that a lot of people are much more willing to tell me everything about what they do if I act like I don’t know, and am very interested. It works especially well for profile pieces. Obviously, for hard news, you need the person to know that you’re not gullible. But I do find that a little bit of naivety goes a long way.
1) Democracy isn’t working as well as it should
2) Journalists have a responsibility to do something about that.
Traditional journalists, the book writes, would believe that simply because public life does not work well, dose not mean that it is our responsibility to make it work. It adds that traditional journalists would find this kind of thinking to be dangerous.
Truthfully, I think that the idea that journalists have a responsibility to fix democracy is crazy. We have a responsibility to report the news. We tell the public what is happening, and we do so in an unbiased fashion.
Chapter 2 describes the layout of a typical newsroom. The chapter also talks about the changing nature of reporting. One of the most fascinating changes I have seen in the newsroom is the addition of the citizen journalists, a non staff writer who is used by mid-sized newspapers to cover town events.
I have put al of thought into the reality of citizen journalists and decided that in years to come, a restructuring of the newsroom may be needed. There would, in fact, be another tier added to the newsroom (editor-in-chief, section editors, reporters, citizen journalists). More copy editors would be needed to deal with style issues from the citizen pieces, possibly one for each section. Staff reporters in the newsroom should also be expected to assist in editing, with citizen writers reporting to a staff journalist. For example, each town in the newspaper’s area could have one reporter assigned to it who would oversea all of the citizen reporters from that area. Their job would be to cover the town’s main events and to help assist the citizen journalists on their pieces, doing the first edits.
From the interviewing tips section of Chapter 3, I was reminded that I really need to work on keeping my questions short and concise. I tend to ramble too long in my questions to make sure that I have gotten the point across right.
My favorite interview technique is to simply act like I don’t know what I'm talk about. I find that a lot of people are much more willing to tell me everything about what they do if I act like I don’t know, and am very interested. It works especially well for profile pieces. Obviously, for hard news, you need the person to know that you’re not gullible. But I do find that a little bit of naivety goes a long way.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Oprah puts in her two (very powerful) cents
Oprah Winfrey has officially endorsed presidential candidate Barack Obama.
According to a video at CNN.com, the two have known each other since 2000 when they met in the Chicago social circuit.
As a Chicago resident, its pretty much a law that I watch Oprah regularly. I remember the first appearance Obama made on her show. It was around the time he was running for Illinois state senator, and as he sat on her couch with his lovely wife and pictures of his two girls on the screen behind him, you couldn't help but be intrigued. I remember thinking then that he was pursuading 1/2 of the women in America to like - if not love - him.
Oprah is holding a fundraising event for him this Saturday at her California home, where she plans to raise nearly $3 million.
According to a washingtonpost.com blog, this is a new step for Oprah, who has never before officially supported a candidate.
And her support means a lot. Most have expected Clinton to take a large percentage of the female vote, but now, Obama has a chance to take some of those important votes back.
Interesting fact from that CNN video: a recent Gallup poll shows Oprah Winfrey as the second most popular woman in America. The first - Hillary Clinton.
Other source
According to a video at CNN.com, the two have known each other since 2000 when they met in the Chicago social circuit.
As a Chicago resident, its pretty much a law that I watch Oprah regularly. I remember the first appearance Obama made on her show. It was around the time he was running for Illinois state senator, and as he sat on her couch with his lovely wife and pictures of his two girls on the screen behind him, you couldn't help but be intrigued. I remember thinking then that he was pursuading 1/2 of the women in America to like - if not love - him.
Oprah is holding a fundraising event for him this Saturday at her California home, where she plans to raise nearly $3 million.
According to a washingtonpost.com blog, this is a new step for Oprah, who has never before officially supported a candidate.
And her support means a lot. Most have expected Clinton to take a large percentage of the female vote, but now, Obama has a chance to take some of those important votes back.
Interesting fact from that CNN video: a recent Gallup poll shows Oprah Winfrey as the second most popular woman in America. The first - Hillary Clinton.
Other source
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Thompson to make it official
So it took him five months, but Fred Thompson (Tenn.-R) is finally ready to announce his candidacy for president. He will do so tomorrow, first on the internet, and then at a rally in DesMoines, Iowa.
It seems as though he is going to continue avoiding questions until then. Tonight, the Republican presidential candidates are gathering for their 5th debate, and Thompson has declined to attend. Instead, he will be featured in a taped appearance on The Tonight Show, and will release a video announcement on the internet early tomorrow morning.
According to Fox News, this plan differs greatly from his original arrangement. After a June appearance on The Tonight Show, Thompson’s staff said he would not “return to Hollywood.” The latest announcement obviously leaves many of his supporters annoyed.
By holding his announcement, he really has been able to avoid the important questions that every other candidate has had to answer. It will be interesting to see how he handles the barrage that is sure to come his way as of tomorrow.
SILLY: The announcement hasn’t even been made yet, and Rudy Giuliani, is already coming out against Thompson. A top advisor to Giuliani said Thompson’s only experience in fighting crime is on television.
Sources
http://www.nypost.com/seven/09052007/news/nationalnews/tv_fred_only_acts_tough.htm
http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/2007-09-04-thompson-campaign_N.htm
http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/archives/12769.html
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,295796,00.html
It seems as though he is going to continue avoiding questions until then. Tonight, the Republican presidential candidates are gathering for their 5th debate, and Thompson has declined to attend. Instead, he will be featured in a taped appearance on The Tonight Show, and will release a video announcement on the internet early tomorrow morning.
According to Fox News, this plan differs greatly from his original arrangement. After a June appearance on The Tonight Show, Thompson’s staff said he would not “return to Hollywood.” The latest announcement obviously leaves many of his supporters annoyed.
By holding his announcement, he really has been able to avoid the important questions that every other candidate has had to answer. It will be interesting to see how he handles the barrage that is sure to come his way as of tomorrow.
SILLY: The announcement hasn’t even been made yet, and Rudy Giuliani, is already coming out against Thompson. A top advisor to Giuliani said Thompson’s only experience in fighting crime is on television.
Sources
http://www.nypost.com/seven/09052007/news/nationalnews/tv_fred_only_acts_tough.htm
http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/2007-09-04-thompson-campaign_N.htm
http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/archives/12769.html
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,295796,00.html
The State of the News Media
As a true lover of the newspaper, I chose to focus mostly on print media conclusions from the recently released (and HUGE) 2007 State of the News Media report.
If you want to read the whole thing, go for it. http://www.stateofthenewsmedia.org/2007/narrative_newspapers_intro.asp?media=3
Really though, it's crazy long.
Some Observations
- I was pleased to see the reports conclusion that people are NOT losing interest in media. Still, they do seem to be losing interest in newspapers – at least in their print form.
- I suppose this ties in well to the above point: THERE IS A WHOLE SECTION TITLED “DIGITAL JOURNALISM,” AND ANOTHER TITLED “ONLINE.” Even with how many of my professors have told me that digital journalism is an unavoidable part of reporting, I was still surprised to see a whole section of the report dedicated to its existence. As more of our consumers change their wants and stop buying newspapers, we are reacting with a steadily growing amount of online media. For me, the response will be full of protest. I really with I could have been a journalist 20 years ago.
- I was worried to see that the public is losing faith in their media – an understandable attitude, when even the beloved Katie Couric is accused of plagiarism. Read about it - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18046837
A staggering quote from the report: “The number of Americans with a favorable view of the press, for instance, dropped markedly in 2006, from 59% in February, to 48% in July.”
Additional Thoughts
Basically, the report made me concerned about my choice to be a journalist in the 21st century. With the race to win-over viewers, more and more journalists are creating content with less fact-checking and care, leaving Americans with less faith in their media.
Furthermore, I think that the space for individuality and literary journalism – and the appreciation of a perfectly crafted sentence – are slipping out of most journalist’s values. We are asked to write our news in inverted-pyramid form, with little room for creativity.
And with hope that it is not naïve – I will continue to hold onto my deep love of printed newspapers. … Per the request of my professors and the rational part of me that knows they are right, I will try to become comfortable with online and digital media.
I could write pages on this massive report, but that’s the bulk of what I’m feeling about the state of journalism in 2007.
If you want to read the whole thing, go for it. http://www.stateofthenewsmedia.org/2007/narrative_newspapers_intro.asp?media=3
Really though, it's crazy long.
Some Observations
- I was pleased to see the reports conclusion that people are NOT losing interest in media. Still, they do seem to be losing interest in newspapers – at least in their print form.
- I suppose this ties in well to the above point: THERE IS A WHOLE SECTION TITLED “DIGITAL JOURNALISM,” AND ANOTHER TITLED “ONLINE.” Even with how many of my professors have told me that digital journalism is an unavoidable part of reporting, I was still surprised to see a whole section of the report dedicated to its existence. As more of our consumers change their wants and stop buying newspapers, we are reacting with a steadily growing amount of online media. For me, the response will be full of protest. I really with I could have been a journalist 20 years ago.
- I was worried to see that the public is losing faith in their media – an understandable attitude, when even the beloved Katie Couric is accused of plagiarism. Read about it - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18046837
A staggering quote from the report: “The number of Americans with a favorable view of the press, for instance, dropped markedly in 2006, from 59% in February, to 48% in July.”
Additional Thoughts
Basically, the report made me concerned about my choice to be a journalist in the 21st century. With the race to win-over viewers, more and more journalists are creating content with less fact-checking and care, leaving Americans with less faith in their media.
Furthermore, I think that the space for individuality and literary journalism – and the appreciation of a perfectly crafted sentence – are slipping out of most journalist’s values. We are asked to write our news in inverted-pyramid form, with little room for creativity.
And with hope that it is not naïve – I will continue to hold onto my deep love of printed newspapers. … Per the request of my professors and the rational part of me that knows they are right, I will try to become comfortable with online and digital media.
I could write pages on this massive report, but that’s the bulk of what I’m feeling about the state of journalism in 2007.
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