A word's worth of Week 7: Chapter 7!

J. Jonah Jameson Quote of the Week:

"Put it out on the front page: Cash money for pictures of Spiderman! If he doesn't want to be famous...then I'll make him infamous!"

Some discussion questions:

1. At what educational level of readers should newspapers be aiming? Do you think your main metropolitan newspaper is hitting the mark? Why or why not?

This is not a simple straightforward question, as there are myriad papers that write for a number of different audiences, all of which have different agendas in mind. Broadsheets tend to appeal more to those who wish to read a more in depth, analytical perspective of a particular news story, whereas tabloid readers' audiences like to receive their news in a small, 'bite sized' format, which allows them to skim the newspapers in order to get a good idea of the essential facts. Our main metropolitan newspaper is The Sydney Morning Herald, and it is a broadsheet aimed at the so called 'elite educated' population. It's style and structure certainly reaches this desired educational level.

2. To what extent do you think reporters should be able to interpret news events and inject their thoughts into news stories?

As much as news writing strives to be objectified in its approach, there will always be a personal element from the reporter incorporated into the story, whether it is consciously or subconsciously. As Chapter 7 indicates, in terms of the search for accuracy, "a two-pronged approach can be taken" (The Daily Miracle, p. 159). First, facts are obtained. Then opinions, or interpretations of those facts, are sought. Those quick with opinions should be asked for facts on which the opinions are based. This will strengthen a story and provide the reader with more information on which to judge the validity of opinions espoused (p. 159). The Daily Miracle also states that in this process, journalists will have to make their own judgements and interpretations of the facts and opinions they have gathered. Due to legal reasons, there are cases where reporters are entitled to provide interpretation for the readers to defend defamation action. They must ensure the interpretation is based on clearly stated facts so that the readers can assess the basis for the interpretation. The best advice in these ethical situations comes in the form of an old adage in journalism:
'If in doubt, leave it out'.
However, in my humble opinion, reporters should aim to tell their readers what to think about, not what to think!

3. English is a growing and ever-changing language as new words evolve and old ones fall into disuse. What then of the idea of a global language? Does it really matter that our language is being tainted with Americanisms and US spellings?

Not particularly. Given the dynamic nature of the English language, which borrows words and phrases from multiple languages such as French, Italian, German and Spanish, words that have a few letters difference in spelling isn't going to have a huge impact. Anyway, most of the time the US spelling of words are phonetically correct, so if anything, it could be a good thing for their infiltration. To give a simple analogy, the English language can be compared to the religious belief system of Christianity. There are many denominations/variations of it, however it is essentially communicating the same common message. In terms of a global language? There is way too much territory to cover with that, but I don't think that it is necessary to push for the globalisation process any more than is already occurring - do we really want uniformity to be here sooner than expected?

4. Based on your own experience and your reading of newspapers, do you think newspapers have a serious commitment to accuracy?

Given the time pressures that newspapers are under to get the news out to the public as quickly as possible, I commend the overall accuracy in which they strive towards, and most of the time achieves. Of course there are times when papers make errors, however my experience with them has been that they are mostly spelling mistakes; factual errors have a lot more impact, and I have encountered a few, mostly in tabloid newspapers. On the whole, their commitment to accuracy is significantly upheld with integrity.

5. What would you do if you made a serious mistake in a story you wrote but no one contacted the paper to complain?

I'd feel obligated to correct my error, just in case it was later discovered and legal and ethical ramifications ensued. More importantly than this, my reader loyalty would be in jeopardy if I didn't admit to making a mistake, which could have long term ethical and economical effects for me the reporter, the newspaper and even the whole news organisation. Admitting is the first step to fixing, and profit isn't always the central motive for news corporations. Without the readers, the whole newspaper process is redundant. It is an important two-way communicative relationship!

JOURNALISM ISSUE ENTRY OF THE WEEK:

From the textbook chapter reading this week, I have learnt several key points about the importance of style, structure and accuracy in journalism.
According to The Daily Miracle, there is a common misconception amongst news writing that stories that are easy to read may appear to have been easy to write. Some may think this means that the more complex the writing, the deeper the thought required. In each case, the opposite is true (p. 142).
It is often harder to omit detail and make a story simpler than it is to add more words. News must be written in a clear and concise manner, no matter what the publication. Another assumption is that the story must be short and simple, with few ideas conveyed in each paragraph. However, it is important as a reporter to establish a specific style in which to write, and stick to that.
Balance in a story's length and structure needs to be maintained, and it doesn't always have to be consistent. A good solid intro always reels a reader in!
Always understand the content of your own work, and don't try and simplify something that doesn't make sense to you first. If it is instrumental to the story, always be assertive and ask questions until you have the required information, clear and to the point.
An important point which also needs to be stressed is the fact that journalists need to 'know their audience'; i.e. having a sense of the 'invisible masses' and what appeals to them, as well as the newspapers market and demographics.
Writing mechanics and expressive skills are pivotal, and all of this links back to the three fundamental rules for reporters as advised by Joseph Pulitzer (after whom the Pulitzer Prize for excellence in journalism in the U.S was named):

ACCURACY, ACCURACY, ACCURACY!!!