Reporting

 What is the goal of reporting?  What does a reporter do?  When deciding on what to cover…  What is the first thing you consider?

 News Judgment  Ability to identify what is news ▪ News stories have at least one element of newsworthiness ▪ Timeliness ▪ Proximity ▪ Novelty ▪ Impact ▪ Drama ▪ Prominence ▪ Conflict ▪ Human Interest ▪ Usefulness

 The reporting process  Questions to ask when you begin an assignment ▪ What is the story ▪ What makes the story news ▪ What do I need to know ▪ Where can I find information

 Background Research  Do a quick Google search on the issue/topic ▪ Has anything been published before ▪ Is the organization/topic new ▪ Who are key people ▪ Interesting facts ▪ History on your topic/issue/organization ▪ Background information helps plan your approach

 Reporting Sources  There are many sources of information ▪ Directories ▪ Documents ▪ Newspaper archives ▪ Websites ▪ Listservs & Newsgroups ▪ Human sources

 The power of observation ▪ Note down occurrences/incidents, unique things ▪ Observations add context to the article ▪ Provide a first hand account of what is happening. ▪ Provide information without opinion ▪ Gives the reader a sense of being there

 Interviewing  Factual information  Reactions and opinions  Statistics  Anecdotes

 Recording interviews  Come prepared  Test the recorder  Use the counter  Know the law ▪ Before recording phone interviews

 Note taking  Know what to write down  Develop a shorthand ▪ If possible  Any quotes should be recorded accurately

 interviews ▪ Who is responding to the ? ▪ Doesn’t allow for spontaneous/extra questions ▪ Responses can be carefully crafted ▪ Hard to read nuances ▪ Messages can be forwarded

 interviews ▪ Use to contact people & set up interviews ▪ Use only as a last resort ▪ After phone/in person fail ▪ Use for quick follow up questions ▪ Use to double check facts/info ▪ Make sure you know the source ▪ Don’t use anonymous s

 Math for journalists  Common math elements used by journalists ▪ Percentages ▪ Ratios & rates ▪ Averages

 Accuracy  Reporting is a big responsibility ▪ People expect accuracy ▪ Readers ▪ Sources ▪ Peers ▪ Check and double check info ▪ Avoid possible lawsuits  Student journalism doesn’t exempt accuracy

 REVIEW Chapter 5  Newswriting  Quiz on Sept 25 ▪ Chap 1,2,3,4,5,10