Journalism I

  It is the journalist’s job to evaluate what’s “out there” and to select what will interest, inform, educate, amuse, or amaze the audience. Decisions have to be made about what’s important and what’s not, about balancing what the audience wants against what it needs.  Journalists use news judgment, their own good sense in determining, for example, which of a dozen items should be included in a story, and which should be in the first paragraph of first on the newscast.  No one is born with news judgment! that’s something one absorbs through experience, attending to the mass media, and hard work. News Judgment

  This method of news judgment means asking yourself who cares about this story, person, event, or issue.  If you are convinced that there is genuine interest or that this is important for the audience… you have news!  If there is neither interest nor need, then skip it. The “Who Cares?” Method

 Using the “Who cares?” method, which of the two events is newsworthy?  The mayor signs a proclamation designating next week Clean-up, Paint-up, Fix-up Week.  The mayor announces an investigation into the disappearance of $75,000 from the city’s fund. Let’s Try It!

  Who cares about the Clean-up, Paint-up, Fix-up Week? Practically no one!  Who cares about disappearing money? Nearly everyone in the community!  Obviously, few news decisions in a journalist’s life present such a clear-cut choice as those in this example. As a starter, however, always ask yourself who cares about the story and you will be on your way to developing good news judgment. Who Cares?

  Not all events are subject to such evaluation. If your teacher had a fight with a student, you might get a positive answer to the “Who cares?” question, but you wouldn’t have news. Why? Because some things are personal.  The journalist’s duty is to rise above the level of spreading ugly stories that invade the privacy and upset the lives of innocent people. One of your jobs as a journalist is to cull items that would offend the audience’s taste. Exceptions to the Rule

  Timeliness  Proximity  Prominence  Consequence  Human Interest  Conflict  Others  Including Progress, Money, Disaster, Novelty, Oddity, Emotions, Drama, Animals, and Children The Elements of News

  1 ordinary person + 1 ordinary life = no news  1 ordinary person + 1 extraordinary life = news  1 husband + 1 wife = no news  1 husband + 3 wives = news  1 person + 1 achievement = news  1 ordinary person + 1 ordinary life of 79 years = no news  1 ordinary person + 1 ordinary life of 100 years = news News Arithemetic

  The brainstorming technique is used to generate ideas for possible stories. It is a fast method that can help to get a lot of solutions, ideas, or alternatives for action in a very short amount of staff time.  Have the group leader explain the problem to be considered. Give people a few minutes of “think time” to consider the problem. Now the group leader can call on each participant to raise an issue or make a proposal for action. There should be no discussion yet. After ideas have been exhausted, begin to narrow your list to one of top priorities. Participants can then vote on their favorite idea or concept. Brainstorming

  Some of the most interesting news stories are based on the results of polls, but getting legitimate information from polls can be tricky.  The key is this: For a poll or survey to have a statistically high chance of representing not just those surveyed but the population at large, every member of the group to be surveyed must have an equal possibility of being included in the survey sample.  What this means can be summed up easily: Be careful about leaping to conclusions about polls or surveys. Information from Polls

  Survey questions themselves must be carefully crafted and ambiguous. Questions need to be short and simple and should concentrate on only one item.  Here’s an example: Levi’s jeans fit better and last longer. Do you agree or disagree?  Why is this a problematic survey question? A person might agree with the first part but not the second. Now she won’t know how she should answer. Formulating Survey Questions

  “Do you smoke cigarettes?” can be what is called a filter question. No pun intended. If you ask that question and the respondent answers no, you’re finished with the interview.  If the respondent answers yes, now you can zero in: “Do you smoke more of less than one pack a day?” “Do you parents know that you smoke?” Filter Questions

  Make sure you ask the right people the right questions, so that the people in your universe have a good chance of answering intelligently.  Don’t stack the deck in the way you ask a question. For example: “Are you going out for football or just joining choir?”  Respondents can mess things up too. Think about it: People all like to make themselves seem as cool, important, sophisticated, and well-informed as possible. For example: “Did you consume alcohol last weekend?” Asking the Right Questions