Reporter’s Reflection: Journal Assignments • You need to answer the following 4 Reporters journals, according to the instructions of each. • You also need to answer the Discussion Prompt o Each Journal Reporter must be answered based in the indications related. No cheating or plagiarism..OWN WORDS. o You can use the unit Information for knowledges o You need to turn all the documents (5) in total and well done o Reporter’s Reflection 1 • Follow the instructions in the online lesson to investigate how presidents were covered in the past. Then complete a Journal report • Be sure to label your journal entry 1.1 News Values Then. The Press and the Presidency Then Instructions It's time to go on a virtual (http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/) field trip to the Digital History website or to The Library of Congress: Newspaper and Current Periodical Reading Room.( http://www.loc.gov/rr/news/ammemser.html) Choose an article concerning one of the following presidents: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Gerald Ford, or Ronald Reagan. Your story should include at least two of the six news values previously defined. In your journal, post the link to the story you have chosen and write a paragraph for each news value the story includes explaining how it meets that value. Post your findings in your journal. Your journal entry should include the following: • • • A link to the news story you found A list of any news values that the story meets A paragraph for each listed value explaining how it meets that criteria EXAMPLE For instance, if you chose a Washington Post article about the day that President Ronald Reagan was shot by a mentally disturbed man, your story would meet all six of the news values: • Timeliness: The story was published one day after the event and therefore was very timely. • Prominence: The story was about President Reagan and as the president of the United States he was an extremely prominent person. • Proximity: Because the president was shot in Washington, D.C., and the newspaper that published the story was the Washington Post, the news was in close proximity of the publication's readership. • Conflict: Any story involving an assassination attempt contains conflict. The violence of the event itself raises many issues such as presidential security and how much is needed; gun laws and the right to bear arms; and regulations pertaining to the institutionalization of the criminally insane. • Novelty: Assassination attempts on U.S. presidents are extremely rare and so this story was very unusual. What added to this story at the time was that the president's assailant, John Hinckley Jr., was obsessed with actress Jodie Foster and shot the president in an effort to impress the Hollywood movie star. • Impact: The health and safety of any nation's leader has great social, political, and financial impact on that nation and its citizens. Reporter’s Reflection 2 • Follow the instructions in the online lesson to investigate how the current president is covered. Then complete a Journal report • Be sure to label your journal entry 1.2 News Values Now Instructions Use News You Can Peruse (PDF) (https://static.k12.com/calms_media/media/1081000_1081500/1081203/1/6947965f076732 d32aa165061f3b73d27d19b860/HS_JRN_S1_News_You_Can_Peruse.pdf) and look for a story that has run in the past month about our current president. Identify at least three of the following five news values: timeliness, proximity, novelty, conflict, or impact that this story contains. Remember, any story about a president inherently has the remaining news value of prominence, so that news value is assumed in this assignment. Then write a sentence identifying each news value in the story. Be sure to: Post your findings in your journal. Your journal entry should include the following: • • • A link to the news story you found A list of any news values that the story meets A paragraph for each listed value explaining how it meets that criteria Discussion: A Date with History Retrieve the two articles (using for the previous reporters) that you read about a former and the current president. Consider your observations on the two pieces. By comparing and contrasting your former president news story with your current president news story, share with your classmates what you have learned about the nature of news and how it has changed over time. Think about news values and trends in journalism to inform your responses. Things to think about as you write your posts: • • • • • Has the language used in news stories changed over time? Does the very definition of news or news values seem different? Does what passes as fact in the news story seem different? Is the presentation different, such as quality of photographs or enhanced multimedia? What are each of the story's sources (attribution) and is there anything to note about similarities or differences? Reporter’s Reflection 3 • Follow the instructions in the online lesson to investigate how different mediums enhance news stories. Then complete Reporter’s Reflection Journal. Be sure to label your journal entry 1.3 Compare Mediums. Journal Assignment Go to one of the news sites on News You Can Peruse (PDF) (https://static.k12.com/calms_media/media/1081000_1081500/1081203/1/6947965f076732 d32aa165061f3b73d27d19b860/HS_JRN_S1_News_You_Can_Peruse.pdf) or to a news radio source such as NPR or to one of the major television or cable news websites such as ABC, CBC, NBC, Fox News, CNN, BBC or even to a local news station. Choose a story that is covered in two different mediums and post these links to your journal. Using the criteria you have learned earlier in this unit, consider a news value that is emphasized or de-emphasized in the story you have chosen because of the medium's limitations or capabilities. Post your findings in your journal. Your journal entry should include the following: Links to two stories that cover the same news event in different mediums A paragraph about the two stories which identifies a news value that is emphasized or de-emphasized because of each medium's limitations or capabilities. Include comparisons of the two mediums' strengths and weaknesses. • • Reporter’s Reflection 4 • Follow the instructions in the online lesson to investigate how various mediums and news values affect news coverage choices. Then complete Reporter’s Reflection Journal. • Be sure to label your journal entry 1.4 Visuals. Turn On the TV Finally, someone is telling you to turn on the television instead of off! And for the purpose of doing schoolwork! Watch a story on cable or television news today. Take notes about the visuals the news story uses. You will write post your findings in your journal. Your journal entry should include the following: • • • A paragraph describing all the visuals in the news story you watch on television. A paragraph imagining how you would tell the same story for the radio without the benefit of visual material. A paragraph exploring how producing a piece for the ear as opposed to the eye might change which news values or facts are emphasized or de-emphasized. Reporter’s Reflection: Journal Assignments • You need to answer the following 4 Reporters journals, according to the instructions of each. • You also need to answer the Discussion Prompt o Each Journal Reporter must be answered based in the indications related. No cheating or plagiarism..OWN WORDS. o You can use the unit Information for knowledges o You need to turn all the documents (5) in total and well done o Reporter’s Reflection 1 • Follow the instructions in the online lesson to investigate how presidents were covered in the past. Then complete a Journal report • Be sure to label your journal entry 1.1 News Values Then. The Press and the Presidency Then Instructions It's time to go on a virtual (http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/) field trip to the Digital History website or to The Library of Congress: Newspaper and Current Periodical Reading Room.( http://www.loc.gov/rr/news/ammemser.html) Choose an article concerning one of the following presidents: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Gerald Ford, or Ronald Reagan. Your story should include at least two of the six news values previously defined. In your journal, post the link to the story you have chosen and write a paragraph for each news value the story includes explaining how it meets that value. Post your findings in your journal. Your journal entry should include the following: • • • A link to the news story you found A list of any news values that the story meets A paragraph for each listed value explaining how it meets that criteria EXAMPLE For instance, if you chose a Washington Post article about the day that President Ronald Reagan was shot by a mentally disturbed man, your story would meet all six of the news values: • Timeliness: The story was published one day after the event and therefore was very timely. • Prominence: The story was about President Reagan and as the president of the United States he was an extremely prominent person. • Proximity: Because the president was shot in Washington, D.C., and the newspaper that published the story was the Washington Post, the news was in close proximity of the publication's readership. • Conflict: Any story involving an assassination attempt contains conflict. The violence of the event itself raises many issues such as presidential security and how much is needed; gun laws and the right to bear arms; and regulations pertaining to the institutionalization of the criminally insane. • Novelty: Assassination attempts on U.S. presidents are extremely rare and so this story was very unusual. What added to this story at the time was that the president's assailant, John Hinckley Jr., was obsessed with actress Jodie Foster and shot the president in an effort to impress the Hollywood movie star. • Impact: The health and safety of any nation's leader has great social, political, and financial impact on that nation and its citizens. Reporter’s Reflection 2 • Follow the instructions in the online lesson to investigate how the current president is covered. Then complete a Journal report • Be sure to label your journal entry 1.2 News Values Now Instructions Use News You Can Peruse (PDF) (https://static.k12.com/calms_media/media/1081000_1081500/1081203/1/6947965f076732 d32aa165061f3b73d27d19b860/HS_JRN_S1_News_You_Can_Peruse.pdf) and look for a story that has run in the past month about our current president. Identify at least three of the following five news values: timeliness, proximity, novelty, conflict, or impact that this story contains. Remember, any story about a president inherently has the remaining news value of prominence, so that news value is assumed in this assignment. Then write a sentence identifying each news value in the story. Be sure to: Post your findings in your journal. Your journal entry should include the following: • • • A link to the news story you found A list of any news values that the story meets A paragraph for each listed value explaining how it meets that criteria Discussion: A Date with History Retrieve the two articles (using for the previous reporters) that you read about a former and the current president. Consider your observations on the two pieces. By comparing and contrasting your former president news story with your current president news story, share with your classmates what you have learned about the nature of news and how it has changed over time. Think about news values and trends in journalism to inform your responses. Things to think about as you write your posts: • • • • • Has the language used in news stories changed over time? Does the very definition of news or news values seem different? Does what passes as fact in the news story seem different? Is the presentation different, such as quality of photographs or enhanced multimedia? What are each of the story's sources (attribution) and is there anything to note about similarities or differences? Reporter’s Reflection 3 • Follow the instructions in the online lesson to investigate how different mediums enhance news stories. Then complete Reporter’s Reflection Journal. Be sure to label your journal entry 1.3 Compare Mediums. Journal Assignment Go to one of the news sites on News You Can Peruse (PDF) (https://static.k12.com/calms_media/media/1081000_1081500/1081203/1/6947965f076732 d32aa165061f3b73d27d19b860/HS_JRN_S1_News_You_Can_Peruse.pdf) or to a news radio source such as NPR or to one of the major television or cable news websites such as ABC, CBC, NBC, Fox News, CNN, BBC or even to a local news station. Choose a story that is covered in two different mediums and post these links to your journal. Using the criteria you have learned earlier in this unit, consider a news value that is emphasized or de-emphasized in the story you have chosen because of the medium's limitations or capabilities. Post your findings in your journal. Your journal entry should include the following: Links to two stories that cover the same news event in different mediums A paragraph about the two stories which identifies a news value that is emphasized or de-emphasized because of each medium's limitations or capabilities. Include comparisons of the two mediums' strengths and weaknesses. • • Reporter’s Reflection 4 • Follow the instructions in the online lesson to investigate how various mediums and news values affect news coverage choices. Then complete Reporter’s Reflection Journal. • Be sure to label your journal entry 1.4 Visuals. Turn On the TV Finally, someone is telling you to turn on the television instead of off! And for the purpose of doing schoolwork! Watch a story on cable or television news today. Take notes about the visuals the news story uses. You will write post your findings in your journal. Your journal entry should include the following: • • • A paragraph describing all the visuals in the news story you watch on television. A paragraph imagining how you would tell the same story for the radio without the benefit of visual material. A paragraph exploring how producing a piece for the ear as opposed to the eye might change which news values or facts are emphasized or de-emphasized. JOURNALISM Course IntroductionNews is... First, news is new. It's information that is new or at least some aspect of the information is new. Second, news usually is pertinent, significant and useful. In other words, news is information that matters. It is relevant to you, or perhaps your neighbor, or perhaps your legislators. It might even be useful to your daily life in some way—it could help you decide who to vote for, whether to wear your raincoat, or which movie to spend your money on at the theater. The news can be entertaining, informative and useful. But above all else, news is critical to our democracy. Free Press A free press is critical to our democracy because: • • It ensures that our country's citizens have the uncensored information they need to make decisions about their lives. It provides a forum for the citizens' voices to be heard. The press keeps the public informed about what is happening in our world locally, nationally and globally. The press also wields a great deal of power, influencing public opinion, policymakers and business leaders. The critical role the press enjoys has been noted throughout history. Edmund Burke, a British politician, called the press the "Fourth Estate" of the Parliament. The Value of News What Makes It News? In this lesson, you will learn how journalists evaluate events and information to decide whether they are newsworthy. You will also take a look at historical as well as modern examples and apply the criteria to determine whether the very nature of news has changed from colonial times to the present. News Values There are six different criteria that journalists use to evaluate information and determine its news value. Most news stories don't meet all six criteria, but usually a story meets at least two. The six criteria are: • • • • timeliness proximity prominence impact • • conflict novelty Timeliness To be considered newsworthy, an event, occurrence or piece of information needs to have just happened. If it happened a long time ago, its history, not news. If a house fire happened last night, its considered news. If it happened 20 years ago, its not news. Proximity Proximity means how close something is to you. The closer something is, the greater the likelihood that it will be relevant to you. Thus, news in your community might not be considered news in another community. If there is a water main break that floods a road in your part of town, thats news to you but not necessarily news to people who live on the other side of town. Prominence Sometimes information is considered news because of who it affects or involves. If the president of the United States keeps his promise to get his children a puppy, that is considered news and the media covers it. Why? Because the president is prominent. If your family gets a new puppy, its not likely that it will make the six oclock news. Impact What is the impact of a particular news story? How many people will it affect? If a cure for cancer is discovered, that would affect millions of people. That story would certainly be considered news. Conflict Conflict refers to anything in which people, nations, companies or any sort of entities are at odds with each other. Of course, that conflict will need to meet other criteria as well, such as impact or prominence. So if you have an argument with your best friend thats not likely to make headlines. But if two nations are at war with each other, that is considered news. Novelty Novelty as a criteria means that the information is unusual. It might not be of earthshattering importance with implications for the masses, but if its weird it might be deemed newsworthy. For instance, if someone having breakfast at the local diner notices that his toast looks exactly like Elvis Presleys silhouette, the local news media might be called in to shoot the video. That toast wont change the world, but the story is certainly novel. Finding Value in the News The more news values a story contains, the wider an audience it is likely to attract. One reader might be drawn to a story because of its novelty factor and another might be interested because he finds the information relevant to his own situation. History of News 1440 The Gutenberg Press is invented. The Gutenberg Press was invented by a German inventor named Johannes Gutenberg. The process that he came up with back in the 15th century remained the main way of printing until the late 20th century. By using movable type, a special press, and oil-based inks, his method enabled publishers to mass produce books and newspapers quickly and costeffectively. 1608 "A True Relation of Such Occurrences and Accidents of Note, As Hath Hapned in Virgina" Captain John Smith writes this letter, which is then published in London as a pamphlet, conveying news from Virginia. 1690 Publick Occurrences is published. America's first multi-page newspaper, Publick Occurrences, Both Foreign and Domestick, is published in Boston. 1769 Isaac Doolittle builds first U.S. printing press. Isaac Doolittle of Connecticut builds the first printing press made on U.S. soil. 1776 The Pennsylvania Evening Post carried the Declaration of Independence on its front page. On July 6, 1776, The Pennsylvania Evening Post carried the Declaration of Independence on its front page, and soon after several newspapers followed suit. Congress wrote the Declaration of Independence with the goal of having as many people read it as possible. Newspapers made that goal come true 1783 The Pennsylvania Evening Post and Daily Advertiser, is published. The first daily newspaper, The Pennsylvania Evening Post and Daily Advertiser, is published. 1789–1788 "The Federalist Papers" In 1787 and 1788 Alexander Hamilton wrote a series of newspaper articles that later were reprinted as "The Federalist Papers" and these articles were influential in garnering support for the Constitution's ratification. 1791 Ratification of the First Amendment The First Amendment to the United States Constitution which forbids Congress from making any law "abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press" is ratified. 1815 Battle of Waterloo was delivered. In 1815, the outcome of the Battle of Waterloo was delivered by a pigeon to England. Carrier pigeons were used extensively in times of war to deliver news. They were able to carry information on light paper attached to a tube on one of their legs. 1823 Jonas Booth invents new printing press. Jonas Booth invents a steam-driven printing press, rendering the printing of newspapers less expensive and more efficient. 1844 First telegraph line is established. America's first telegraph line, Washington, D.C., to Baltimore, is up and running, making the timely coverage of news beyond the local level a reality. . 1846 Pony Express New York Sun publisher Moses Yale Beach organizes a pony express to deliver the news related to the Mexican War. He offers an equal interest to several New York newspapers and these five papers become known as the Associated Press, which in the present day is a news network that delivers news from around the world 1904 The Boston American and the Los Angeles Examiner are established. William Randolph Hearst establishes the Boston American and the Los Angeles Examiner, eventually acquiring or starting newspapers in most major American cities. 1911 Joseph Pulitzer dies. On October 29, 1911, Joseph Pulitzer dies, bequeathing $2 million to Columbia University to establish one of the first graduate schools of journalism. He also left money for the establishment of the Pulitzer Prize, which has become the most prestigious award a journalist can win. 1941 Start of television broadcasting. The Federal Communication Commission grants approval to 18 television stations to start commercial broadcasting. 1940–1945 Walter Cronkite and Edward R. Murrow become famous The first radio news reporters including Walter Cronkite and Edward R. Murrow become famous for their radio coverage of World War II. 1947 Television debuts its first news show. NBC airs "Meet the Press," still on the air today, making it television's longest-running show, and one of its most influential forums for policymakers, politicians and pundits to air their views and make their case to the public on any given topic or issue. 1965–1973 Vietnam war During the Vietnam War, the American public lost its faith in the press and developed a deep mistrust of the media. People thought journalists were being unfair to the government in their coverage of various policies related to the war. 1971 Watergate In June of 1971, two Washington Post reporters, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, began an investigation that started with a burglary in a Washington hotel called the Watergate. Eventually, the reporters tied the burglary to President Nixon's top people and ultimately led to the president's resignation in 1974. Many transferred their distrust of the press developed during the Vietnam War to the government after this incident. 1971 Pentagon Papers are published. In 1971, The New York Times publishes a series of classified government documents relating to the Vietnam War that is referred to as the Pentagon Papers. President Nixon secured an injunction ordering the newspaper to cease publication of the document. The United States Supreme Court then declared the injunction an unconstitutional prior restraint. 1988 Internet opens to public. The Internet, which began as a military project, is opened to the public and revolutionizes the way the news is disseminated both in terms of speed and distance. The iPad is released. The iPad, a tablet computer using Wi-Fi or 3G data connection, on which you can browse the Internet and access up-to-the-minute news happening anywhere in the world, is released. Shipping News Journalism had its start around the time that the colonists came ashore. Journalism provided vital information that people needed to survive and thrive. The first newspapers in the colonies were established near seaports because most of the colonists lived by the sea. So a great deal of the news was focused on shipping. The printed word was the main source of communication over great distances and therefore, newspapers had an important role in framing the public conversation. The Constitution's First Amendment As the colonies were formed and our nation took shape, journalism's role in what sort of society and government our nation would foster became greater. That is reflected in the Constitution's First Amendment in 1791 that protects free speech and a free press. As our founders established a nation in which life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness could be a reality, a free press was even more critical to the realization of those ideals. The Civil War was the first war to be covered photographically though the photos didn't actually appear in newspapers until after the war because of limited technology. However, drawings of what was depicted in the photos were published in newspapers during the war. Edward R. Murrow, of CBS, produced broadcasts from London during the Blitz of World War II. His dispatches were so moving that he inspired the American public to support U.S. involvement in World War II. Ernie Pyle, who wrote for the Scripps-Howard newspaper chain, won a Pulitzer in 1944 for his war coverage. The following year he was killed by Japanese machine-gun fire during the Okinawa campaign in World War II. His work was admired for his moving accounts of the ordinary GI's plight. Martha Gellhorn died at age 90 in 1998, after covering some of the most important conflicts of the 20th century including the Spanish Civil War, World War II, Vietnam, the Six-Day War in the Middle East and a number of conflicts in Central America. We've Come a Long Way, Birdie! News not only looks very different today than it did centuries ago but also is delivered in much speedier ways. Imagine a world without the Internet. Where would we be without the ability to get our news with the click of a mouse? What if you had to rely on a carrier pigeon for your news? In 1815, the outcome of the Battle of Waterloo was first delivered by a pigeon to England. And Reuters, the British news and information company, used carrier pigeons to carry stock prices between Aachen, Germany, and Brussels, Belgium, until 1851 when a telegraph link could be established. In Media We Trust? The degree to which the American public trusts what they read has changed over time. Around the end of the 19th century, the term yellow journalism came into being when two warring New York newspapers, owned by competitors Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst, published news stories that critics claimed sensationalized the stories with the intent of boosting circulation numbers rather than reporting the news in an objective, measured way. The term has remained in the journalistic lexicon and is used whenever a news report is thought to be based on opinion or overly hyped. Over time it became the news gold standard to stick to the facts unless a piece of journalism was clearly labeled as opinion. yellow journalism Beginning of dialog window. refers to news that emphasizes sensationalized facts and overly hyped headlines to sell more newspapers and get public attention Facts vs. Opinions The role of facts vs. opinions in the news has gone through many changes. Currently, some media critics fear that the presentation of fact is taking a back seat to dissemination of opinion in the news as technology makes the act of "publishing" much more accessible to the masses. Anyone with a computer and an Internet connection can set up a blog, call himself a journalist, and "publish" his opinions. The relationship between the press and the public has always been one that had its ups and downs, and that will probably always be the case. Regardless of that relationship, journalism will continue to reflect changes in our society, acting as a social, economic and cultural barometer. Role of the African-American Press in U.S. History Our nation's challenges with race and equal rights are reflected in the changes that journalism has gone through over time. Our nation has a rich history in regards to the black press. In 1827, the first African-American newspaper, Freedom's Journal, was established. Thirty-seven years later, the nation's first daily African-American newspaper in the South was established. Black abolitionists including Frederick Douglass used the power of the press as an effective tool in the effort to fight slavery. Suffragist and journalist Ida B. Wells, one of the first female newspaper owners in America, was also a vocal activist who worked to end lynchings and Jim Crow laws, statutes that legalized segregation between blacks and whites. Watergate You will become familiar with one of the most important events in the history of journalism: the Watergate scandal. You will read about how two young reporters followed a compelling lead and their journalistic instincts to expose a cover-up that ultimately caused an American president to resign. Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein In 1972 two young Washington Postreporters investigated a burglary at the Watergate, a hotel and office complex in Washington, D.C. Five men had burglarized the Democratic National Committee's headquarters. The two reporters investigating the burglary, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, ended up chasing the story and reporting on it for the next two years. Their stories revealed that the break-in involved some of the president's top people working for his re-election and that even the president himself, Richard Nixon, was involved in the cover-up of the burglary. The U.S. Senate held televised hearings looking into the scandal. While the investigation was unfolding, Nixon was re-elected in a landslide victory. However, on August 8, 1974, the president resigned from office in disgrace. Looking back, the fact that it took so long for the scandal to become fully exposed might seem strange. But you have to look at the scandal within the context of the times. A majority of Americans mistrusted the press because of its often critical coverage of government policies in regard to the Vietnam War. Suspicion of the press and trust in government were societal and political forces that affected the public's skepticism of the investigation initially. Slowly, other media outlets in addition to the Washington Post began to cover the story. The televised Watergate hearings included politicians on both sides of the aisle, giving it a legitimacy that won the public's interest and trust. Television news began to take the story seriously, as did other print publications. Woodward and Bernstein became American folk heroes because of their dogged digging and reporting as they figured out exactly who knew what and how the president was involved. Many credited the duo with exposing the truth which ultimatley caused an American president to resign. They wrote a book about their investigation that was published in 1974. The book, "All The President's Men," was made into a movie in 1976. The attention they received glorified the profession of investigative journalism , which takes more time, care, and patience than daily reporting and often means long hours spent combing through documents and following leads that may or may not pan out. Woodward and Bernstein researching the Watergate scandal in 1972 Watergate's long-term effect on investigative journalism is immeasurable. The scandal and story changed the relationship between the press and the White House forever. Now reporters are more aggressive in their questioning of White House officials, even of the president himself. Interest in investigative journalism has increased. Since Watergate, professional groups of investigative journalists have formed, as have nonprofit groups and foundations involved in or committed to this type of reporting. And publications dedicated solely to the pursuit of investigative journalism have been established in print and broadcast, and now online. Front page of the Stevens Point Daily Journal featuring President Nixon and the Watergate scandal. Medium and Message What’s the Point? What makes hard news hard and soft news soft? And why does it matter whether we see the news on the television, read about it in the paper or listen to a radio broadcast? Don’t they all convey the same information? In this lesson, you will be introduced to various genres of journalism beyond simple news stories. You will also become familiar with different media, what characteristics they share, and how they differ. The world is a complicated place and journalism helps us to understand much of that complexity through reporting, analysis and opinion. In this activity, you will differentiate between various genres of journalism. Genres of Journalism News stories are written and told for different purposes. The news can provide information, provoke emotion or promote an opinion. There are various genres of news and they fall into two big subcategories: hard news and soft news . Hard News Hard news stories are serious and fact-based, not opinion-based. Hard news stories can be about local, national or international news. Hard news stories usually are about something serious that happened such as an incident or event. In the print version of a newspaper, each of these types of hard news stories have their own section with the most important stories on the front page. Online hard news stories are categorized the same way with separate pages and their various links Hard News – News Analysis Stories Stories that are classified as news analysis are considered hard news. These stories analyze some situations, usually economic or political, relying heavily on the facts but going a bit further than a straight news story. News analysis stories are • • • • • • • About something that has happened Beyond the plain facts Assessments and analysis of events Often about government or politics Contains some opinions Written in third-person point of view They are often on the front page or at least in the front section Consider the criteria for a news analysis story. News analysis does contain some opinions. Why do you think this kind of article is still considered hard news? Soft News – Opinion Pieces There are a few types of news pieces that would be considered opinion pieces. They are editorials, op-eds and columns. These are all soft news. Newspapers and other publications have writers who craft unsigned opinion pieces called editorials . Why unsigned? They are meant to represent the opinions of the editorial side of the newspaper as opposed to representing an individual writer's opinion. These writers work only on the opinion side of the paper and do not produce news stories. They are often former reporters with an area of expertise formed from years of reporting in a particular geographical region or topical beat . Editorials represent the paper's official stand on an issue, a candidate or an initiative. Soft News – Op-Eds Op-eds are expressions of opinions though the best ones have an element of reportage. They are typically written by a guest columnist, with expertise on a particular topic, or holding a position of prominence in the community. Op-eds are: • • • • Opinion pieces Located on the page opposite the editorial—hence its name,op-ed. These two pages are usually toward the back of the front section of a newspaper. Usually written in the first person Signed, meaning it has a byline identifying the author Soft News – Columns On the same page as the op-ed, you will find columns written by columnists who write on a regular basis for the publication. They often specialize in politics, international affairs, policymaking, economics, science, the environment or religion. Sometimes, if a columnist is very popular, her column becomes syndicated, which means it is picked up by newspapers throughout the country where it runs on a regular basis. Opinion pieces and columns are very often written in the first person and are opinionbased though the stronger columns are those by writers who base their opinions on thorough reporting, careful analysis and measured thinking. Why do you think op-eds and other opinion pieces are considered soft news? How do they differ from news analysis? Soft News – Humor in the News Some journalists are humorists and they make their arguments through satire , parody and hyperbole . From their humorous pieces, readers can glean the writers' opinions about events and situations. These types of pieces are considered soft news. They may write, either through humor columns such as Dave Barry in print and online, through skits and stories such as Garrison Keillor on the radio, or through scripted bits such as Stephen Colbert, Jon Stewart and Andy Rooney on television. These types of pieces usually run in the arts or style sections of newspapers, or their supplemental Sunday magazines. They are usually found among other soft news such as features, how-to columns and reviews. Essayist and writer Andy Rooney is best known for his weekly "60 Minutes" appearances in which he delivers his humorous and often cranky essays on a variety of political and cultural topics. Soft News –Features and Profiles Features are typically a mixture of facts and descriptive writing that emphasize storytelling techniques such as dialogue and anecdotes and don't rely on breaking news. Features • • • Are longer, in-depth pieces that don't rely on breaking news Focus on telling a story in an engaging way Are often found in the Lifestyle, Style, or Arts and Leisure section Features sometimes focus on one person, someone who is famous or has done something newsworthy. A feature such as this is called a profile . Soft News – Reviews Who gets to say what's good? The critics. Reviews include critiques, essays and reviews about restaurants art exhibits, architecture, dance, theatre and film. Sometimes newspapers and other publications have in-house critics who specialize in film, food or even on the media itself. Some publications are specialized and critique only one art form such as film or dance. These stories usually run in the arts, lifestyle or style sections of newspapers or magazines. Gene Siskel, former film critic of the Chicago Tribune, and Roger Ebert, film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times, co-hosted Siskel and Ebert, a celebrated television movie review series that began in the mid-1970s. Soft News – That's Entertainment There are other ancillary types of material that appear in the same publications and media outlets as the news but don't really qualify as news, though they may be of a topical nature. These include advice columns such as "Dear Amy," crossword puzzles, comic strips and how-to columns such as "Hints from Heloise." They are meant to entertain or instruct rather than inform about current events. This type of material usually runs in the lifestyle section of a newspaper or in its supplemental Sunday magazine. A lot of different kinds of material fall under the heading of journalism. Some genres are meant to inform, others to entertain, and still others to provoke. What these genres have in common is that these articles should hold up a mirror to society, to your community, to you yourself, and give you something to think about. Name That Medium We get our news via many different mediums these days. The same story gets covered on television, radio or online but you notice different things with each medium. The main facts are the same, but different aspects of the story may be featured more or less prominently. These differences in coverage may be determined by a specific medium’s strengths and weaknesses. In this activity, you will explore how different media emphasize different news values, often determined by a specific medium’s best attributes. Print In a story about the Hudson River plane crash, a print piece would focus on telling the story. It might emphasize the narrative leading up to and including the actual landing. Through interviews with the passengers and crew, the writer could piece together a chronology and present a story complete with dramatic dialogue, vivid description and telling details. A print piece would most certainly be accompanied by still photos of the rescue and of the captain. Select Print Opens in modal popup window to examine the key features in a print piece. Video Broadcast news, specifically television or cable, about the Hudson River plane crash would emphasize any video captured of the newsworthy event. Many broadcasts featured rescue vessels pulling passengers to safety as they huddled together on the wings of the aircraft in the water. On camera interviews included sound bites from first responders such as firefighters and police officers as well as survivors, loved ones and eyewitnesses. CBS News Video: Miracle on the Hudson Click CBS News Video: Miracle on the Hudson to watch a television broadcast covering this high profile event. Radio Radio news of the Hudson River story would emphasize audio, including interviews with first responders, survivors, loved ones and eyewitnesses. Ambient sounds are natural sounds, such as birds chirping or children laughing or rain falling on a tin roof, used in broadcast journalism to evoke the atmosphere or scene of a story. In the radio version of the rescue, ambient sounds could be emphasized. The story might be told as a narrative, but it would have to be constructed with the ear rather than the eye in mind. Listen to a radio broadcast of the Hudson River crash news coverage on National Public Radio. Online The Hudson River plane crash told through online coverage would encompass all of the mediums: narrative, still photos, video and audio. This coverage also would have the added attraction of immediate interactivity: live chats and blog comments would add to the readers' experience in regards to learning about the news event. Blog is a contraction of "web log" that describes an online journal that chronicles a person's opinions, interests, or reflections, usually on a specific topic such as politics, food or religion. Go to MSNBC: Miracle on the Hudson to check out an example of the story told online. Notice how there is text, photos, video and places at the bottom to comment on the story. What Is Not News Though journalism and public relations share some techniques and forms, they have very different motivations and goals. To really understand how journalism works, you must consider the world of public relations and its relationship to journalism. In this activity, you will explore the differences and similarities between journalism and public relations, and how they sometimes work together but are often at odds. By comparing a news story and a press release that deal with the same event, you will consider the motivations and goals of both writers. Print the Model News Story and Press Release: News Then and Now (PDF). You will refer to both in this activity. If It Looks Like A Duck… You have been learning about what news is. But what about information that sounds like news, looks like news, even seems like news but really isn't news? Public relations , or PR, can be mistaken for real news because it uses many journalistic techniques. But PR is motivated by an entirely different purpose. The motivation of people who produce the news is supposed to be the desire to inform and educate the public, and to let the truth be known. The motivation of people in the public relations realm is to persuade the public to think a particular way, or to buy a particular product. PR professionals usually have an agenda that has been set by their clients. This isn't a bad or good thing necessarily; it's just not journalism What Is A Press Release? A press release is a document that is usually a page or less of text. Its purpose is to make an announcement. Just as the news story is the journalist's basic vehicle of providing information to the public, the press release is the PR specialist's most common method of delivering a message. Consider the Model News Story and Press Release: News Then and Now. Explore the similarities and differences between a news story and a press release. Reporter's Reflection 3 Making Sense of the Senses That We Use in the News In this lesson, you will independently explore different news mediums and how particular mediums' capabilities enhance a story. Various news mediums have different strengths and weaknesses. These strengths and weaknesses can affect which news values are emphasized in a news story. You will independently explore different news mediums and how their capabilities enhance a story