Week 11: Abstracts
This week I decided to do a little something different. I read Mark Glaser’s “The Working Journalist in the Age of the Internet,” Jakob Nielsen’s “Top Ten Mistakes in Web Design,” and Dan Gillmor’s “Journalism Isn’t Dying, It’s Reviving.”
I’m going to lump them all together because it’s getting to that time of year when my fellow classmates and I are looking for jobs and really trying to market ourselves in the ever changing world of journalism. In my Professional Practice class with Mike Foley, we often discuss the future of the industry. Newspapers are forced to make extreme budget cuts because investors want more and more in returns, but the money’s just not there. Are there really any jobs out there?
In order to make myself that much more aware, I took Communication on the Internet, a class that teaches about the beginnings of the Internet and how to write XHTML code. I really know nothing about computers and writing Web pages, but I know employers are looking for people who know what they’re doing. The University of Florida’s journalism program doesn’t require that a student takes online media courses, but I know it is planning to add more classes of that nature so that students can have the opportunity to really grasp the concept of online reporting.
I like how Mark Glaser goes through each element of the “old” and “new” way of approaching journalism. I’m nervous about having to work all the time and being addicted to my crackberry, but that’s the way the world is working now. Glaser says that journalism students should take advantage of the exciting possibilities out there on the Web. He talked about one student who asked his blog readers to help finance a trip to Iraq so he could report on exactly what they wanted to know. He ended up raising $15,000 and had such a reader-run site, it’s amazing.
Projects like that seem daunting to me. I’m trying to educate myself on Web design and writing specifically for the Web (Hence, why I read Nielson’s “Top Ten Mistakes in Web Design”). I’m trying to learn the fundamentals so that I have something to bring to the table when I finally do get a job.
And while the field of journalism seems like it’s coming to an end, Gillmor offers hope that it’s only becoming better. Hyperlocal journalism is truly catering to readers in small towns and specific niches. Citizen journalism is still working on investigative pieces with regular journalism, often funded by non-profit organizations. The world will continue to need news, it’s just the source of that news that’s changing. The Web is a wonderful innovation and it’s exciting to know that I will be a part of this historic change.
Week 10: Abstracts
Margin of Error
Why must polls be so tricky? UF should have an entire class devoted to just covering all those little nuisances of polling data. Yikes. It’s something I wouldn’t want to touch with a 10-foot pole.
Robert Niles’ article is a great reference for journalists when it comes to margins of error. I think newspapers should implement an on-going training session that re-evaluates how polls will be used in articles. It should also be constantly updated and there should be a reporter briefing around the time when presidential and primary elections are in full swing. It’s hard to remember all that 95 out of 100 stuff, so reporters should be constantly reminded.
Best case scenario: No polls would ever have to be used in articles! But, that’s not likely to happen. Make sure the poll was completed by a reputable company, the questions were not biased and didn’t make the pollster answer in a desired response and that readers are given all of the correct information regarding the margin of error and exactly what that means. A little disclaimer at the bottom just doesn’t do justice.
STATS
I really liked this Web site. It’s nice to see that there’s a non-profit organization out there dedicated to cutting through all the B.S. that some newspapers put out. Just out of curiosity, I read the article demystifying a Chicago Tribune article about how dangerous moderate drinking is. As a college student, I’ve been known to enjoy a drink or two and so do my friends. I just wanted to see what STATS uncovered. Their article was hilarious. I like how they presented the side of the Chicago Tribune but then also counteracted each statement with an equally true fact. It just goes to show that you can believe everything you read.
This is a great site that is truly doing investigative reporting. They’re looking at what’s being fed to the public and trying to correct all that information – wrong or not – that’s going in. As a journalist, I’d want to bookmark this page to reference if I’m ever working on a story that is using a lot of medical and scientific claims. Sometimes it may seem like we are reporting both sides of the story when, in fact, we aren’t.
NCPP
Going back to what I said about having an on-going training session for journalists who often deal with polls, this NCPP article is a great resource. Bookmark these questions and ask them every time you come across a poll. One of the most important questions to ask is who paid for the poll. By knowing where the source of income came from, you can make an informed decision on whether or not the poll is even worthy of reporting. It can help eliminate all kinds of biased coverage. Another important piece of information is determining just how many people were polled and where exactly they came from. Is it really a random sample of Americans? Was the poll only conducted through the phone or online? These types of questions can help you determine whether a large chunk of participants are young, old, republican, democrat, middle-class, upper-class, black or white.
Week 9: Abstracts
Local Newspaper
My hometown is Punta Gorda, Fla., and its newspaper is the Charlotte Sun Herald. When I checked the site, it seems that the Charlotte Sun hasn’t reported in a newsroom diversity report for non-white newsroom staff from 1990 through 2005. In 2004 and 2005, the non-white percentage of circulation rate was 13.2 percent. It seems Charlotte County is 90 percent white and 10 percent non-white. The 10 percent divides into 3.3 percent Hispanic, 4.2 percent black and .9 percent Asian and Pacific Islander.
In my specific zip code (33950) the average median income is around $41,000 and only 6.5 percent of the population is non-white.
Ethical Considerations of the Web Link
Bonnie Bressers presents many sides to the controversy surrounding linking in the ever-changing world of online media. Many people view “deep linking” as a form of theft because it allows viewers to access direct pages, therefore bypassing a site’s homepage and its advertisers. Others believe that banning linking violates the free flow of information that was the cornerstone of the Internet’s creation in the first place. I like the analogy that Bressers uses when she says: “Prohibiting deep-linking, they maintain, is akin to telling newspaper readers that they can’t read the sports section if they haven’t read the front page first.”
I really don’t see deep linking as a problem as long as the site is being used with the same journalistic integrity that would be used in print form. If the site is relevant to telling the story, then it should be included. And, nowadays, almost every site has advertisements on secondary pages. Just because someone doesn’t see the homepage, doesn’t mean that they aren’t getting access to paying advertisers.
Former managing editor of the New York Times on the Web Will Tacy makes a great point on how to view linking if it’s at all controversial. Writing on the Web should take the same considerations as print. Tacy says we should look at the links of controversial sites the same way we would a disturbing photo. “If it’s gratuitous, you don’t use it. If it’s vital to the understanding of the story, you do.”
I agree with Tacy. Some links are essential to telling the story, even though some might view it as controversial. Journalists should present the whole story to readers, and that sometimes means showing them something that makes them uncomfortable. And, the good thing about links is that you can warn readers before they even click.
The Murky World of Conflicts of Interest
The title of this article says it all – murky. Conflicts of interest are tricky little devils that seem to get in the way of good journalistic practices. My advice: When in doubt, you’re probably doing something conflicting. Step back and evaluate the situation. It’s like when you see guests on “The Maury Show” and they want their significant others to take lie detector tests to prove their fidelity. We all know that if you’re already accusing someone of cheating and you keep seeing all these clues and the trust is gone, why do you even need the lie detector? The relationship is over. The guest has suspicions that are more often accurate without even hearing the results.
It’s the same way with conflicts of interest. Who are you trying to kid? Yes, it’s hard to keep yourself out of the picture, especially in a profession that constantly asks you to use all the connections you have in order to get information. But, a reader can see things and lose that trust, and then they won’t even need a lie detector test to know you’re fibbing. It all comes back to that one word – murky.
Readers: Anonymous Sources Affect Media Credibility
I agree with all the ideas that readers and the Associated Press came up with to avoid anonymous sources as much as possible. They say to only use unnamed sources if they provide information and not opinion, if the information is not available except for under the conditions of anonymity and only if the source is reliable. Readers say journalists need to go out of their way to say that the source wants to remain unidentified, connect the source to the story and report how they would know that type of information and discuss all possible motives the source might have for remaining anonymous. I think these are all great rules to abide by when considering an anonymous source.
However, when the article says that readers are willing to wait longer for a more credible story, I can’t help but think that’s a lie. In today’s world of 24-hour news broadcasts and the Internet, where you can find any story you want in less than five seconds, I don’t think many readers are going to wait. We live in an instant gratification society. If you have to wait longer than two minutes for your morning coffee, you get uptight. These readers act like journalists have all the time in the world. Have they ever heard of a deadline? It’s definitely true that they want the most accurate information available, but when they say they’re willing to wait, I have to say I question that.
Week 9: Story Idea
I read on Al’s Morning Meeting about an article published in the Wall Street Journal outlining a new study that found that daylight savings time actually increases energy usage. The WSJ reported: “[Researchers] conclude that the reduced cost of lighting in afternoons during daylight-saving time is more than offset by the higher air-conditioning costs on hot afternoons and increased heating costs on cool mornings.” Another study conducted in 2007 by economists Hendrik Wolff and Ryan Kellogg said the same thing.
It’d be interesting to explore this idea, especially on campus where the Office of Sustainability is trying to become more prominent. I’d talk to Dedee DeLongpré, director, about this new information. How would they try to combat it? Is this the first time they’ve heard anything negative related to daylight savings? What can students do to help offset the increase of energy use? Do they plan on making this issue more prominent on campus?
I’d also like to talk to UF students about daylight savings. I know we all dread the “spring forward” aspect because we lose an hour of sleep, but what do students really think of it? Does the fact that it was originally designed to save money sort of clash with the fact that it really doesn’t?
Another good place to look for an interview would be GRU. I’d want to ask them about energy usage right after daylight savings time (March 9) in comparison to the days and months before it. Maybe they could give me an average usage for an average home in Gainesville. I’d see if they could try and calculate what an average bill would be if there were no daylight savings, or I would just do it on my own with the information given to me.
For the online aspect, I’d make a chart with the information gathered from GRU. I’d also interview students who live in apartments and houses to see if they would give me an average GRU bill for all 12 months to see how it pans out. I’d have a special section with audio, including interviews with Dedee and a GRU representative. I’d also have interactive graphics on the chart when your mouse rolled over certain spots that would show what you could be paying if there was no daylight savings. I’d also have a special section devoted to the history of daylight savings and why Benjamin Franklin’s idea started in the first place. I’d possibly have a timeline of important facts pertaining to the history.
