I. The Scope and Nature of Journalism As regards its etymology, journalism comes from the Latin word diurnal which means daily. That is why there is the word journal- a daily register of one’s activities. Hence, journalism is a communication of day-to-day information, whether through sounds, pictures and words. Few places where journalism may appear include newspaper, magazines, television, radios, and internet. Journalism is concerned, primarily, with the collection and dissemination of news through the print media as well as electronic media. This involves various areas of work like reporting, writing, editing, photographing, broadcasting or cable casting news items. It covers the printed media that comes in the form of broadsheets, tabloids, newsletter, and magazines. Newspapers - - are the oldest and most traditional format for the inclusion of journalism. They are regularly scheduled publications containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. Indeed, newspapers originally started life as ‘journals,’ from which the word ‘journalism’ is derived. During the 19th century, American journalists relied on sensational stories that were used to excite or anger the public, rather than to inform them. This form of journalism became known as ‘yellow’ journalism. Accurate and fact-based reporting became popular again around the time of World War II, when the restrained style of writing gained resurgence. Newspaper played a large role in the development of freedom of expression. Inside sources with the ability to ‘leak’ stories to the press often choose newspapers first over any other medium due to the perceived willingness of their editors to expose corruption and lies among otherwise respected institutions. Magazines - are publications containing a variety of articles that are generally published on a regular schedule, whether it be weekly, monthly or quarterly. They usually take a much more relaxed format than newspapers, with a more informal style of writing. They are usually focused on a particular subject or area of interest, whereas newspaper articles can cover almost any topic. Television, news journalism, including radio - is known as news broadcasting and is produced locally in a newsroom or by a broadcast network. It sometimes also includes such additional material as sports coverage, weather forecasts, traffic reports, commentary and other material that the broadcaster considers relevant to the intended audience. Internet communications - have excelled in the last decade or so, taking the way news is published with it. There are now an uncountable digitized number of reputable and not-so-reputable sources of information on the internet. Everything from digitized versions of the very newspapers that headed up the first print media movements hundreds of years ago, to independent bloggers reporting their own stories from the comfort of their own laptops. Journalism versus Literature - All journalistic ventures are grounded on facts, on truth and on actuality. Facts are the foundation of all the ambits of journalism. Journalism and literature are both forms of writing, consumed by the public and have relative style. They may be guided by set rules. Literature is based on the wandering imagination of a writer. It is categorized into prose and poetry. While journalism has main genres that include news, editorial and features. Journalistic genres follow the strict method of dividing ideas through paragraphs while literature has a variety of forms and styles. Tenets of Journalism Journalists have rights, but they must bear on shoulders the duties to serve the interest of the public. 1. Responsibility. Journalists should always be aware of their obligations to their readers to write the truth whatever it costs. For this reason, journalists must be brave enough to defend facts and the truth behind the news. In this sense, the journalists’ main responsibility is to be transmitter of veracity in any issue, and that they are liable not to the company but to the public. 2. Freedom of the Press. As a basic right, freedom of the press should be safeguarded by the people of media. In this case, any topic under the sweltering heat of the sun may be written so long as there is no infraction to the existing laws of the land. 3. Independence. Putting forward the life of one or two persons by slashing the welfare of the general public is a clear violation of this tenet. It, therefore, means that the services of a journalist should be committed to the interest of the general public and not driven by the interest of money called “envelopmental journalism” 4. Objectivity, Truthfulness and Accuracy. Checking the veracity of data and information before they are published is an example of being accurate and truthful. Since facts are the solid foundation of journalism, media men should not therefore conceal the truth by fabricating facts and by publishing misquoted statements and erroneous statistics. Objectivity is simply avoiding conflicts of interests on the treatment of the articles and on the way arguments and news are written. Partisan news and biased interviews violate the ideals of journalism; ergo, a journalist should know the difference between news and opinion. Readers and journalists alike, believe that newspapers should be objective. Thus, reporters receive training from those who know journalistic rules, and learn to resolve whatever conflict they may have. 5. Fairness. The whole point in advocating objectivity is to be fair in presenting information in any journalistic field. Remember, the public will see the topic according to the way journalists present it; hence, reporters should exercise telling the truth and putting the information in the right perspective. In this vein, journalists should always present both sides of the coin, both sides of the argument, both sides of controversial issues. They should set both avenues for the opposing parties to ventilate their arguments and points of clarification. With this in mind, journalists, too, must respect the privacy of individuals, unless, there is a warrant of a public right. In case there is a mistake, true journalists should rectify the said error, thus the errata in newspaper. Teel and Taylor (1983), as cited by Pangilinan (2012), suggested guidelines to attain a balanced story whenever journalists face controversial issues. a. Stick to the facts. b. Never insert your personal opinion. c. d. e. f. g. Be discreet in the use of adjectives Avoid cheap shots. Somebody with something to say deserves a forum. Assess your alliances. Remember that you are an observer, not a participant. Listen to your editor. Killers of Balanced Reporting 1. Yellow journalism- is simply sensationalizing a story or an issue. It is a type of journalism that presents little or no legitimate well-researched news and instead uses eye-catching headlines to sell more newspapers. Techniques may include exaggerations of news events, scandal-mongering or sensationalism. Most showbiz stories are grounded on this type of journalism which appeals to the curiosity of the readers and viewers. 2. New journalism. The new journalists expanded the definition of journalism and of legitimate journalistic reporting and writing techniques. They also associated journalism with fiction when they described their work with phrases such as “nonfiction novel” and “narrative techniques of fiction.” In so doing, they ignited a debate over how much like a novel or short story a journalistic piece could be before it began violating journalism’s commitment to truth and facts. This approach represents a return to the roots of social reporting which was used in Charles Dicken’s fiction. 3. Advocacy journalism is a genre of journalism that adopts a non-objective viewpoint, usually for some social or political purpose. Some advocacy journalists reject the idea that the traditional ideal of objectivity is possible or practical, in part due to the perceived influence of corporate sponsors in advertising. Media advocacy is defined as the strategic use of mass media to advance public policy initiatives. Media advocacy is rooted in community advocacy and has as its goal the promotion of healthy public policies. Advocacy Journalism refers to a genre of journalism that combines reporting with a point of view. With roots as far as the origins of journalism itself, as a contemporary practice it can be found—to varying degrees—in all kinds of media outlets across the globe. Its key premise is that journalists participate in the mass-mediated public sphere and that their work deliberately and transparently stands for specific perspectives, with stories actively championing for certain ideas and values. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Local News - Report of events that take place within the immediate locality. National News - News that takes place within the country. Foreign News - It is a news that takes place outside the country. Advance News - News published before its occurrence. Action News - It is a narrative involving not merely simple facts but dramatic actions- incidents, description of persons, perhaps testimonies of witness, as well as explanatory data. 6. Fact Story - This is a plain exposition setting forth a single situation or a series of closely related facts that inform. It is written in the inverted pyramid design. 7. Coverage News - It is written based on the given assignment to the reporter. 8. Brief News - A short item of news interest, written like a brief telegraphic message, giving mainly the result with details. 9. Spot News - News that are gathered and reported on the spot. 10. Sidebar - It is a news item feature placed side by side it’s mother story to which it is related but under a headline of its own. 11. News Featurette - This is a short news- feature usually used as fillers. 12. Follow-up News - This is a news that looks into the upshot to an event or situation. 13. Dateline news - An out- of- town news story. This news is introduced by a dateline which the story was reported, the date, and the source of the material if not written by the local staff. a. Example: Tokyo, Jan. 9 (AP) 14. Straight news - The first paragraph answers the most important W (what, where, when, why, who) depending in which of the W’s is the most prominent among them. Its body paragraphs consist of the elaboration on the W’s and the H. It is written using the inverted triangle structure. 15. News Feature - It is sometimes called special feature and printed in the features of the newspaper or in the magazines. 16. News Bulletin - It is similar to the lead of a straight news story. Its aim is just to give the gist of the news. A news bulletin is a short, concise report or announcement that provides the latest information on significant events or developments. 17. Flash - This is a message giving first brief news of an event. It is usually boxed. A "flash" typically refers to a brief and sudden news update that interrupts regular programming to deliver urgent information about a significant event or development. It's essentially a quick and concise report meant to inform the audience promptly. Introduction to Campus Journalism Scope of Journalism Journalism is divided into three areas namely: Written – newspapers (prints more news and has no special cover and printed in a special paper called newsprint), magazines (publication that comes out daily, weekly, monthly, and stc.) Oral - Radio Visual – television, movies, and documentaries Functions of the Campus Paper Campus paper is a publication, either mimeographed or printed, put out by staff members whose names appear in the masthead or editorial boc. An Introduction to Journalism - Harold Spears and C.H. Lawshe Jr. 1. Aid to the students - Provides n opportunity for interesting writing. - Gives students the opportunity to learn how to read newspapers. - Acts as a stimulus to better work. - Develops students’ powers of observation and discrimination concerning relative merits of news articles. - Serves as an outlet and motivation for journalistic writing. - Offers training in organization, business methods, commercials art, salesmanship, bookkeeping, and business management. - Develops qualities of cooperation, fact, accuracy, tolerance, responsibility, and leadership. 2. Aid to the school and community - Informs the community on the work of the school. - Publishes school news. - Creates and expresses school opinion. - Makes known the achievements of the school. - Helps unify the school. - Encourages and stimulates worthwhile activities. - Develops right standard of conduct. - Provides an outlet for student suggestions for the betterment of the school. - Develops school spirit. - Develops cooperation between parents and the school. Other Functions of School Paper Information Function - It informs the reader of events that happened, that are happening, or what will still happen Opinion Function - Through the editorial and editorial columns, the editor interprets the meaning of the news specialty of the banner news and gives his opinion of important matter of significant events of the day. Education Function - One of the most important functions of a modern campus paper is to educate not only the students but also the people in the community, sex education and family planning which used to be taboo in classrooms are now topics of discussion by student writers in their school organs. Watchdog Function - The school paper acts as the guardian of the students’ rights. It serves as the eyes of the readers. Laboratory Function - It serves as the teaching tool for the budding journalist after they have learned for example, how to write straight new stories. They cover school activities and write the news for publication. Developmental Function - In developing country like in the Philippines, scholastics as well as commercial journalism has been given nobler significance. The young writer who used to spend more time reporting on club activities like elections and parties and writing lines for Deliliah has graduated into a development journalist as such he has included in his community in his beat and sometimes touches on topic’s national significance. He has been encouraged to ride on increasing agricultural productivity, land reform, expanded health, medical and their social welfare service, population education, rural and electrification, nutrition education and the promotion of deeper culture consciousness among the poeple
