SPRING 2013
Professor Carol Smith-Passariello
OFFICE AAB 214 or TEC 13C
PHONE 914 606 6119 or cell 914 266 0690
Email: Please use Blackboard
OFFICE HOURS
TBA
CATALOG DESCRIPTION
Journalism & Democracy asks students to study the historical background of American journalism —its role in democracy, trends, evolution, technology, pioneers, standard-bearers across all news distribution platforms; to develop a concept of fair and credible news reporting and all the factors that may affect those qualities, including ethical dilemmas; to understand the importance of the right to a free press and the laws that protect journalists and those that restrict them.

Class hours: 3. No prerequisites. Offered every semester.
REQUIRED TEXTS
Adam, G. Stuart, Notes Towards A Definition of Journalism,
Poynter. Florida. 1993.
Kovach and Rosenstiel, The Elements of Journalism . Crown
Publishers. New York. 2 nd
ed. 2007.
Streitmatter, Rodger, Mightier than the Sword: How the News
Media have Shaped American History , 3 rd
ed. 2011.
BLACKBOARD SUPPLEMENT
Blackboard: All students are required to use the Blackboard supplement for critical updates, email, assignments, discussions, and supplemental required reading. If you lose your syllabus or another class handout, no problem; it’s on Blackboard.
KEY COURSE OBJECTIVES to develop an appreciation of the importance of a free press and the role of a free press within a democracy

to understand the First Amendment, necessary legal limitations, and threats to the First Amendment rights of journalists to develop a news concept, news literacy and the critical thinking skills to recognize when news lacks fairness and credibility to develop an understanding of the skills necessary for news reporting to understand the concept of gatekeeping and its importance to responsible reporting and publishing to learn to identify news with special attention to objectivity, accuracy and fairness; the responsible use of sources; and the style and structure of good news writing to discern differences between print, broadcast and multimedia news presentations; to understand the current trends in multimedia journalism and the pressures these trends have created for journalists to evaluate the criticism of current American journalism to understand the ethical principles that are the foundation of responsible journalism and the integrity of journalists to recognize and respond to the ethical issues faced by contemporary journalists to understand the impact of economic conglomeration on print and broadcast news agencies to identify and evaluate alternatives to mainstream journalism
COURSE OUTLINE & WEEKLY READING (subject to change)

Week 1: Adam, G. Stuart, Towards a Definition of Journalism
Preface and The Education of Journalists
In class writing sample
Week 2: Adam, G. Stuart, Towards a Definition of Journalism
Journalism, Art & the Imagination
Week 3: Kovach & Rosentiel, Elements of Journalism
What is Journalism For?
Truth —the first and most confusing principle
Quiz
Week 4: Kovach & Rosentiel, Elements of Journalism
Who Journalists Work For
Journalism of Verification
Week 5: Kovach & Rosentiel, Elements of Journalism
Independence from Faction
Monitor Power and Offer Voice to the Voiceless
Quiz
Week 6: Elements of Journalism

Journalism As a Public Forum
Engagement and Relevance
Quiz
Week 7: Elements of Journalism-Make the News Comprehensive and
Proportional
Elements of Journalism-Journalists Have a Responsibility to Conscience
Elements of Journalism-The Rights and Responsibilities of Citizens
Quiz
Week 8: Streitmatter, Mightier than the Sword - Introduction
Streitmatter , CH 1, Sowing the Seeds of Revolution
Beginning Blog Projects
Quiz
Week 9: Streitmatter, CH 2, Abolition: Turning America’s Conscience
Against the Sins of Slavery
Streitmatter, CH 3, Slowing the Momentum for Women’s Rights
Week 10 :
Streitmatter, CH 4, Attacking Municipal Corruption: The Tweed Ring
Streitmatter, CH 5, Journalism as Warmonger: The Spanish American War
Project One
Week 11:

Streitmatter, CH 6, Muckraking: The Golden Age of Reform Journalism
Streitmatter, CH 7, Defying the Ku Klux Klan
Week 12:
Streitmatter, CH 8, Father Coughlin: Fomenting Anti-Semitism via the Radio
Streitmatter, CH 9, Creating Rosie the Riveter
Project Two
Week 13:
Streitmatter, CH 10, Exposing Joe McCarthy: TelevisionÕs Finest Hour
Streitmatter, CH 11, Pushing the Civil Rights Movement onto the National
Agenda
Week 14:
Streitmatter, CH 12, Vietnam War: Bringing the Battlefield into the American
Living Room
Streitmatter, CH 13, Watergate Forces the President to His Knees
Week 15:
Streitmatter, CH 14, Rush Limbaugh: Leading the Republican Revolution
Streitmatter, CH 15, 9/11 Failing the American Public
CH 16, How the News Media Have Shaped American History
Project Three
Final Exam

BLOG PROJECTS
All journalism students will prepare and present a series of blog assignments. Details to help you complete blog assignments will be provided well in advance to provide you with sufficient preparation time.
SUBMITTING ASSIGNMENTS AND DEADLINES
Submit assignments as instructed (usually in the digital drop box on the Blackboard) supplement prior to the start of class.
Deadlines are critical for journalists. There are no exceptions for late submissions. After the deadline, the digital drop box will not permit submissions.
GRADING CRITERIA
Quizzes: 50%
Three Blog Projects: 30%
Comprehensive Final Exam: 20%
Extra Credit:

Reporting and writing for The Viking News
Reporting and writing for WARY (must be news)
Creating a multimedia journalism presentation (news) for the
SMA website
Note: Missing more than six class hours will mean the loss of one letter grade from your final average. Three late entrances count as one absence.
SUPPLEMENTAL AND RECOMMENDED TEXTS
When possible, supplemental readings will be from list of links posted on Blackboard.
The AP Guide to News Writing
Best Newspaper Writing
Herman, Edward S. and Noam Chomsky. Manufacturing Consent:
The Political Economy of the Mass Media. New York: Pantheon
Books, 1988.
Rosen, Jay. What Are Journalists For? New Haven, CT. : Yale
1999.

Lee, Martin A. and Norman Solomon. Unreliable Sources: A
Guide to Detecting Bias in News Media. New York: Lyle Stuart,
1990.
Fallows, James. Breaking the News How the Media Undermine
American Democracy. New York: Vintage Books, 1996
Parenti, Michael. Inventing Reality: The Politics of News Media.
Boston/New York: Bedford St. Martins, 1993
Videos:
Free Speech for Sale (1999, 60 minutes): Bill Moyers documentary for PBS.
The Myth of the Liberal Media (1997, 60 minutes). Edward
Herman and Noam Chomsky. Media Education Foundation.
Fear and Favor in the Newsroom. Studs Terkel documentary about pressures journalists face from publishers, advertisers, and their own editors to get important stories published or broadcast.