Journalism 311
Reporting and Information Gathering
Tu-Th 2-3:50 p.m., SPA 005
Instructor: Robin Jones
Email: robincanalis@yahoo.com
Phone: (562) 233-4355
Office hours: Tuesdays 4-4:30 p.m., or by appointment
REQUIRED TEXTS
 Inside Reporting, Third Edition, by Tim Harrower (ISBN: 978-0-07-337891-6)
 Associated Press Stylebook, recent edition
COURSE OVERVIEW
This second skills course in the CSULB journalism program will give you the opportunity to
learn:
 How to gather information for interviews and news stories for print and multimedia
formats.
 How to conduct interviews.
 News reporting and the basics of beat coverage.
COURSE GOALS
By the end of the semester, you should be able to find appropriate and credible sources and use
them to report and write accurate, clear, newsworthy stories. To reach these goals you will:
 Conduct background research to understand issues, locate sources and prepare for
interviews.
 Interview sources.
 Write stories and compile data incorporating the information you gather.
CLASS FORMAT
Most Tuesdays, I will lecture about the assigned reading. Most Thursday, we will have a lab
session that attempts to simulate a real-life reporting experience, such as what it’s like to cover a
crime, council meeting, event and so forth. We will use videos, faux press conferences, guest
speakers, news releases and role playing to make the experiences as real as possible. Writing will
take place during the laboratory section of the class in an effort to simulate a real newsroom. I
will act as an editor, going around and helping you with the writing and the organizing of a story.
Stories will be submitted (most days) by the end of the class session.
GRADED WORK
News quizzes: There will be weekly, multiple-choice news quizzes on the previous Monday
through Friday’s LA Times. Each test will have five questions for a total of 10 points. There will
be 12 or 13 news quizzes; you will be graded on the best 10.
Writing assignments: Stories will be graded on accuracy, writing quality, AP style, grammar
and spelling. Points will be lost for reporting/writing errors. At least one of these beat stories
must address and illuminate the experience of a minority (gender, race, ethnicity or sexual
orientation). There are no makeup assignments for missed classes, unless you tell me ahead of
time and your reason for missing falls under one of CSULB’s accepted excuses.
Beat assignments: You will each be required to choose one of the following beats: schools,
police, courts, city government, business, sports, arts/entertainment, county government. You
will be required to generate three story ideas and write them from the beat you choose. The first
story will be a spot news story; the second, a profile; and the third, an in-depth news feature
(which will also serve as your final). At least one of these beat stories must address and
illuminate the experience of a minority (gender, race, ethnicity or sexual orientation).
Midterm: You will take a midterm that tests your understanding of concepts presented in
lectures and readings.
Attendance: There are no points for attendance, and I do not take roll, but if you are going to
miss class or be late, contact me beforehand with one of CSULB’s accepted excuses, otherwise
you will lose the day’s points from quizzes and writing assignments.
GRADING SCALE
News quizzes: 10%
Midterm: 20%
Beat assignments: 30%
In-class assignments: 30%
A = 90% or higher
B = 80% to 89%
C = 70% to 79%
D = 60% to 69%
F = 59% and lower
CLASS SCHEDULE
Week 1
8/27: Introductions, course overview
8/29: Obituary writing assignment
Week 2
9/3: Chapter 3, Newswriting Basics review (leads, structure, style), news quiz #1
9/5: Brief and brite writing assignment
Week 3
9/10: Chapter 4, Reporting Basics (sources, interviews), news quiz #2
9/12: Person-on-the-street interviewing assignment
Week 4
9/17: Chapter 5, Covering the News, news quiz #3
9/19: Crime story in-class writing assignment
Week 5
9/24: Chapter 5, Covering the News, cont., news quiz #4
9/26: Council meeting in-class writing assignment
Week 6
10/1: Chapter 5, Covering the News, cont., news quiz #5
10/3: Speech/press conference in-class writing assignment
Week 7
10/8: Chapter 5, Math for journalists; diversity in news coverage, news quiz #6
10/10: Getting a story out of data in-class writing assignment
Week 8
10/15: Chapter 7, Law and Ethics, news quiz #7
10/17: Law and ethics exercises
Week 9
10/22: Midterm review, NO NEWS QUIZ
10/24: MIDTERM
Week 10
10/29: Chapter 6, Beyond Breaking News: features and profiles, news quiz #8
10/31: Guest lecturer on generating great feature ideas TBA
Week 11
11/5: Chapter 6, Beyond Breaking News: enterprise and investigative stories, news quiz #9
11/7: Guest lecturer on breaking that great enterprise/investigative story TBA
Week 12
11/12: NO CLASS TODAY
11/14: Beat assignment #1 proposals and discussion, news quiz #10
Week 13
11/19: Beat assignment #1 in-class writing (story due at end of class)
11/21: Beat assignment #2 proposals and discussion
Week 14
11/26: Beat assignment #2 writing and editing in class
11/28: NO CLASS TODAY
Week 15
12/3: Beat assignment #2 in-class writing and editing, cont. (story due at end of class)
12/5: Final story proposals and discussion
Week 16
12/10: Final story in-class writing and editing
Final Exam: Final story due
DEPARTMENTAL INFORMATION
Accommodation of Students with Disabilities in Journalism Courses
Students with disabilities who need assistant or accommodation to participate in or benefit from
university programs, services, and/or activities should inform the instructor and then contact
Disabled Student Services. Students needing support services or accommodations should contact
the instructor of the course within the first week of class. In addition, students should establish
their eligibility for assistance by contacting the Disabled Student Services Office (Brotman Hall
270) at 562-985-5401.
Students are to provide to the instructor verification of their disability from Disabled Student
Services. Typical accommodations available from Disabled Student Services, working with the
journalism instructor, includes extended time for tests, test proctoring, private test rooms, note
taking, Braille transcriptions, and referral for tutoring.
If the service offered is insufficient or inadequate, the student should confer with the instructor
and the director of Disabled Student Services. If these efforts are unsuccessful, students have the
option of directing their concerns to the Office of Equity and Diversity (University Student
Union 301) at 562-985-8256. Responsibility for oversight and implementation of the Americans
with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act has been delegated to the campus director for
disability support and accommodation.
Department of Journalism and Mass Communication
Policies on Grading, Conduct of Classes, Drops, Absences and Cheating
Grading: The grading policies and practices in this class are explained elsewhere in the syllabus.
It is the student’s responsibility to read them and to seek clarification if necessary. The student
should be fully aware of what is required for success in the course, such as group participation,
writing, speaking, completing assigned readings, etc.
Seat in Class: An enrolled student may lose his/her seat in class if he/she misses the first class
meeting without notifying the instructor. At the instructor’s discretion, a student who attends the
first class but not subsequent classes may also be dropped from the course.
Withdrawal from Class: Students may withdraw from a class from the third to the 12th week
for “serious and compelling reasons.” Normally these are defined as anything of import that is
beyond the control of the student. This includes, but is not necessarily limited to, death or serious
illness in a student’s immediate family or a documented change in a student’s work schedule.
Poor performance, tardiness and unexcused absences are not considered a serious or compelling
reason beyond the student’s control for purposes of withdrawal.
Absences from Class: Grades in a course may be adversely affected by absences, and students
should seek clarification from the instructor regarding the course absence policy. Make-ups
usually are granted in strict accordance with CSULB policy, which defines excused absences as
(1) illness or injury to the student; (2) death, injury or serious illness of an immediate family
member or the like; (3) religious reasons; (4) jury duty or government obligation; (5) CSULBsanctioned or approved activities [2002-03 Catalog, p. 75]. These and any other requests for an
excused absence must be documented.
CSULB Cheating/Plagiarism/Fabrication Policy: CSULB takes issues of academic dishonesty
very seriously. If you use any deceptive or dishonest method to complete an assignment, take an
exam, or gain credit in a course in any other way, or if you help someone else to do so, you are
guilty of cheating. If you use someone else’s ideas or work and represent it as your own without
giving credit to the source, you are guilty of plagiarism. This does not apply if the ideas are
recognized as common knowledge, or if you can show that you honestly developed the ideas
through your own work. Any instructor can show you the correct ways of citing your sources,
and you should use quotation marks, footnotes or endnotes and bibliographic references to give
credit to your sources according to the format recommended by your instructor.
Responses, Penalties and Student Rights: Students should consult the appropriate sections of
the Catalog for examples of cheating, fabrication and plagiarism, and instructor and/or CSULB
response options in such circumstances. The Catalog also outlines student rights. Any instance of
academic dishonesty may result in your immediate expulsion from the class with a grade of “F”
and/or other sanctions, as the instructor deems appropriate.