I know that it's often rather eye-rolling to see controversial political advocacy, but I'd really recommend checking out what Fareed Zakaria has to say in this report. I think he does a good job of putting the issue into context. I don't think he goes far enough in terms of alleviating concerns over the Fukushima accident, nor in supporting the idea of clean nuclear energy, but he's one of the first Western reporters covering the story that I've been able to nod my head with.
For the last week I've been in quiet despair over the baseless fearmongering and sometimes stark racism that seemed to afflict Western media covering the disasters in Japan. Some of my favorite news agencies - ProPublica, NYT and NPR among them - were not unaffected by this seeming free-for-all of dire speculation that has caused so much panic. I was glad to see that at least one reporter has managed to retain some level of journalistic reserve and perspective on such an explosive issue.
Showing posts with label reporting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reporting. Show all posts
29.4.08
Supanchick Article Reflection
I have a couple things I wanted to say about writing the article on Tyke Supanchick.
First, it was quite interesting in the courtroom. Many people were rather emotional, and the atmosphere was very different from other trials I’ve been involved with.
It also gave me a chance to wear a good suit, and I was disappointed to see that most journalists did not follow suit (though Meghan from KVAL was an exception). I understand that it is just work to most people, but frankly I thought it disrespectful towards a man whose life was on the line.
Writing the article was relatively quick, though it was difficult to cram all the quotes I wanted in there. I ended up cutting out a good kicker because it made the article appear overly biased towards the prosecution. I bolstered the defense statements a bit, but it wasn’t until I found out the defense attorney’s name that I was satisfied.
Overall, most people who read my article found it slightly biased either towards the defense or the prosecution, which I understand is a good indication of neutrality.
I submitted the article to the Creswell Chronicle and the Junction City Tri-County News, which is why the article has a dateline, etc. However, the editor there had the following to say:
The Corvallis Gazette-Times published the AP story a couple days later, which makes me think I should have submitted it there as well, but I just wasn’t sure how to go about doing that. Later I found that jurors had read and posted on this blog, and then I got a critique from Prof. Rea, who I BCCed the article.
All in all it was a very educational experience, and one that I enjoyed very much. I hope for as much success tomorrow at the Lane County budget hearing. The Creswell Chronicle sounded interested in that story, because it is part of Lane County, so hopefully I’ll get a clip.
First, it was quite interesting in the courtroom. Many people were rather emotional, and the atmosphere was very different from other trials I’ve been involved with.
It also gave me a chance to wear a good suit, and I was disappointed to see that most journalists did not follow suit (though Meghan from KVAL was an exception). I understand that it is just work to most people, but frankly I thought it disrespectful towards a man whose life was on the line.
Writing the article was relatively quick, though it was difficult to cram all the quotes I wanted in there. I ended up cutting out a good kicker because it made the article appear overly biased towards the prosecution. I bolstered the defense statements a bit, but it wasn’t until I found out the defense attorney’s name that I was satisfied.
Overall, most people who read my article found it slightly biased either towards the defense or the prosecution, which I understand is a good indication of neutrality.
I submitted the article to the Creswell Chronicle and the Junction City Tri-County News, which is why the article has a dateline, etc. However, the editor there had the following to say:
Tristan,
I appreciate that you wish to contribute to our newspaper, but it is customary in the industry not to accept freelance work on hard news stories such as the Supanchick trial.
Feature stories are a different matter though. We may accept features if they are current and within our coverage area.
Again, thanks for your interest.
Cheers,
Phil
The Corvallis Gazette-Times published the AP story a couple days later, which makes me think I should have submitted it there as well, but I just wasn’t sure how to go about doing that. Later I found that jurors had read and posted on this blog, and then I got a critique from Prof. Rea, who I BCCed the article.
All in all it was a very educational experience, and one that I enjoyed very much. I hope for as much success tomorrow at the Lane County budget hearing. The Creswell Chronicle sounded interested in that story, because it is part of Lane County, so hopefully I’ll get a clip.
24.2.08
Journal Entry VI
The following is part of a series of reposted journal entries made for a reporting class I am taking right now. They aren't particularly edited, or necessarily even interesting (though hopefully they are), but they do a pretty good job of expressing what I am doing right now. And, of course, they are pre-made content. Reader beware.
Journal Entry 6: Photojournalism vs. Reporting
As I am taking both writing and photography courses, I have made a couple of observations. Both take a good amount of skill, time and observation. They both have ethical dilemmas that concern them, and remain to be solved. When a reporter enters the scene, they take a moment to write down their notes on the area, then proceed to speak with witnesses or contacts, etc. When a photographer enters a scene, they take general shots of the setting to situate themselves, then starts chatting with their subjects while they work their way into doing close-up portraits. Not too different.
Yet I have found that there is a real disconnect between reporters and photographers. Writers don’t seem to think much about the multimedia that will accompany their text, even though this is widely-acknowledged (in the vaguest of ways) as the future of the media. They seem comfortable in their chairs writing articles for text-filled newspapers that don’t really exist anymore.
Conversely, photographers feel their work is largely secondary to that of the reporters, despite studies that suggest images are far more significant. They feel in competition with the writers, and pen in long captions so that the writers can’t screw up their work. Of course, at the same time, neither group is doing particularly well right now outside of magazines. More students are going into television news, or getting out of news altogether, in lieu of entering the fracas that is the newspaper industry.
Photographers would do well to improve their writing skills, some of whose are abysmally low, so that they can do better to interface with the writers they contend with. But the writers need to exercise their visual acuity as well, or risk becoming side-lined in an ever-changing industry.
Journal Entry 6: Photojournalism vs. Reporting
As I am taking both writing and photography courses, I have made a couple of observations. Both take a good amount of skill, time and observation. They both have ethical dilemmas that concern them, and remain to be solved. When a reporter enters the scene, they take a moment to write down their notes on the area, then proceed to speak with witnesses or contacts, etc. When a photographer enters a scene, they take general shots of the setting to situate themselves, then starts chatting with their subjects while they work their way into doing close-up portraits. Not too different.
Yet I have found that there is a real disconnect between reporters and photographers. Writers don’t seem to think much about the multimedia that will accompany their text, even though this is widely-acknowledged (in the vaguest of ways) as the future of the media. They seem comfortable in their chairs writing articles for text-filled newspapers that don’t really exist anymore.
Conversely, photographers feel their work is largely secondary to that of the reporters, despite studies that suggest images are far more significant. They feel in competition with the writers, and pen in long captions so that the writers can’t screw up their work. Of course, at the same time, neither group is doing particularly well right now outside of magazines. More students are going into television news, or getting out of news altogether, in lieu of entering the fracas that is the newspaper industry.
Photographers would do well to improve their writing skills, some of whose are abysmally low, so that they can do better to interface with the writers they contend with. But the writers need to exercise their visual acuity as well, or risk becoming side-lined in an ever-changing industry.
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