Introduction to
Journalism
Kishwar Jahan Chowdhury
Lecturer
ESDM,NSTU
Journalism is a form of writing that tells people about
things that really happened, but that they might not
have known about already.
The best journalism is easy to read, and just sounds like
a nice, smart person telling you something interesting.
Journalism comes in several different forms:
I. News
A. Breaking news: Telling about an event as it
happens.
B. Feature stories: A detailed look at something
interesting that's not breaking news.
C. Enterprise or Investigative stories: Stories
that uncover information that few people knew
II. Opinion
A. Editorials: Unsigned articles that express a publication's
opinion.
B. Columns: Signed articles that express the writer's
reporting and his conclusions.
C. Reviews: Such as concert, restaurant or movie reviews.
Online, journalism can come in the forms listed above, as well
as:
● Blogs: Online diaries kept by individuals or small groups.
● Discussion boards: Online question and answer pages
where anyone can participate.
● Wikis: Articles that any reader can add to or change.
Journalism-Primary Roles
Here are a few thoughts about the Primary Roles:
1. News Reporting
-The difficulty of setting this goal as a high priority is
determining what is news.
-As a journalist you are a gatekeeper
-You, not the audience, decide on what news items will be
presented.
-Once you forfeit your right to control access, you stop being
a journalist.
2.Entertainment
- This function has evolved as a strong priority for most
forms of journalism
- To the disappointment of traditionalists who see
information and truth as journalism’s most noble goal.
- Yet news and entertainment have long coincided in the
same journalistic medium.
- The question here is balance.
3. Matter of Record
- This journalistic purpose takes highest priority in the
yearbook, which by definition, defines the year.
- Professional papers do this too,notice the detail recorded in
the stock market report, score boxes on the sports
page, or the weather page.
4.Reader Culture
- This is a tempting priority tense with risks.
- If your sure your audience is homogeneous, it’s easy to
address their tastes, but you might end up with a
crossword puzzle magazine or a comic book.
- Awareness of their needs is good, but it can’t conflict
with the other priorities.
5.Leadership
-It’s quite easy for the newspaper to have influence on
certain areas or on specific issues, but journalists disagree
on the importance of this goal.
-Traditional journalists argue that the press should report
the news in a neutral manner and not try to influence
decisions.
- Yet the more active leadership role of the press in
influencing public behavior has been clear for quite some
time.
6. Interpretation
-This function deserves high priority in all forms of
journalism
-It takes the audience beyond the superficial and tries to
explain the environment in which they spend so much
time.
-But it is difficult to be consistent with interpretation.
Journalistic Models
Advocacy Model
Provides news from the perspective of a political party
This model defined journalism until the beginning of
the 20th century, but faded out as political parties lost
power and mass-circulation newspapers developed
It still exists in things such as magazines for special
interest organizations, and newsletters
Market Model
Provides whatever kind of journalism the audience
demands because what is newsworthy is determined by
advertising
The content is selected here only to make money
Think tabloids
Trustee Model
Journalist determines what the audience needs to know
and delivers
Based on the point that the reader or viewer does not
have the time or skill to find out everything that is
happening, so they trust in the reporter to do so.
Six types of Audiences:
Mainstream: reads local newspapers, watches local
news, is interested in sports and crime, but not foreign
news
Basically Broadcast: gets most news from local TV and
networks such as prime-time “magazines,”; enjoys health,
community, and crime news
Very Occasional: tunes in only when something big is
happening, (heavily male audience)
Con’t
Constant: watches, listens to, and reads almost
everything; likes all topics
Serious News: relies heavily on National Pubic Radio,
NewsHour, Wall Street Journal, etc.; likes news and
business magazines
Tabloid: rejects traditional broadcast news; favors the
National Enquirer, tabloid TV, and tell-all talk shows
Journalist
People who write journalism are called “journalists.” They
might work at newspapers, magazines, websites or for TV
or radio stations.
The most important characteristic shared by good
journalists is curiosity.
• Good journalists love to read and want to find out as
much as they can about the world around them.
• Journalists educate the public about events and issues
and how they affect their lives.
• They spend much of their time interviewing expert sources,
searching public records and other sources for information,
and sometimes visiting the scene where a crime or other
newsworthy occurrence took place.
Key Characteristics
According to Golding and Elliott (1979), Merritt (1995), and
more recently Kovach and Rosenstiel (2001)
• Public service: journalists provide a public service (as
watchdogs or ‘newshounds’, active collectors and
disseminators of information);
• Objectivity: journalists are impartial, neutral, objective,
fair and (thus) credible;
.
• Autonomy: journalists must be autonomous, free and
independent in their work;
• Immediacy: journalists have a sense of immediacy,
actuality and speed (inherent in the concept of ‘news’);
• Ethics: journalists have a sense of ethics, validity and
legitimacy
Ethical Issues for a Journalist
1. Conflict of interest
2. Plagiarism
3. Anonymous sources
4. Offending or distasteful content
5. Invasion of privacy
6. Biasness
7. Commitment to accuracy
Journalism on Environmental Externalities
Media coverage of environmental externalities appears to
have many short comings.
Scholars have alleged that news coverage is poisoned by
inconsistencies, distortions, cyclical and sporadic attention,
and a misrepresentation of data.
While some media outlets employ a reporter on
environmental beat, a "rule of least effort" seems to be
generally applicable to the large majority of environmental
issues.
The media tend to underemphasize risks and
overdramatized spins on disputes in environmental
reporting
Problems and conflicts are mentioned over solutions.
The media often cover the environment with a barrage of
skewed uncertainties and misinformation for increased
audience attention.
THANK YOU
