1. You are a reporter and an important source invites you to dinner. The source says it is the only way you will get the information you need and insists on paying. Based on past practice, your newspaper will refuse to reimburse your costs. What do you do?
We compromise – I go to dinner but I pay for my own food. As it is mostly ‘meeting halfway’ the person may agree. If not… I would probably let them pay and get the information, sorry!
2. While the travel editor was on sick leave, you took a two-week trip to Spain, courtesy of a major airline. During the trip, the airline insisted that the resulting story be positive, and demanded the right to vet and change your copy, saying an advertising contract depended upon it. It was the worst trip of your life. What do you do?
Mention all the positives that aren’t lies. If there aren’t any, I’d look back into the history of the airline and maybe refer back to some positive stories or reports about their quality of service. I wouldn’t directly associate my opinion with those comments, but would include them to the airline happy. I would include a couple of negatives, interspersing them with the positives and if possible taking the spotlight off the airline overall with more focus on the weather, a specific flight attendant, etc.
3. A reliable source tells you of an error in your story, which has been published in this morning’s paper. This means that you must notify the editor and compose a correction for publication. But the source is not concerned about the error and insists that this not be done. Instead they want you to write another small story, based on a new angle. Your admission of error will cost you a payrise. What do you do?
It would pain me greatly… but I would have to notify the editor. The risk of it getting out regardless of what the source says would be far worse in terms of ever getting a payrise than admitting it on the day of publication.
4. You are the court reporter on a major regional newspaper. A teenager convicted of a prostitution offence approaches you. She is beside herself with emotion and says that if you write the story her parents will disown her, her friends will shun her, and worst of all, her partner – who is terminally ill, who she is supporting financially and emotionally in the last days of his life, and who thinks she works in a bank – will not be able to handle finding out how she really earns her money. Your newspaper normally always reports such cases. What will you do? Why?
I will report it. There is never a good time to report a story like that in any case. It will never be something the person wants made public, this story should not be given special treatment.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Online News and Perils of Defamation
Chapter 13, Online News: journalism’s strands converge
1. What do media companies need to do in relation to convergence before they can expect their journalists to work in converged news rooms?
Similar to process involved at the $US2.5million Ifra Newsplex, journalists should be trained and provided with the expertise necessary to work across multiple media environments.
2. What would be the likely outcome if someone who just wanted to work as a print journalist, because they would be nervous on television, was told by the company they worked for that they must report for television as well as print?
There are obviously several possibilities, but if they were to keep their job they would likely have to undertaken moderate training if they felt unable to pick it up themselves.
3. Is journalistic convergence just a trendy fad that will run its course then be forgotten about?
The notion of journalism convergence will always be an option, however I feel it may be avoided in the meantime until technological developments allow it to become more practical and efficient. In the mean time it is only appropriate in limited circumstances.
4. What will be the long-term outcome in Australia of relaxed cross-media ownership laws?
They will be less competition, fewer opposing voices and consequently a biased and limited collection of news and information within the country.
5. If you had a crystal ball, what would it tell you about the future of radio, television, and the web?
Television and radio will always be present in one way or another, however radio may sink into the background as music video clips become the new norm. The web is so becoming so broad and dynamic, it is already merging both television (VNR’s, Youtube) and radio (podcasts) into the one medium. Consequently, I feel TV and radio will always exist… however the lines may be blurred as to where it stops being the ‘web’ and it becomes its own media format.
6. Should the idea of multiskilling be integrated into every course in university journalism studies? Why?
Yes, because as Conley and Lamble (2006) explain, “journalism students who can become confident working across two or more different media platforms will dramatically increase their chances of finding employment and building a solid career.”
7. Is society getting to a point where life as we know it could not survive without the Internet and web?
‘Life as we know it’, definitely. Life however, I doubt it.
Chapter 17: Perils of Defamation
1. You are a newspaper editor. One of your reporters has made an honest mistake that defamed someone. You publish an apology. The person defamed is not satisfied and wants you to print a full page feature story promoting her business or she will sue. What will you do?
If she wants a story demand that she collects the information and puts it together herself. Makes a full page story with little work, aside from touching up her obvious bias. Certainly works better than being sued.
2. Would you support a ‘public figure’ defence for the media that would sharply limit the rights of public figures, ranging from premiers to cricketers and rock stars, to take out defamation suits against the media? Why?
No. Although it would make life easier as a journalist in the short term, out publications would eventually lose all credibility as they published anything without a second thought.
3. You have promised a confidential source that you will not identify her. However, you discover that what she told you is untrue. Your newspaper is sued for defamation. You try to contact the person but she has vanished. Do you reveal her identity in court? Why?
Yes I would reveal her identity. There is no fear of burning the bridge of trust we shared as a source-journalist relationship if she already did that herself. I wouldn’t want her as a source anymore so it wouldn’t phase me.
1. What do media companies need to do in relation to convergence before they can expect their journalists to work in converged news rooms?
Similar to process involved at the $US2.5million Ifra Newsplex, journalists should be trained and provided with the expertise necessary to work across multiple media environments.
2. What would be the likely outcome if someone who just wanted to work as a print journalist, because they would be nervous on television, was told by the company they worked for that they must report for television as well as print?
There are obviously several possibilities, but if they were to keep their job they would likely have to undertaken moderate training if they felt unable to pick it up themselves.
3. Is journalistic convergence just a trendy fad that will run its course then be forgotten about?
The notion of journalism convergence will always be an option, however I feel it may be avoided in the meantime until technological developments allow it to become more practical and efficient. In the mean time it is only appropriate in limited circumstances.
4. What will be the long-term outcome in Australia of relaxed cross-media ownership laws?
They will be less competition, fewer opposing voices and consequently a biased and limited collection of news and information within the country.
5. If you had a crystal ball, what would it tell you about the future of radio, television, and the web?
Television and radio will always be present in one way or another, however radio may sink into the background as music video clips become the new norm. The web is so becoming so broad and dynamic, it is already merging both television (VNR’s, Youtube) and radio (podcasts) into the one medium. Consequently, I feel TV and radio will always exist… however the lines may be blurred as to where it stops being the ‘web’ and it becomes its own media format.
6. Should the idea of multiskilling be integrated into every course in university journalism studies? Why?
Yes, because as Conley and Lamble (2006) explain, “journalism students who can become confident working across two or more different media platforms will dramatically increase their chances of finding employment and building a solid career.”
7. Is society getting to a point where life as we know it could not survive without the Internet and web?
‘Life as we know it’, definitely. Life however, I doubt it.
Chapter 17: Perils of Defamation
1. You are a newspaper editor. One of your reporters has made an honest mistake that defamed someone. You publish an apology. The person defamed is not satisfied and wants you to print a full page feature story promoting her business or she will sue. What will you do?
If she wants a story demand that she collects the information and puts it together herself. Makes a full page story with little work, aside from touching up her obvious bias. Certainly works better than being sued.
2. Would you support a ‘public figure’ defence for the media that would sharply limit the rights of public figures, ranging from premiers to cricketers and rock stars, to take out defamation suits against the media? Why?
No. Although it would make life easier as a journalist in the short term, out publications would eventually lose all credibility as they published anything without a second thought.
3. You have promised a confidential source that you will not identify her. However, you discover that what she told you is untrue. Your newspaper is sued for defamation. You try to contact the person but she has vanished. Do you reveal her identity in court? Why?
Yes I would reveal her identity. There is no fear of burning the bridge of trust we shared as a source-journalist relationship if she already did that herself. I wouldn’t want her as a source anymore so it wouldn’t phase me.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Broadcast Journalism: The World’s Town Crier
1. Do you think the ABC should be privatised? What impact might this have on broadcast journalism? If you disagree, could the government funding process be made less ‘political’?
No, I don't think the ABC should be privatised. The other networks wouldn't like it and the ABC would lose its reputation. The funding process could be less political but despite its political nature I think it remains relatively balanced.
2. You are a television news director with two strong job applications. One is from a ‘telegenic’ male, 28, with reasonable skill and experience. The other is from a female, 38. She is of ‘average’ appearance but has considerable skill and experience. Your present reporting staff consists of four females and one male, none older than 32. Who do you hire, and why?
Reasonable and considerable a slightly ambiguous words, but I suppose the female would have more skill and experience. I would hire the female. We already have a male who can appeal and report for that particular demographic, yet we have no one over the age of 32. That and the fact she has more skill and experience, I would hire her.
3. Given the strengths and weaknesses of each medium, which do you think is the ‘best communicator’ on any given story: radio, television, the web, or newspapers?
It would depend on the story, but I suppose overall I would say Television. It’s easily accessible, reliable, and consistent. With the addition of VNRs however, the web is quickly catching up.
4. During the last federal election campaign do you think the broadcast media focused more on issues or personalities? What could have been done better?
Personalities. There was so much on the problems with Mark Latham and his relationship with Labour, in addition to the tension between John Howard and Peter Costello. It would have been better if they were less tabloid and focused more on the policies and ideas.
No, I don't think the ABC should be privatised. The other networks wouldn't like it and the ABC would lose its reputation. The funding process could be less political but despite its political nature I think it remains relatively balanced.
2. You are a television news director with two strong job applications. One is from a ‘telegenic’ male, 28, with reasonable skill and experience. The other is from a female, 38. She is of ‘average’ appearance but has considerable skill and experience. Your present reporting staff consists of four females and one male, none older than 32. Who do you hire, and why?
Reasonable and considerable a slightly ambiguous words, but I suppose the female would have more skill and experience. I would hire the female. We already have a male who can appeal and report for that particular demographic, yet we have no one over the age of 32. That and the fact she has more skill and experience, I would hire her.
3. Given the strengths and weaknesses of each medium, which do you think is the ‘best communicator’ on any given story: radio, television, the web, or newspapers?
It would depend on the story, but I suppose overall I would say Television. It’s easily accessible, reliable, and consistent. With the addition of VNRs however, the web is quickly catching up.
4. During the last federal election campaign do you think the broadcast media focused more on issues or personalities? What could have been done better?
Personalities. There was so much on the problems with Mark Latham and his relationship with Labour, in addition to the tension between John Howard and Peter Costello. It would have been better if they were less tabloid and focused more on the policies and ideas.
Reporting For Duty
1. You are a police reporter for a major city newspaper. A young man who seems credible tells you that he has been bashed by an off-duty police officer. He has witnesses and a medical report. A police officer tells you that no one will speak to you again if the newspaper runs anything, regardless of who writes it. The chief-of-staff says that if you do not write the story you will be removed from the round. What do you do?
I would publish the story. I would highly doubt the officer is right when he tells me no one will speak to me anymore. I would imagine people would be more likely to isolate the officer who brutally bashed somebody, than the person who reported it. Perhaps that is naïve but regardless I would rather stay on the round and be unpopular.
2. A distraught woman convicted of stealing a pair of stockings from a store approaches you after her court case and says that she will commit suicide if you publish anything. Your newspaper has a policy of publishing all such cases, but it will never know about this one unless you reveal it. You really believe the woman might be suicidal. What do you do? Why?
I would be very sceptical of the woman being suicidal, but seeing as the question tells me I’m not and I believe her, in that case I would not publish it. There is no way any article is more valuable than someone’s life, let alone a stocking theft story.
3. A very famous and very attractive personality gets hopelessly drunk at a party, causes chaos, and on the way home is picked up for drink-driving. You get a tip from a police contact and attend court where the personality is convicted of being three times over the limit, fined, and disqualified from driving. You are the only journalist in court. The personality later phones you and begs you not to write the story because it will ruin their career. They are so desperate they offer everything from sex to money and a free holiday if you do not report on the case. What will you do? Why?
It all brutal honesty, it would depend how much money they offered. If it meant more than the career pathways I could achieve through publishing this story, I would take the money. If not, I would publish the story.
4. Although it is against the law, a juror in a high-profile murder trial approaches you and says there will be a hung jury in the case because two jury members have accepted bribes of $100,000 each from two corrupt high-ranking police officers who have paid money on condition that the jurors do not return a guilty verdict. What will you do? Why?
I would report it. It’s not my fault the juror broke the law by revealing such information to me. It certainly has several of the news values as well.
I would publish the story. I would highly doubt the officer is right when he tells me no one will speak to me anymore. I would imagine people would be more likely to isolate the officer who brutally bashed somebody, than the person who reported it. Perhaps that is naïve but regardless I would rather stay on the round and be unpopular.
2. A distraught woman convicted of stealing a pair of stockings from a store approaches you after her court case and says that she will commit suicide if you publish anything. Your newspaper has a policy of publishing all such cases, but it will never know about this one unless you reveal it. You really believe the woman might be suicidal. What do you do? Why?
I would be very sceptical of the woman being suicidal, but seeing as the question tells me I’m not and I believe her, in that case I would not publish it. There is no way any article is more valuable than someone’s life, let alone a stocking theft story.
3. A very famous and very attractive personality gets hopelessly drunk at a party, causes chaos, and on the way home is picked up for drink-driving. You get a tip from a police contact and attend court where the personality is convicted of being three times over the limit, fined, and disqualified from driving. You are the only journalist in court. The personality later phones you and begs you not to write the story because it will ruin their career. They are so desperate they offer everything from sex to money and a free holiday if you do not report on the case. What will you do? Why?
It all brutal honesty, it would depend how much money they offered. If it meant more than the career pathways I could achieve through publishing this story, I would take the money. If not, I would publish the story.
4. Although it is against the law, a juror in a high-profile murder trial approaches you and says there will be a hung jury in the case because two jury members have accepted bribes of $100,000 each from two corrupt high-ranking police officers who have paid money on condition that the jurors do not return a guilty verdict. What will you do? Why?
I would report it. It’s not my fault the juror broke the law by revealing such information to me. It certainly has several of the news values as well.
The Story Factory
1. A confidential source has tipped you off about what could be the story of the year, but they would prefer you to wait a day to write it. The source admits that another media outlet might have it too. You feel you need at least two days on it to do a good job. But it’s been a slow news day, and if you tell the chief-of-staff, you will be expected to write it to the best of your ability today. What do you do?
I wouldn’t tell the chief-of-staff. If it would take two days to do a decent job I definitely wouldn’t try and publish it that day, it would be tomorrow at the earliest. Yes another media outlet might have it too and may publish that very day, but if the story requires two days to do satisfactorily I would rather have a brilliant piece on the story of the year, than breaking news with limited facts and no real story.
Two days can be an awful long time in the media world for some news items, for others two days is nothing. For something that could be the ‘story of the year’, I would imagine it would still be a hot topic two days later. In fact, the breaking news two days earlier could help stir interest, resulting in even better readership when your story is published.
I’m not sure if I would wait the whole two days earlier. The source only asked me to wait a day, so depending on the news item and my access to information I would try and get it done in one day instead of two.
I know it is important to have trust from the chief-of-staff, but if I came to them the next day with a fabulous story on the story of the year, they would be grateful to have it even if another media outlet broke with the initial news the day before. I’m sure he would understand my respect for the sources wishes, especially as a ‘story of the year’ type story is usually ongoing and therefore we may need the source in the future.
2. After a tip from an inside source you work on an article about filth in the kitchen of a major resort which has allegedly resulted in several guests and staff becoming ill. In the final stages of preparing your article you seek comment from the resort’s manager, who is hostile and refuses to comment. A short time later you receive a phone call from a leading public relations practitioner who tells you that the resort has been losing money and any bad publicity would force it to close with the loss of 120 jobs. Your source is one of the people who could be out of work. What will you do? Why?
I would publish the story. When the manager refused to comment he forfeited his right to explain and/or defend himself, and he if he valued his customers returning and the staff valued their jobs they should have maintained higher standards of hygiene. It would be unfortunate to burn the source, but seeing as they would be out of a job I don’t see how they could be in a position for me to use them as a source for a story again, and consequently I would feel fairly safe burning that bridge.
3. You are the late sub-editor for a daily newspaper. It is nearly 10pm. A man who identifies himself as a solicitor rings and says that a judge issued an order, after the journalist departed, prohibiting publication of a defendant’s name. He sounds drunk. The story, with the defendant’s name, is on the front page, which is about to be sent to the press. There is no time to call anyone without delaying the production process. What do you do?
During the phone call I would ask for details of the solicitor, for verification of his identity and his position. Name, clients, etc. If he failed to provide any I would inform him then and there that we are unable to alter the articles on such requests unless we are informed with adequate evidence that such an order has in fact been issued.
4. You are a junior journalist and you find yourself caught in the middle of an argument between the editor, who wants you to take one angle on a crime story, and the police rounds reporter who says the editor does not understand the full implications of the story and you should take a totally different angle. What will you do? Why?
Well it’s hard to answer without knowing the story, but I would compromise with the way I wrote as best I could to please all, but where there is no room for change I would cater for the police. They are a valuable source I would not want to burn, not to mention they are aware of the severity of the situation despite it possibly making a less interesting story. The only exception I can think of is if disobeying the editor would cost me my job. Better have a job with burned bridges than no job at all. The editor should respect the police’s advice as the editor takes legal responsibility for what a newspaper prints.
I wouldn’t tell the chief-of-staff. If it would take two days to do a decent job I definitely wouldn’t try and publish it that day, it would be tomorrow at the earliest. Yes another media outlet might have it too and may publish that very day, but if the story requires two days to do satisfactorily I would rather have a brilliant piece on the story of the year, than breaking news with limited facts and no real story.
Two days can be an awful long time in the media world for some news items, for others two days is nothing. For something that could be the ‘story of the year’, I would imagine it would still be a hot topic two days later. In fact, the breaking news two days earlier could help stir interest, resulting in even better readership when your story is published.
I’m not sure if I would wait the whole two days earlier. The source only asked me to wait a day, so depending on the news item and my access to information I would try and get it done in one day instead of two.
I know it is important to have trust from the chief-of-staff, but if I came to them the next day with a fabulous story on the story of the year, they would be grateful to have it even if another media outlet broke with the initial news the day before. I’m sure he would understand my respect for the sources wishes, especially as a ‘story of the year’ type story is usually ongoing and therefore we may need the source in the future.
2. After a tip from an inside source you work on an article about filth in the kitchen of a major resort which has allegedly resulted in several guests and staff becoming ill. In the final stages of preparing your article you seek comment from the resort’s manager, who is hostile and refuses to comment. A short time later you receive a phone call from a leading public relations practitioner who tells you that the resort has been losing money and any bad publicity would force it to close with the loss of 120 jobs. Your source is one of the people who could be out of work. What will you do? Why?
I would publish the story. When the manager refused to comment he forfeited his right to explain and/or defend himself, and he if he valued his customers returning and the staff valued their jobs they should have maintained higher standards of hygiene. It would be unfortunate to burn the source, but seeing as they would be out of a job I don’t see how they could be in a position for me to use them as a source for a story again, and consequently I would feel fairly safe burning that bridge.
3. You are the late sub-editor for a daily newspaper. It is nearly 10pm. A man who identifies himself as a solicitor rings and says that a judge issued an order, after the journalist departed, prohibiting publication of a defendant’s name. He sounds drunk. The story, with the defendant’s name, is on the front page, which is about to be sent to the press. There is no time to call anyone without delaying the production process. What do you do?
During the phone call I would ask for details of the solicitor, for verification of his identity and his position. Name, clients, etc. If he failed to provide any I would inform him then and there that we are unable to alter the articles on such requests unless we are informed with adequate evidence that such an order has in fact been issued.
4. You are a junior journalist and you find yourself caught in the middle of an argument between the editor, who wants you to take one angle on a crime story, and the police rounds reporter who says the editor does not understand the full implications of the story and you should take a totally different angle. What will you do? Why?
Well it’s hard to answer without knowing the story, but I would compromise with the way I wrote as best I could to please all, but where there is no room for change I would cater for the police. They are a valuable source I would not want to burn, not to mention they are aware of the severity of the situation despite it possibly making a less interesting story. The only exception I can think of is if disobeying the editor would cost me my job. Better have a job with burned bridges than no job at all. The editor should respect the police’s advice as the editor takes legal responsibility for what a newspaper prints.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Interviewing and Computer Assisted Reporting
Chapter 9:
1. Which would you choose: a direct quotation that is accurate but unclear and embarrassing to the speaker, or one that is clear but is inexact and makes the speaker appear more eloquent than he or she really is?
Well it would depend on my agenda, and whether I wanted the speaker to appear eloquent or not. Generally however, I would choose the unclear but accurate quote and try paraphrasing or focusing on particular parts of the sentence to help convey the message.
2. Is it ever justified for a journalist to intimidate a source with a threat of ‘public exposure’ to get important public information?
Yes, especially if they were bluffing.
3. Is it a reasonable strategy for a journalist – male or female – to use ‘personal chemistry’ to get information from sources when there is public interest at stake.
Obviously there are instances where it is reasonable and when it isn’t. In principle I find it reasonable, but there are guidelines that should not be crossed.
4. What potential dangers could come back to haunt a journalist who gets too close to a source?
If the journalist sells them out and reveals information the source wanted secret, or if they write with extreme bias.
5. Who is the more inarticulate, word-mangling public figure regularly in the news at present? Should you feel sorry for them and clean up their direct quotes or let them stew in their own frying pan.
George W. Bush. Let him stew!
Chapter 14:
1. Read the cover story of last weekend’s edition of The Weekend Australian Magazine. Discuss the introduction, the intro sentence, and the writing style. Was there a justifier? Did the closer tie back to the introduction?
The intro sentence immediately established the article as a feature article as opposed to hard breaking news. The closer didn't really tie in with the introduction at all, and I did feel the writer gave a clear justified purpose for writing the story, however it occured more within the second sentence.
2. Should newspapers give more prominence to feature stories? Is promoting good writing a way to increase newspaper sales, or do you think people are too busy or too interested in hard news to really care.
It would have to depend on the newspapers target audience, but generally there could be more feature article content. However in terms of prominence, I don’t think features articles should ever be given front page over hard breaking news. They belong later on in the publication.
3. Should newspapers be expected to limit cheap ‘imported’ features about Hollywood stars and foreign royalty to make room for Australian writers and subjects? Or should the guiding factor be perceived to market forces?
Obviously it would depend on the publication, but I think the subject and content should go according to what the audience desires. If they are patriotic and want local news given special prominence, then so be it. If not, then not. I don’t feel that Australia should be included more just for the sake of it, unless the publication is actually intending to be representative of national news.
4. Would you like to be a full-time feature writer? Why or why not?
Yes, because I’ve always preferred subjective writing to objective.
5. How does being a feature writer differ from being a columnist?
A columnist usually has a consistent theme or topic for each edition, and is also more often focused on the opinions of the writer as opposed to a human interest story.
1. Which would you choose: a direct quotation that is accurate but unclear and embarrassing to the speaker, or one that is clear but is inexact and makes the speaker appear more eloquent than he or she really is?
Well it would depend on my agenda, and whether I wanted the speaker to appear eloquent or not. Generally however, I would choose the unclear but accurate quote and try paraphrasing or focusing on particular parts of the sentence to help convey the message.
2. Is it ever justified for a journalist to intimidate a source with a threat of ‘public exposure’ to get important public information?
Yes, especially if they were bluffing.
3. Is it a reasonable strategy for a journalist – male or female – to use ‘personal chemistry’ to get information from sources when there is public interest at stake.
Obviously there are instances where it is reasonable and when it isn’t. In principle I find it reasonable, but there are guidelines that should not be crossed.
4. What potential dangers could come back to haunt a journalist who gets too close to a source?
If the journalist sells them out and reveals information the source wanted secret, or if they write with extreme bias.
5. Who is the more inarticulate, word-mangling public figure regularly in the news at present? Should you feel sorry for them and clean up their direct quotes or let them stew in their own frying pan.
George W. Bush. Let him stew!
Chapter 14:
1. Read the cover story of last weekend’s edition of The Weekend Australian Magazine. Discuss the introduction, the intro sentence, and the writing style. Was there a justifier? Did the closer tie back to the introduction?
The intro sentence immediately established the article as a feature article as opposed to hard breaking news. The closer didn't really tie in with the introduction at all, and I did feel the writer gave a clear justified purpose for writing the story, however it occured more within the second sentence.
2. Should newspapers give more prominence to feature stories? Is promoting good writing a way to increase newspaper sales, or do you think people are too busy or too interested in hard news to really care.
It would have to depend on the newspapers target audience, but generally there could be more feature article content. However in terms of prominence, I don’t think features articles should ever be given front page over hard breaking news. They belong later on in the publication.
3. Should newspapers be expected to limit cheap ‘imported’ features about Hollywood stars and foreign royalty to make room for Australian writers and subjects? Or should the guiding factor be perceived to market forces?
Obviously it would depend on the publication, but I think the subject and content should go according to what the audience desires. If they are patriotic and want local news given special prominence, then so be it. If not, then not. I don’t feel that Australia should be included more just for the sake of it, unless the publication is actually intending to be representative of national news.
4. Would you like to be a full-time feature writer? Why or why not?
Yes, because I’ve always preferred subjective writing to objective.
5. How does being a feature writer differ from being a columnist?
A columnist usually has a consistent theme or topic for each edition, and is also more often focused on the opinions of the writer as opposed to a human interest story.
Small Path, Big Story
1. Which type of story would you rather do and why?
a) a ‘paper chase’ conducted entirely by computer and telephone that takes half the time it would have taken if you had left the office?
b) A ‘paper chase’ involving visits to half a dozen government offices and in-person interviews that puts you under extreme deadline pressure?
I feel obligated to say b), but in all honesty I am definitely and a) man.
2. Would you be willing to pursue a corruption investigation or an investigation into organised crime if it included many unpaid hours of extra work and personal risk?
It depends where I was in my career. At this stage, yes, because I would have a lot to gain from successfully completing that article/investigation. If I was where I wanted to stay, the extra work and risk probably wouldn’t be worth it for me.
3. Would you be willing to act together as a unit with competing reporters at a media conference in an effort to get maximum information if it meant giving up your best question, which you had intended to ask privately after the conference?
No. If my question was so good, chances are I would get adequate information either way, and better have good information no one else has than good information everybody has.
4. Who really owns government-held information: the government or the people? Why?
The government owns it to mediate to the people, because there must be guidelines for what is public information and what is not. As the government is responsible for determining that, it is appropriate that they are in charge of the information.
5. If you were assigned to report on the proceedings of a conference and you had to choose between attending different sessions being conducted at the same time, how would you decide which to attend?
If one were being televised or I had contacts in one who would share information, that would mean I could afford to miss it and therefore attend the other. Also, if it were a conference with question and comment time, I may choose a session with less people to better my chances of getting my question out there.
a) a ‘paper chase’ conducted entirely by computer and telephone that takes half the time it would have taken if you had left the office?
b) A ‘paper chase’ involving visits to half a dozen government offices and in-person interviews that puts you under extreme deadline pressure?
I feel obligated to say b), but in all honesty I am definitely and a) man.
2. Would you be willing to pursue a corruption investigation or an investigation into organised crime if it included many unpaid hours of extra work and personal risk?
It depends where I was in my career. At this stage, yes, because I would have a lot to gain from successfully completing that article/investigation. If I was where I wanted to stay, the extra work and risk probably wouldn’t be worth it for me.
3. Would you be willing to act together as a unit with competing reporters at a media conference in an effort to get maximum information if it meant giving up your best question, which you had intended to ask privately after the conference?
No. If my question was so good, chances are I would get adequate information either way, and better have good information no one else has than good information everybody has.
4. Who really owns government-held information: the government or the people? Why?
The government owns it to mediate to the people, because there must be guidelines for what is public information and what is not. As the government is responsible for determining that, it is appropriate that they are in charge of the information.
5. If you were assigned to report on the proceedings of a conference and you had to choose between attending different sessions being conducted at the same time, how would you decide which to attend?
If one were being televised or I had contacts in one who would share information, that would mean I could afford to miss it and therefore attend the other. Also, if it were a conference with question and comment time, I may choose a session with less people to better my chances of getting my question out there.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
A Word's Worth
1. At what educational level of readers should newspapers be aiming? Do you think your main metropolitan newspaper is hitting the mark? Why or why not?
I feel the standard educational level should be set according to the year 10 School Certificate. Not all readers will have completed or be involved in some form of tertiary education, or even completed their HSC. Having said this, it is appropriate for special columns, lift outs or segments of newspapers to assume an extra level of familiarity with the content of that particular article. An example would be the Drive lift out, focusing on cars. When considering the target audience for that lift out, the writers may utilise a particular vernacular and terminology in relation to vehicles and engines that not all may immediately understand.
I feel my metropolitan newspaper is hitting the mark, as it acknowledges the standard of its overall audience while successfully targeting specific demographics. This balance is crucial for the success of any mainstream newspaper.
2. To what extent do you think reporters should be able to interpret news events and inject their thoughts into news stories?
It's hard to give this question a solid answer. It obviously depends on the nature of the article and overall publication. Tabloids do to a very large extent, as they thrive on speculation and personal theories. When I’m reading breaking news on the front page of a broadsheet newspaper, I expect solid facts and credible opinions (if any at all). Furthermore, different articles within those publications would also vary in the extent writers ‘inject’ their own thoughts.
3. English is a growing and ever-changing language as new words evolve and old ones fall into disuse. What then of the idea of a global language? Does it really matter that our language is being tainted with Americanisms and US spellings?
This was something I was contemplating just the other day, and I think this example illustrates my point well. Alanis Morissette has an upcoming album called Flavours of Entanglement, and despite being Canadian there are numerous instances where the American spelling of 'flavors' is employed. As Alanis is a national icon of Canada, her native fans identify with her as a representative of their culture for the world. In this respect I do think there is some importance in maintaining traditional spelling and grammar, despite perhaps being trivial in the grand scheme of things.
4. Based on your own experience and your reading of newspapers, do you think newspapers have a serious commitment to accuracy?
In short, yes. Granted journalists have a reputation for cutting corners and fudging facts, but this in itself serves as a purpose for making integrity and credibility a top priority. I feel that although the journalist 'code of ethics' works according to rules and regulations different to most other professions, the fact that their mistakes and/or lies are published for good for the world to see makes me think there is an added severity to the consequences. As a result, I believe accuracy is generally taken very seriously amongst most newspapers.
5. What would you do if you made a serious mistake in a story you wrote but no one contacted the paper to complain?
This is hard to answer without a specific scenario, but if the mistake is regarded as 'serious' I would make a correction and/or acknowledgement of the error when possible. I would be careful to make the correction quietly though, as to maintain credibility with those who miss it, and to maintain integrity with those who do. If it were a trivial error, I would probably leave it unless someone complained.
I feel the standard educational level should be set according to the year 10 School Certificate. Not all readers will have completed or be involved in some form of tertiary education, or even completed their HSC. Having said this, it is appropriate for special columns, lift outs or segments of newspapers to assume an extra level of familiarity with the content of that particular article. An example would be the Drive lift out, focusing on cars. When considering the target audience for that lift out, the writers may utilise a particular vernacular and terminology in relation to vehicles and engines that not all may immediately understand.
I feel my metropolitan newspaper is hitting the mark, as it acknowledges the standard of its overall audience while successfully targeting specific demographics. This balance is crucial for the success of any mainstream newspaper.
2. To what extent do you think reporters should be able to interpret news events and inject their thoughts into news stories?
It's hard to give this question a solid answer. It obviously depends on the nature of the article and overall publication. Tabloids do to a very large extent, as they thrive on speculation and personal theories. When I’m reading breaking news on the front page of a broadsheet newspaper, I expect solid facts and credible opinions (if any at all). Furthermore, different articles within those publications would also vary in the extent writers ‘inject’ their own thoughts.
3. English is a growing and ever-changing language as new words evolve and old ones fall into disuse. What then of the idea of a global language? Does it really matter that our language is being tainted with Americanisms and US spellings?
This was something I was contemplating just the other day, and I think this example illustrates my point well. Alanis Morissette has an upcoming album called Flavours of Entanglement, and despite being Canadian there are numerous instances where the American spelling of 'flavors' is employed. As Alanis is a national icon of Canada, her native fans identify with her as a representative of their culture for the world. In this respect I do think there is some importance in maintaining traditional spelling and grammar, despite perhaps being trivial in the grand scheme of things.
4. Based on your own experience and your reading of newspapers, do you think newspapers have a serious commitment to accuracy?
In short, yes. Granted journalists have a reputation for cutting corners and fudging facts, but this in itself serves as a purpose for making integrity and credibility a top priority. I feel that although the journalist 'code of ethics' works according to rules and regulations different to most other professions, the fact that their mistakes and/or lies are published for good for the world to see makes me think there is an added severity to the consequences. As a result, I believe accuracy is generally taken very seriously amongst most newspapers.
5. What would you do if you made a serious mistake in a story you wrote but no one contacted the paper to complain?
This is hard to answer without a specific scenario, but if the mistake is regarded as 'serious' I would make a correction and/or acknowledgement of the error when possible. I would be careful to make the correction quietly though, as to maintain credibility with those who miss it, and to maintain integrity with those who do. If it were a trivial error, I would probably leave it unless someone complained.
Upside-down Pyramids
1. Find an event-based story in a metropolitan newspaper. Analyse and identify its structures and transitions. Does it include a chronology? Does it include important material deep in the story that has not been foreshadowed?
Story: "Tourist hit by chopper blade". (SMH)
The story does have a strong chronology, but there's a fair amount of information that is not foreshadowed in the beginning, such as details of the invesitgation and even location. The intro includes the basis for the story, then it basically elaborates on the details until the end.
2. Analyse and issue-based story in a metropolitan newspaper in the same way.
Story: "Love, sex and 'the one': is it all about timing?" (SMH)
The story has no chronology, and hardly anything is foreshadowed at all. It has a very informal and conversation structure, and the transitions are relatively smooth.
3. Find four newspaper articles which are constructed on the inverted pyramid model and four which are not. List the main news values in each. Which are the clearest and easiest to read? Why?
Similar to the results for questions 1 and 2, event based articles are more commonly based around the inverted pyramid, and issue based articles are not. So, for the 8 articles I took a look at, there was a clear and fine distinction between the news values for those that incorporated the inverted pyramid and those that did not. The 4 I looked at that didn't, were all human-interest stories, issue based and had a more feature article structure. I found the other 4 that were structured with the inverted pyramid were by far the clearest and easiest to read. This was because the feature articles continued to explore more and more tangents as the article progressed, where as the inverted pyramid based articles listed the basis for the entire article within the intro, and stayed within that for the rest of the article. As a result the inverted pyramid articles had more direction and weren't as 'waffly'. (Like this answer!)
4. List the following facts in what you believe should be their order of importance, and then write an intro and second paragraph.
Ranked:
Story: "Tourist hit by chopper blade". (SMH)
The story does have a strong chronology, but there's a fair amount of information that is not foreshadowed in the beginning, such as details of the invesitgation and even location. The intro includes the basis for the story, then it basically elaborates on the details until the end.
2. Analyse and issue-based story in a metropolitan newspaper in the same way.
Story: "Love, sex and 'the one': is it all about timing?" (SMH)
The story has no chronology, and hardly anything is foreshadowed at all. It has a very informal and conversation structure, and the transitions are relatively smooth.
3. Find four newspaper articles which are constructed on the inverted pyramid model and four which are not. List the main news values in each. Which are the clearest and easiest to read? Why?
Similar to the results for questions 1 and 2, event based articles are more commonly based around the inverted pyramid, and issue based articles are not. So, for the 8 articles I took a look at, there was a clear and fine distinction between the news values for those that incorporated the inverted pyramid and those that did not. The 4 I looked at that didn't, were all human-interest stories, issue based and had a more feature article structure. I found the other 4 that were structured with the inverted pyramid were by far the clearest and easiest to read. This was because the feature articles continued to explore more and more tangents as the article progressed, where as the inverted pyramid based articles listed the basis for the entire article within the intro, and stayed within that for the rest of the article. As a result the inverted pyramid articles had more direction and weren't as 'waffly'. (Like this answer!)
4. List the following facts in what you believe should be their order of importance, and then write an intro and second paragraph.
Ranked:
- The train driver was killed instantly
- The semi-trailer driver escaped serious injury
- The accident occured where the train track crosses Skyline Road, five kilometres north of Hillville
- The incident occured at 2:30 this morning
- The semi-trailer, valued at more than $200,000, was destroyed
- 'It appears the semi-trailer misjudged the speed of the train,' Hillville police constable Jed Blaine said. 'It got about halfway across the track before the collision occurred.'
- The semi-trailer was carrying an undisclosed toxic chemical, which spilled across the roadway, forcing the evacuation of six houses in the area
- The train was carrying uranium ore
- The road was closed for six hours while the wreckage was cleared
- Police said that they were still investigating the accident
- The train driver's name is being withheld pending notification of relatives
A train collided with a semi-trailer on Skyline Road at 2:30 this morning, instantly killing the train driver with the driver of the semi-trailer managing to escape serious injury as the vehicle was destroyed.
'It appears the semi-trailer misjudged the speed of the train,' Hillville police constable Jed Blaine said. 'It got about halfway across the track before the collision occurred.'
Thoughts on the reading.
After doing Intro to Professional Writing, I felt relatively familiar with the concept of the inverted pyramid. However, only recently being educated in the realm of professional journalism, I felt especially interested in learning about alternatives to inverted pyramid reporting, and area the chapter covered which seems less frequently explored in class. As a result I found the chapter helpful, in particular the segment that focused on the alternatives as I felt that was where I my knowledge was most limited.
Another aspect of writing covered in the chapter that I felt I had a lot to learn about, was the idea of utilising 'transitional devices'. Employing word bridges and unifying your points, facts, and pars, was something I was obviously aware of but I knew I could certainly improve on my ability. These areas were most intriging for me, and I gave them special focus when reading through the chapter.
Monday, September 3, 2007
The Lead: Will The Reader Follow?
1. Find an example of the following types of news intros:
a/ direct, b/ attribution, c/ delayed, d/ summary, e/ decision.
I gave these examples in my presentation. A couple from the Brag magazine including delayed and attribution, as opposed to some newspaper articles that more often incorporated elements of summary, direct, and occasionally decision.
2. Analyse them and consider whether they do the job of capturing attention and conveying the story's central message.
I thought the approaches to the intro were fairly appropriate. Brag is a music magazine, similar to Reverb. With content such as interviews, character profiles, and reviews, intros with attribution or delayed approaches were appropriate for reviews, and 'behind-the-scenes' style interviews and band profiles.
On the other hand, the ones I included from the newspapers were more often employing styles such as summary and direct, for the sake of updating the public or reporting breaking news. This contrasted with the feature articles included in Brag. Decision was least frequent, at least amongst the various articles I researched.
3. Select five news-story intros at random from a daily newspaper and calculate the average word length. Do a letter count, noting the number of words in each intro with more than eight letters. Rank the intros from most to least readable. Have sentence and word length had an effect on readability?
On the whole, yes. Longer words and verbose sentences were a little more overwhelming when compared to the more concise and succinct writing. Sometimes long words were still easy to read if they were familiar like 'information' etc. The only other exceptions were names that were included. Names eight letters or longer didn't hinder the readability in the same way that other long or unfamiliar words did.
4. Rewrite the following as a concise, one-sentence intro:
Thunderstorms yesterday afternoon blew over powerlines creating blackouts at Broken Hill, snapped limbs from trees throughout the town, including a camphor laurel near the main street, and knocked over numerous wheelie bins, sending rubbish through the area. Power was off in the town for 12 hours before service was restored to the 350 homes affected.
Thunderstorms left destruction in Broken Hill yesterday after knocking over bins, trees, and powerlines, causing blackouts in 350 homes for 12 hours.
5. Identify an important national or international story which is significant enough to be covered by a range of media outlets. Go to Australian newspaper websites and find and print at least two different versions of the same story, each with different intros. Compare the intros and rank them in order from the most informative and appealing to the least.
a/ direct, b/ attribution, c/ delayed, d/ summary, e/ decision.
I gave these examples in my presentation. A couple from the Brag magazine including delayed and attribution, as opposed to some newspaper articles that more often incorporated elements of summary, direct, and occasionally decision.
2. Analyse them and consider whether they do the job of capturing attention and conveying the story's central message.
I thought the approaches to the intro were fairly appropriate. Brag is a music magazine, similar to Reverb. With content such as interviews, character profiles, and reviews, intros with attribution or delayed approaches were appropriate for reviews, and 'behind-the-scenes' style interviews and band profiles.
On the other hand, the ones I included from the newspapers were more often employing styles such as summary and direct, for the sake of updating the public or reporting breaking news. This contrasted with the feature articles included in Brag. Decision was least frequent, at least amongst the various articles I researched.
3. Select five news-story intros at random from a daily newspaper and calculate the average word length. Do a letter count, noting the number of words in each intro with more than eight letters. Rank the intros from most to least readable. Have sentence and word length had an effect on readability?
On the whole, yes. Longer words and verbose sentences were a little more overwhelming when compared to the more concise and succinct writing. Sometimes long words were still easy to read if they were familiar like 'information' etc. The only other exceptions were names that were included. Names eight letters or longer didn't hinder the readability in the same way that other long or unfamiliar words did.
4. Rewrite the following as a concise, one-sentence intro:
Thunderstorms yesterday afternoon blew over powerlines creating blackouts at Broken Hill, snapped limbs from trees throughout the town, including a camphor laurel near the main street, and knocked over numerous wheelie bins, sending rubbish through the area. Power was off in the town for 12 hours before service was restored to the 350 homes affected.
Thunderstorms left destruction in Broken Hill yesterday after knocking over bins, trees, and powerlines, causing blackouts in 350 homes for 12 hours.
5. Identify an important national or international story which is significant enough to be covered by a range of media outlets. Go to Australian newspaper websites and find and print at least two different versions of the same story, each with different intros. Compare the intros and rank them in order from the most informative and appealing to the least.
- ALEXANDER Downer has revealed government MPs considered turfing John Howard as leader but resolved to lock in behind the PM. (Daily Telegraph)
- Foreign Minister Alexander Downer says government MPs have decided to lock in behind John Howard after considering their options. (Sydney Morning Herald)
The Daily Telegraph is obviously more sensationalised, but I feel it intrigued me to read on the most.
6. Write the first two paragraphs of a story based on the following facts:
- Your city's ratepayers' association will hold a meeting at 7:30pm on Tuesday. Association president Helen Rosebury said residents will consider concerns about the city council's new policy of requiring permits for off-street parking in residential areas.
- Your city's mayor will attend the meeting
- The meeting will be held at 10 Bryce Street
- Ms Rosebury said some residents wanted to discuss a strategy to disrupt the next council meeting from the public gallery
- The mayor said he expected the controversy to be resolved on Tuesday night
- The new parking permits will cost $50 per year
The local ratepayers' association will hold a meeting at 7:30pm at 10 Bryce St on Tuesday, to discuss concerns about the council's new policy of requiring permits for off-street parking in residential areas.
Association President Helen Rosebury says some residents want to discuss strategies for these $50 annual permits, and the mayor expects the controversy to be resolved on Tuesday night when he attends.
Thoughts on the reading.
My class presentation was on the art of the intro, and consequently I found this especially important and useful. The 'shock-horror' guide to intros was particuarly informative, as the simple and clear structure of 'top 10 tips' style articles has always appealed to me.
I felt like points such as 1 and 10 were simply givens and therefore didn't teach me anything new, however points like 5, 7, and especially 4 helped me get a better grasp on how to approach a challenging story. The 'over the fence' technique was a strategy I really hadn't considered, and gave me a really different methodology to think about.
Overall the chapter was relatively helpful, not simply for my presentation but additionally because understanding the art of the intro is one of the most fundamental aspects of being a successful journalist.
Sunday, August 5, 2007
A 'know' for news
1. How did Australian news outlets give proximity to the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami?
By focusing on Australian victims and their stories. They also explored the possibility of it occuring to Australia, investigating the liklihood of a local tsunami through Australia's renowned coastal lifestyle and the continent's low coastline. Eventually Australia's relief effort and unexpected amount of financial support became topical, exploring where 'our' money was going.
2. If you were a reporter covering a story about a mentally ill Australian woman who was found by Queensland police in Cairns talking what they thought was German, who was subsequently arrested and found herself locked up in an immigration detention centre in South Australia for 10 months, what main news value would you focus on when writing the story? In order of importance, what would be the next two subsidiary news values?
1. Conflict (Community debate over the quality of the immigration system and mental healthcare, which party is mostly at fault and what needs to change)
2. Proximity (How easy is this massive mixup to happen? Could it happen to you or someone you know?)
3. Impact (How will things change now? Will there be new laws for imprisoning immigrants? Will there be a crackdown on mental healthcare now?)
3. As a reporter, which information would you feature more prominently:
a/ a mayoral announcement about an urban renewal plan to resolve inner-city crime problems; or
b/ a comment by Prince Charles, in Australia on a visit, who says after the mayor's speech that such problems can often be attributed to building regulations formulated by city councils?
I would feature b/ more prominently as a story about b/ would adequately include the story of a/ as well.
4. Define 'news' in 20 words or less.
Information or occasionally opinion that is yet to be disclosed or updated for the public.
5. Should Kipling's Six Strong Serving Men be assigned equal value when writing a news article?
No. The one with greatest value may vary from article to article but all 6 would very rarely be equally prioritised.
Monday, July 30, 2007
Agents Of Power
1. Which media function do you think is most important and why?
In terms of informing, educating, and entertaining, informing is the most important. Entertainment can be acheived in countless ways outside the media, keyword being 'imagination'. Media can be extremely useful in educating, but is not absolutely essential. Informing, on the other hand, relies so heavily on the media and a sense of public awareness and mass communication. It doesn't mean informing as a general concept is more important than entertaining or educating, but it is the media's most important role.
2. To what degree should journalists be concerned about their employer's profitability and readership/viewership figures?
Employer's profitability keeps them a job, and readership/viewership figures gets their name out there, increasing a journalist's prominence and status, and the potential for better career options. In that respect, I would say a massive degree.
3. Is it reasonable for the owner of a media outlet to direct editorial policy and to make editorial decisions on political and other issues?
Yes.
4. Does investigative journalism really matter? Does it sell newspapers or increase ratings?
Proactive journalism is probably print media's strongest weapon in competition with online news, as online news is primarily utilised for the immediate information from an event that has just happened or is happening and reactive news. For this reason taking advantage of human interest stories, exclusive interviews, and behind the scenes information would increase newspaper readership and TV ratings, and therefore certainly matters.
5. Prepare for a discussion on the following dilemma: You are the editor of a newspaper that is losing money. The biggest advertiser has been convicted of drink driving. Your newspaper has a policy of recording all such convictions. Even your own son's conviction has been published. The newspaper's general manager - your boss - tell you the advertiser will no longer advertise with the newspaper if you publish the report. The decision is yours alone, but you are told the loss of advertising could mean the paper's closure, or at least the retrenchment of several editorial and print-room staff. What do you do?
I'm not cluey on ethics, I would definitely not publish it. While the newspaper has a policy to record such convictions, I'm sure it would have a policy to keep existing, no? If we get in trouble and people lose theire jobs/the newspaper closes, we're no worse off than we would have been otherwise. Everyone knows the media has kept things out like this before. It wouldn't be the first time.
But... if that's too naive, maybe there's a way of taking advantage of such situations? Maybe publishing the DUI conviction could potentially lead to the RTA paying for public awareness messages to be included in the paper like you often see in magazines and on the side of the road etc. If they think there's a strong target readership of the paper, or that in conjuction with the published information and statistics their they should take advantage to make their message resonate, there's a big chance they'd be interested. This could fill the financial void from the lost advertiser - maybe not completely if said advertiser was your biggest sponsor, but possibly enough to tie you over while you look for other opportunities? This is all a lot of maybes, but of course if the situation was real I'd be able to cut down on a lot of them, hehe.
In terms of informing, educating, and entertaining, informing is the most important. Entertainment can be acheived in countless ways outside the media, keyword being 'imagination'. Media can be extremely useful in educating, but is not absolutely essential. Informing, on the other hand, relies so heavily on the media and a sense of public awareness and mass communication. It doesn't mean informing as a general concept is more important than entertaining or educating, but it is the media's most important role.
2. To what degree should journalists be concerned about their employer's profitability and readership/viewership figures?
Employer's profitability keeps them a job, and readership/viewership figures gets their name out there, increasing a journalist's prominence and status, and the potential for better career options. In that respect, I would say a massive degree.
3. Is it reasonable for the owner of a media outlet to direct editorial policy and to make editorial decisions on political and other issues?
Yes.
4. Does investigative journalism really matter? Does it sell newspapers or increase ratings?
Proactive journalism is probably print media's strongest weapon in competition with online news, as online news is primarily utilised for the immediate information from an event that has just happened or is happening and reactive news. For this reason taking advantage of human interest stories, exclusive interviews, and behind the scenes information would increase newspaper readership and TV ratings, and therefore certainly matters.
5. Prepare for a discussion on the following dilemma: You are the editor of a newspaper that is losing money. The biggest advertiser has been convicted of drink driving. Your newspaper has a policy of recording all such convictions. Even your own son's conviction has been published. The newspaper's general manager - your boss - tell you the advertiser will no longer advertise with the newspaper if you publish the report. The decision is yours alone, but you are told the loss of advertising could mean the paper's closure, or at least the retrenchment of several editorial and print-room staff. What do you do?
I'm not cluey on ethics, I would definitely not publish it. While the newspaper has a policy to record such convictions, I'm sure it would have a policy to keep existing, no? If we get in trouble and people lose theire jobs/the newspaper closes, we're no worse off than we would have been otherwise. Everyone knows the media has kept things out like this before. It wouldn't be the first time.
But... if that's too naive, maybe there's a way of taking advantage of such situations? Maybe publishing the DUI conviction could potentially lead to the RTA paying for public awareness messages to be included in the paper like you often see in magazines and on the side of the road etc. If they think there's a strong target readership of the paper, or that in conjuction with the published information and statistics their they should take advantage to make their message resonate, there's a big chance they'd be interested. This could fill the financial void from the lost advertiser - maybe not completely if said advertiser was your biggest sponsor, but possibly enough to tie you over while you look for other opportunities? This is all a lot of maybes, but of course if the situation was real I'd be able to cut down on a lot of them, hehe.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)