JOUR 3322 Online Journalism
Course Description
JII will introduce students to the world of journalism as it is practiced in today’s rapidly changing newsrooms. By emphasizing online reporting and writing skills, JII will advance the student’s understanding of how reporters and editors are using print, video and audio to tell stories and fulfill their traditional role as government watchdogs. Students will receive a thorough introduction to the way the Internet has transformed the craft and business of newsgathering. They will write print and online versions of news articles and produce original multimedia content, building on the skills they have learned in JOUR 2321 and the other prerequisites for this class, Fundamental journalistic skills such as identifying news, reporting and verifying information and writing with rigor and accuracy will be emphasized. Students will also examine the media’s role in American society and in other countries. The goal is for students who have demonstrated a strong interest in journalism to enhance their skills and gain a clear understanding of what will be expected should they pursue work in a newsroom.
Course Objectives
Gain a clear understanding of today’s media landscape and the pressures on traditional print and broadcast newsrooms;
Learn to write stories for print and online publication; blog and learn how journalists are using social networking, such as Facebook and Twitter, to enhance news coverage;
Learn reporting techniques specific to the Internet and more about what’s available in public records;
Appreciate the importance of accuracy and fact-checking and the advantages and disadvantages that online publication offers;
Reinforce the ethics, legalities, and responsibilities of practicing journalism;
Read newspapers, blogs and other online publications and make familiarity with current events a daily part of life;
Increase familiarity with Associated Press style
Course Overview
The course will be divided into four sections.
In the first section, students will study the online journalism landscape with an eye toward understanding how the Internet has transformed newsrooms.
In the second section, students will review the nuts and bolts of writing news stories for print and learn to adapt these stories for online publication. Students will develop their own story ideas and submit their assignments both in print and online versions. They will also blog and produce original multimedia content. Students will use Associated Press style and be encouraged to self-edit and rewrite their stories.
In the third section, students will report and research, primarily online, and learn to assess Web sites and other online sources of information for accuracy and credibility. Students will learn the importance of accuracy and techniques for fact- checking.
Finally, students will learn the ethics and legalities central to the responsible practice of journalism.
Course Requirements
Students must complete three major multimedia assignments during the semester. Please read the assignment sheet carefully and pay close attention to the requirements and deadlines for each assignment.
Students will be required to read the New York Times (daily) andHilltop Views (weekly), paying particular attention to the way both publications use the Web to tell stories in print, video and audio. The class will take news quizzes and two exams, one to assess students’ understanding of the online media landscape, the other to assess their online writing and reporting skills. Students will maintain blogs designed to function as class notebooks. Blogs have been created for each student at our class WordPress site. Here is the link: http://academic.stedwards.edu/jour3322/
We will share this work frequently in the open, bullpen spirit of professional newsrooms.Homework assignments will be given to help students fully understand the class material. Students will also write on deadline in class.
Textbooks
Producing Online News Digital Skills, Stronger Stories, by Ryan M. Thornburg, CQ Press, ISBN: 978-1-60426-996-3. Students must purchase the book and accompanying online materials.
Students must also subscribe to the New York Times.
Grading
3 stories60 percent
2 tests30 percent
Quizzes, exercises, homework10 percent
I will grade your work using journalistic criteria:
A=90 to 100 points. Outstanding. The copy is publishable with little or no editing
B=80 to 90 points. Very good. The copy requires minor editing.
C=70 to 80 points. Adequate. Copy needs heavy revision and additional reporting.
D=60 to 70 points. Marginal. Copy contains factual errors, incomplete reporting, and needs extensive editing.
F=50 to 60 points. Unacceptable. Copy does not meet minimum writing and reporting standards. Students who fail to meet deadlines for any of the two major stories will receive an automatic F for the assignment.
Extra Credit
Students may earn up to 10 additional points – the equivalent of one letter grade – if their stories or multimedia pieces are published in Hilltop Views. The points you earn will depend on the originality, depth and complexity of your submission. Please note that the editors of Hilltop Views decide whether to accept contributions. The editors also reserve the right to edit any contributions they accept.
Speakers
Speakers will occasionally come to talk to the class. These classes are mandatory.Make sure you are in class when a speaker is scheduled and that you are prepared to ask questions and take detailed notes.
Office Conferences
Please come by if you have questions or concerns. If my office hours are not convenient, please schedule an appointment. You will find that I am very available and happy to offer help outside of class time.
Attendance and Participation
The most important thing a journalist does is show up. If you want to do well in JII, you must come to class on time and stay for the duration. Come prepared. Read newspapers, blogs and other assigned materials and be ready to take quizzes and participate in lively discussions.
You are allowed three absences all semester. You will lose five points for each class you miss after your three allowed absences. If you have more than six absences, you run the risk of being withdrawn from the class.
This is an advanced course. Students are expected to meet all deadlines – an absolutely fundamental requirement for any working journalist. I will grant extensions only if students can provide documentation proving they have faced a family or health emergency. I will not accept late work.
Finally, students may check out video cameras and other equipment provided by the university. Failure to return equipment will mean an F for the course.
Incompletes
Incompletes will be awarded only if a) the student’s work is up to date at the time of the request for an incomplete; b) the student provides documentation of a serious emergency; c) the request is approved by the Dean of the School of Humanities.
Special Circumstances
If you have a medical, psychiatric or learning disability and require accommodations in this class, please let me know early in the semester or as soon as you are eligible for accommodations. You will first need to provide documentation to the Disability Coordinator, located in Academic Planning and Support on the first floor of Moody Hall.
Academic Integrity
Academic dishonesty includes cheating on exams as well as plagiarizing (presenting another individual’s work as your own). The St. Edward’s University Student Handbook states that “a student who is dishonest in any work is to receive a mark of F for that course.” Students caught committing any act of academic dishonesty in this course will be subject to the full range of penalties as described in the Student Handbook.
Revisions
The syllabus is subject to revision. Please check your e-mail regularly for announcements and updates
ASSIGNMENTS
You must complete three major multimedia assignments, take weekly news quizzes, a midterm and final exam and complete in-class deadline writing and homework assignments. The class will use a WordPress site created for JOUR 3322 for its online and deadline writing work. Each of you will have individual blogs accessible from this site. You will be able to read and comment on one another’s blogs. I will use the site to post assignments and updates. I use Blackboard to post grades throughout the semester.
Assignments
Multimedia (60 percent of final grade)
You will produce two multimedia stories, one due at the midterm and one at the end of the semester. Each story must represent the three pillars of online journalism (multimedia, interactivity, on-demand delivery). For example, you may write a print piece accompanied by an interactive graphic, map or timeline or a podcast or a blog post– or all three. Or, if your story is best told visually, you can make a video and accompany it with blog post explaining what the repercussions of the incident in question were. Choose the media that best express the various aspects of the story you are trying to tell (Chapter 2, in your textbook, is worth reviewing as you are thinking this through). Please remember to double space your print stories and keep the length to 750-1,000 words. All content must be originally reported and produced (you are not linking to videos or audio produced by others, for instance).
You will be graded on the depth of your reporting, your ability to shape your story into a compelling narrative and your ability to meet all deadlines associated with each story. Each story must have extensive reporting, including face-to-face interviews with key sources. The thoroughness of your research will also count heavily toward your final grade. You must have at least three sources for each story. Single-source stories (i.e. stories with quotes from only one person) will earn a zero.
You are free to select your own topics, but please follow these guidelines:
MM1: A Feature. Coverage of an arts event, a profile of an interesting figure –known or unknown – or exploration of a trend that your reporting can establish asconcrete fact (such as more young women smoking in spite of all its health dangers, for instance), are all fine. Good Features are just as thoroughly reported as hard news stories, so do your research.
MM2: An Issue of Interest to the campus community or to students in general. You might choose changes in student lending policies, health or campus safety concerns, cheating on campus and what colleges are doing to stop it, for example. Any issue you think isimportant,interesting and relevant, is fine. The more topical and immediate the subject, the better.
MM3: An Event: Cover a meeting or campus event. Your story should convey the energy of the event while clearly explaining the issue or concern at its core. Be sure to be thorough in your reporting. Have you representing the different and differing voices at the event?
You will submit the first draft of your package by the First Draft Deadline. Please carefully review my feedback before revising and submitting your work for the Final Deadline. Include the original version of all work with your final versions. Failure to do so means a zero for the entire assignment.
We will discuss these deadlines in class. Please remember that I will not grant extensions for either deadline. Plan accordingly.
News Quiz
You will take news quizzes on Tuesdays at the beginning of class. These quizzes will cover the New York Times on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday (in other words, the days between our classes) and Hilltop Views, which publishes a new edition each Wednesday. Read the top stories in these areas – national and international news, sports, business and arts/entertainment, paying particular attention to those with multimedia and/or interactive components. We will review the quizzes together in class. If you fail to arrive to class on time, you cannot take the quiz and your grade will be a zero. Students who miss class cannot make up news quizzes.
Homework Textbook reading and accompanying assignments will be an important part of your work in this class. Because this is a skills-based class, I will make these assignments as we progress so that they work best for the particular pace of your class. I will explain each assignment in class and you will find them posted, in detail, on the class WordPress site we will all be using.
In-Class Writing
You will write on deadline in class. You will use the class blogs set up for each of you as the site for your in-class writing assignments and your multimedia work. We will discuss the WordPress site and blogs when we meet.
Note: Deadlines are subject to revision