This is a draft version of the final syllabus, which will be available on the first day of class or shortly before.
RACE, JOURNALISM AND JUSTICE
New York University – Fall 2018
Professor Rachel Swarns
Office Phone: TBA
Office hours: TBA
Course Description
Race, Journalism and Justice: Journalists have long been in the forefront of exposing racial injustice, but they have also exacerbated racial tensions and even abetted racial violence. In this course, we’ll turn the lens on the media and ourselves as we investigate a racial killing in New York that garnered national headlines in the 1890s and do our own reporting on modern-day hate crimes in New York City. In the process, we’ll examine media bias and acquire archival and contemporary reporting skills for covering issues of race. Students will also learn how to pitch stories to professional editors at media outlets.
This course provides students with experience in mining government and archival records along with developing skills in critical media analysis and reporting on sensitive subjects.It is an undergraduate elective.
Prerequisite Courses
Students must have completed Investigating Journalism and Inquiry to take this course.
Course Objectives
To develop a critical eye for blind spots and bias in media coverage, reporting strategies and in ourselves as we pursue stories about race, gender and ethnicity.
To develop skills in preparing for and conducting probing interviews with people on sensitive subjects.
To learn how to locate and use contemporary government records – from agencies, courts, police departments, etc. – to gather statistics and information about people and incidents, such as bias crimes.
To gain experience and familiarity with archival research. Students will learn to use databases and online search engines for historical newspapers, Census and court records to find information about the people and the events they are reporting on.
To learn how to assess and report on conflicting testimony from court records, authorities, witnesses, victims and people accused of racial bias or other crimes.
To learn how to pitch projects to professional editors at media outlets.
Required Reading
“They Can’t Kill Us All: Ferguson, Baltimore and a New Era in America’s Justice Movement,’’ by Wesley Lowery.
“Southern Horrors,” by Ida B. Wells. (Digital copy available here:
“TheRace Beat: The Press, the Civil Rights Struggle, and the Awakening of a Nation,’’ by Gene Roberts and Hank Klibanoff.
“Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys and the Dawn of a New America,’’ by Gilbert King.
“The Family Tree,’’ by Karen Branan.
These books will be on reserve at Bobst and available in the NYU Bookstore and on Amazon. (Please be aware that used copies of the books can often be purchased at a lower cost on Amazon.) They are also available at local libraries. I will also regularly assign articles and other material.
Course Requirements
Students are expected to attend all classes. For an excused absence -- in the event of a serious illness, death in the family, or an approved athletic event, for example – you must submit documentation. (In the event of a religious holiday, there is no need of documentation. Please alert me in advance.)
If you have two unexcused absences, I will deduct a half point off your final grade (“B+” would be lowered to “B,” and so on.) Three unexcused absences will result in a full point off. If you skip more than three classes, you will receive an incomplete for the course.
Laptops or tablets may be used in class for work in class. Using these devices for activities unrelated to our class will result in your being marked absent for the day. Phones must be left in bags or pockets. Most discussions and speaker visits will take place with laptops closed and tablets stowed.
Class participation is essential! Students must be prepared to present their assignments in class, to participate in group discussions and to work in teams. We will have a Facebook page where we will discuss our work and our readings. Everyone is expected to participate.
You will complete several assignments for this course. Every week, I will select two or three students to post a brief written response (about 350 words) to the readings in our Facebook page. The rest of the class will post thoughtful comments or questions about each of these posts. We will also write regularly in and out class. Some of these assignments will not be graded, but will count towards class participation.
A reported memo – in story form – will be required of each student based on the archival research that we conduct. Students will also create a final, reported project – a 1,500 word story with photos and audio or video -- about a hate crime in New York City. (Students will submit three drafts of this story before turning in the final project.) Each of these assignments must include a list of sources, including names and contact details for individuals interviewed, dates of interviews, websites, articles and books referenced, etc. Grades may be lowered for misspelled proper names and factual errors.
Grading
Class participation: 25 percent
Reported memo: 35 percent
Final project: 40 percent
Deadlines
For journalists, deadlines matter! All written assignments– including blog posts – are due at midnight on the Sunday prior to class. Late assignments will be subject to grade reductions for each day they are late. Any missed assignment will receive an F.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism, fabricating quotes, or inventing sources will not be tolerated. Anyone caught doing so will fail the course and the department chair will be notified. For more information, see the NYU Journalism Handbook for students.
About this Syllabus and Course Schedule
This syllabus, schedule and reading list may change to accommodate news that may inform our discussions and the availability of guest speakers.
SCHEDULE
Week 1: Introduction – Reporting on Race and Racial Justice
In-class assignment: Write a 500-600-word autobiographical essay about yourself and why you’re interested in reporting on racial justice. Describe any journalists, newspaper articles, videos, podcasts, books, movies on this subject that have inspired or discouraged you.
Due Next Week
“You needn’t be afraid here: You’re in a civilized country.” Regional, racial violence and law enforcement in early 20th century New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.” James Campbell. Social History, Vo. 35., No. 3. (August 2010.) pp. 253-267
“Robert Jackson, a Colored Man, Hanged by a Mob.” The New York Times, June 3, 1892.
Week 2:Who killed Robert Jackson? And why?
Explore history of racial violence in the north and discuss what we know about Robert Jackson and the people involved in his killing. How do we find out about them and the events of June 2, 1892? For the second half of the class, we will move to Bobst for an introduction to the databases that we’ll use to research this case. Students will be assigned to research one of the individuals involved in the Jackson case. We will also get an introduction to Pro Publica’s Documenting Hate database.
Due Next Week
“Southern Horrors,’’ by Ida B. Wells
“Seeing White” podcast: “A Racial Cleansing in America.”
Research the individual in the Richard Jackson case who has been assigned to you. Outline the steps you’ve taken and your findings.
Review list of New York-based hate crimes in ProPublica’s Documenting Hate database and in list compiled by the New York Police Department. Post on FB about two cases you might be interested in reporting on: Tell us why and the challenges you might face.
Week 3: Conspirators, the mob and a progressive town in New York
Discussion of challenges involved in researching individuals and events from the 19th and early 20th centuries and possible work-arounds. Presentations of outlines, research finds and strategizing about reporting challenges. We will also discuss the contemporary hate crimes that we have identified.
Due Next Week
Transcript of Coroner’s Inquest into the killing of Robert Jackson, June 1892. (Provided by professor.)
“A Spectacular Secret: Lynching in American Life and Literature,” by Jacqueline Goldsby. Chapter 3.
Complete reported memo on the individual you have been assigned to research in the Richard Jackson case, based on your archival research and new information from court records and readings.
Week 4: Who done it? Aftermath of a killing
Examining court records, historical accounts from witnesses and exploring how to assess multiple testimonies that are odds with each other. Teams will present and workshop their updated findings on the individuals they have researched.
Due Next Week
“The Race Beat,” Chapters 3, 4, 18, 19
“Devil in the Grove,” Chapters 11 and 12
“A Voice of Hate in America’s Heartland”
“Readers Accuse Us of Normalizing a Nazi Sympathizer; We Respond”
Describe three examples of bias in the coverage of the killing of Robert Jackson and whether or not this bias affected the reporting in this case.
Post 300 words about the New York Times coverage of the neo-Nazi and make a compelling argument about whether the coverage was fair.
Week 5: Media bias, past and present
We will discuss media bias in the reporting of the murder of Richard Jackson and in contemporary cases. Come prepared to discuss the journalists who appear in the readings, the challenges they faced in reporting and whether or not they exposed racial injustice or perpetuated stereotypes. In second half of class, we’ll break into teams with each team selecting a contemporary case to report on.
Due Next Week
Video: “Data on Hate Crimes is Terrible: Here’s Why”
“What we discovered during a year of Documenting Hate”
Find out as much as you can about the people in your contemporary case without making a phone call. Share two findings on FB.
Week 6: Hate in New York City: What agencies might have detailed descriptions of cases and statistics? We’ll discuss reporting strategies and challenges. We’ll explore how you find the people you’re reporting on. What records, databases and officials can help you? And how do you approach your subjects and witnesses once you find then? We will hone interview questions and skills with mock interviews.
Due Next Week
“A family secret that leads to revelations of racial brutality”
“A Family Tree,” by Karen Branan. Chapters 24 and 25.
Put together a detailed action plan for the contemporary case that you’re reporting on. This plan must include the articles, statistics and documents you will rely on for background, the first five reporting steps you plan to take, a list of 10 interview questions for the accused and the victim. Also describe the visual or audio or video component of your story.
Share at least two challenges you think you might encounter in your reporting on FB.
Student bloggers: Research our in-class speaker, Karen Branan. Post 300 words that describe her career and work and describe two challenges you think you might face in interviewing her. Share on FB.
Student interviewers: Prepare a list of ten questions for Ms. Branan and come prepared to interview her in class.
Week 7: Guest speaker: Karen Branan, the descendant of a white man who was involved in a racial killing.
We will discuss Ms. Brannan’s family involvement in the murder and how she discovered and handled the information as a journalist. She will speak and take questions during this class. During the second half of the class, we will discuss our action plans and discuss the complexities of interviewing someone who is accused of a bias crime.
Due Next Week
Audio story: “It Could Very Easily Have Been My Grandfather.”
Write a 500-word reporting memo on what you’ve found about your case and the victim and accused. Include what you’ve learned about the crime, contact details of victim and accused, criminal history, what you’ve found about their personal/professional lives – and what you’re missing. Describe status of visual/audio/video components.
Student bloggers: Research our guest speaker, Dionne Ford. Write 300 words that describe her career and her work and describe two challenges you think you might face in interviewing her. Share on FB.
Student interviewers: Put together a list of ten questions for Ms. Ford and come prepared to interview her in class.
Week 8: Guest speaker: Dionne Ford, the descendant of a black man who died in a racial killing.
We will discuss Ms. Ford’s family story and how she discovered and has coped with the information about her great-uncle’s murder. She will speak and take questions during this class. We will continue to discuss reporting challenges with a focus on the challenges of interviewing victims of bias crimes.
Due Next Week
“#thisis2016: Asian-Americans Respond”
“The Science Behind ‘They All Look Alike to Me’”
First draft of article about hate crime case is due.
Question to consider: If you had to write about a personal encounter with racial bias or about an incident that affected your friend, family member, classmate, acquaintance, school, house of worship or community: what would you write about? Come to class prepared to write.
Week 9: Who, Me? Biased?
We will consider our own biases as individuals and as journalists and how those biases may inform our work. We will take an implicit bias test. We will also write in class about our own personal experiences with bias, racial/ethnic/religious/gender/sexual orientation. In the second half of the class, we will discuss our first drafts and next steps.
Due Next Week
Continue reporting on your case. Put together a list of five challenges that you’re facing with your reporting and writing. Share at least two on FB.
Week 10: Storytelling
We will focus on writing and story structure. How do we bring our subjects and our cases to life? We will continue workshopping our cases.
Due Next Week
Second draft is due
Write and come prepared to present a five minute pitch – presentation – of your story and your reporting so far. Include a description of your social media and visual/audio/video components.
Week 11: Pitching the story.
Come prepared to sell your fledgling story to an editor. A journalist from the New York Times will hear your story pitch and offer suggestions and constructive criticism. We will discuss reporting and writing strategies as well as the visual/audio/video components.
Due Next Week
Third draft is due.
Week 12: Workshop.
We will workshop our cases, discussing reporting, interviewing, writing, social media and audio/visual/video components.
Due Next Week
“How Black Reporters Report On Black Death”
“They Can’t Kill Us All,’’ by Wesley Lowery. Chapters 1-3.
Vice News Documentary on White Nationalist Rally in Charlottesville :
Student bloggers: Put together a list of 10 interview questions for a journalist who writes about race. Describe at least one challenge you think you might encounter in this interview.
Week 13: Guest speakers: Reporters who write about race
We will discuss the challenges of reporting on race and racial justice with reporters who have covered the issue. We will continue to workshop your drafts and discuss challenges in reporting, writing, visuals/audio/video components.
Due Next Week
Final draft is due.
Week 14:
Last day! Presentation of projects.