King and Chapman's introduction discusses the fissures in the history of media education and what they hope their book addresses. Based on the additional insight that you gain from the State of the News Media report be sure to also explore how you think a class like news analysis does or does not fit with your proposed recommendations for current media/journalism scholars. (FYI: You won't hurt my feelings, so if you think news analysis or any other class that I teach doesn't fit your recommended curriculum, it's OK!)
Week 6 (Feb. 18 & 20)
After reading the introduction to King & Chapman's "Key Readings in Journalism" and the 2012 State of the News Media report from the Pew Research Center (on BlackBoard in the week 6 folder) please discuss what you think today's journalism and communication students need to know and why.
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Today, the study of communication can include various areas of concentration such as analysis of the news, different journalistic writing styles , communication between humans both in the past and the present and of course, journalism. Being a Media and Communication Studies major in college has its advantages and disadvantages. Unfortunately, because I did not choose a major that deals with science or business, it is often assumed that I took the “easy way out” and chose a simple area of study. Quite frankly, this is simply not the case. Journalism and more broadly, communication, is what interests me. Every new media course that I study in every new semester that I continue to receive a college education validates that this field is what holds my fascination and is where I want to form and cultivate my professional career and I just can’t ignore that feeling.
ReplyDeleteAccording to King and Chapman, it is in texts that students receive most of their journalism education, but this is not always the case. The 2012 State of the News Media suggests that currently, this era incorporates “mixed blessings” of new ways to study and experience all that the world of journalism has to offer. Personally, I feel that students who wish to study journalism or major in this field need to know three things: what journalism is, how one goes about producing quality journalism and why we use it. Indeed, it is easier to lump the study of journalism into the general understanding and background of communication, but when this spectrum truly captures a student’s curiosity, it will prove useful to first receive a broad and then fixated overview on all journalism entails.
“Journalism is one of the few professional fields that benefit from constitutional protection: at the heart of the First Amendment is the need to safeguard the right to a robust debate that is essential to democracy,” writes King and Chapman in their introduction to their text “Key Readings in Journalism” (King & Chapman 6). Arguably, King and Chapman call more for the review and study of texts on journalism rather than direct experience and personal education, suggested in the 2012 State of the News Media. Currently, our News Analysis class fits in with both of these recommendations for how a student of journalism and communication should study each respective field. We study texts concerning news, such as Lule’s “Daily News, Eternal Stories” and King and Chapman’s “Key Readings in Journalism” but at the same time, also create our own experience’s through the suggestion of the texts, such as our group project where we will analyze our student newspaper and search for myths, an idea which was presented in our first studied text. Both recommended ways of how to learn and study journalism and communication are offered in our News Analysis class and so far, this marriage is working perfectly!
I agree with Marina about the value of the marriage between both King and Chapman’s suggested course for studying journalism in “Key Readings in Journalism” and that suggested by the 2012 State of the News Media. King and Chapman suggest, “… the best way to teach people to be great journalists is to have them read great journalism.” However, “many incoming journalism students can barely name a single prominent journalist, currently working or from the past.” King and Chapman’s argument is that English and Sociology students read many of the greatest works by the greatest minds of their respective fields – shouldn’t journalism students as well? On the other hand, the 2012 State of the News Media advocates more experience-based learning, such as going out into the field. King and Chapman say that the debate of how best to educate students of journalism has existed for as long as the study of journalism has.
DeletePersonally, my education so far in the Media and Communication Studies major has been a mix of both ideologies – reading and studying other’s journalism, and producing my own. Marina is right in saying our News Analysis class also does this; not only did we read about Lule’s study and theories regarding myth in journalism but we will be putting together a study of our own, using our own codebooks and drawing our own conclusions. In my opinion, a class in this field should have students doing hands on work of their own as well as studying work that noteworthy professionals have done before them.
The question of what today’s journalism and communication students need to know is particularly important in a rapidly changing, technologically advanced world. From the 2012 State of the News Media Report, it is obvious that media in general are becoming more digitally dominated every single year. People are using smart phones and tablets to access news and the number of people reading newspapers is rapidly declining. Therefore, I think that it is absolutely critical that journalism and communication students know how to utilize technology to keep up with the current trends. In this sense, it is important for students to get hands on experience working with new forms of media rather than just learning theoretical concepts and the history of journalism and communications. This will ensure that students have the necessary experience to work within the field after graduating, and that journalism can make a successful transition to the digital world. In some respects, this would be similar to the apprenticeship model discussed by King and Chapman (2012). These proposed recommendations have negative implications for a class like news analysis, where the focus is not solely on creating media. Instead, it would be more appropriate to have more classes in media production focusing on new technologies.
ReplyDeleteDespite the previous recommendation, however, I believe that it is important that students learn about history and theory with respect to journalism and communications as well. For example, it is important that students learn how to conduct meaningful research, which cannot be done simply through a media production or writing course. In addition, in almost every field of study there are core ideas, values, and figures that are essential to learn before someone is a true scholar of the field. These things set both a context and precedent for studying a certain field. So while it is important for journalism and communication students to learn about new trends and technologies; it is equally important to learn about all the people, ideas, and theories that brought the field to that point. In this sense, a class like news analysis is particularly important. It enables students to read and analyze important pieces in journalism, and how they relate to the development of journalism as a field.
Therefore, I think that the journalism and communications curriculums should have an equal balance of history and theory classes, and new media production classes. I am fairly certain that this is the type of curriculum at Ursinus, however because I am not a media and communications major I can’t say for sure.
King and Chapman's introduction in their book called “Key Readings in Journalism” spoke very true to me as I read it. It made me want to read more about journalism in general. They said that there are five main areas that students of journalism should be knowledgeable in. These areas are "the development of journalism, the practice of journalism, lasting works produced by journalists, notable practitioners in the field, a critical analysis of journalism and the social impact of journalism." (4) I agree that all of these areas are vital for the education of journalists. This class, News Analysis, fits in into the area called "a critical analysis of journalism." This class explains how articles are written with myth and also uses this book which was written with the purpose of teaching these five areas. Taking the State of the News Media report into account, I think that journalism students need to learn about journalism in relation to the digital age. Sadly, print is becoming a dying medium. Future journalists need to know how to write for an audience that uses social media and other websites because their attention is much harder to capture. Also, since newspapers are losing money and therefore not hiring as much- the students need to know that getting into this field is going to be difficult. I think the class that I believe Dr. H teaches called Online Journalism is very helpful in this regard. I also think that there should be a history of journalism class because history is the best predictor of the future. Also, modeling your work on someone who was already successful is promising. I'm open to disagreements and people who want to add ideas!
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you have said here and in the second part of your blog post I also talked about this and how it seemed pretty important. I really think moving forward it is important to understand where the future is transitioning to. I also thought it was a good point when you talked about studying the past because the past can predict the future. It seems as though everything is transitioning into a new stage for journalism and this is the digital stage. As we move forward we will have to accept this change and learn how to become successful with it.
DeleteI completely agree with you Caroline on almost everything. The introduction truly made me want to read more, and I think that “a critical analysis of journalism” is becoming more and more necessary because with the many different options of journalism allows for slightly altered writing for each new outlet. I believe that this class and Lule’s book both in way show how the writing or news outlet changes but the information that is need to create the story has stayed the same. I think these skills of obtaining this information is need of any journalist, whither in new media or old. I am also sad to think of all the newspaper businesses that are going under and how much harder it is going to be for journalists in the future. As for the history of media I feel like that class partially exists in the media and society class, because it teaches about past media and how it was interrupted in by the society. So I think that it is supposed to be like a history of the media, unless you’re talking about the first forms of media history because that would be interesting.
DeleteI also completely agree about the digital age. Although it is sad, newspapers are dying out as digital is coming in. Even though most newspaper companies have the exact same paper online as they have in print for online journalism and blogging there is a different way of speech in order to interact with the audience. I think it is important for the media to change as time goes on and for people to be able to learn and adjust to those changes. I do not know much about journalism, nor it's history, but I wonder how much journalism has changed over the years. I feel that depending on the focus, if it's the history of the journalist style I feel that there would not be much to teach in a course, but I do not know. I feel that if it were about the history of journalism as a media outlet, then I feel there would be plenty to discuss.
DeleteMuch like paul, I really agree with the second half of Caroline’s blog most. I think Journalism as a whole is definitely transitioning into more of a technologically dominated source of news media. Like caroline said, the newspaper is losing more and more money every year, which is creating less and less jobs and therefore making the that field a more complicated one to enter. Luckily, with this transformation of new-age journalism, it provides more opportunity whether it be with multimedia journalism, or print or any of the other many types of multimedia. In Dr. H’s online Journalism class that Caroline referred to, we had a journalist come to the class. He not only showed us his work, which was multimedia journalism in the form of video, he gave us his story of surviving in the world of journalism. He basically let us knows that to make it in that world. You have to be very well rounded in technology. For example, he said he started as a photographer, but in this world of journalism now, a one trick pony can’t make it. Now he writes, video records, alongside photography, and with that diversity of talent, it helped him find more opportunities. So in conclusion, I just wanted to agree that the field journalism has completely changed along with the advancement of technology, and to be successful now in journalism, you have to be more than a writer, you have to be well rounded in the different talents that are incorporated with multimedia news.
DeleteAfter reading King’s and Chapman’s introduction and the State of the News Media Report from the Pew Research Center, I think today’s journalism and communication students need to experience courses that focus on practical journalistic skills, communication theory and research, the history of the field, and new media.
ReplyDeleteFor an aspiring journalist or producer of any form of media content, it is obviously important to get hands-on experience before entering the field. As Chapman and King point out, some have argued that there is no need to study journalism formally because this experience can be attained through real world work experience. I think, however, that it is more valuable for students to gain journalism skills in a classroom environment where there is much more room for learning and less pressure for performance. Chapman and King also point out that the teaching of communication theory has received criticism for being too metaphysical and not practical enough or applicable to a journalist’s work. I completely disagree with this. I have found that the courses I have taken in communication theory have completely changed the way I view media and the production of media. Communication theories, particularly those concerning the way people of certain social groups are represented, has made an impact on how I, as an aspiring journalist, would want to produce media. I think News Analysis bridges the areas of practical journalism skill and communication theory because we are considering why news stories are structured the way they are, whether or not their structure is effective or, in some cases, ethical, and how journalists should approach writing news stories. Through all of this, we are also examining the cultural and social impact of these stories, which is where theories, like Lule’s myths, come into play.
I think the history of the field of journalism is one area I have not covered in my coursework at Ursinus, though it seems from Chapman’s and King’s introduction that we might get some history in News Analysis. It is important for a practitioner of any field to understand its history, if only to have a better grasp on where the field has been and where it is going. As Caroline said in her post, history can also provide models for success and lessons on how to recover from failure. This is particularly true for journalism as we look back and see where reporting has failed and what could have been done differently.
The State of the News Media Report from the Pew Research Center makes it pretty clear that while journalist should still have the important skills of writing for long form journalism, they must also have an understanding of new media, as the traditional news brands that have dominated the field are now scrambling to keep up with changes in technology. This is also true for other professional applications of communication, including public relations; more and more companies are looking to hire people who have the skills necessary to coordinate branding and outreach through the social media networks that dominate person-to-person communication today. News Analysis might not cover this area directly, though we have touched on news stories covered by online outlets and there are a few other courses in the department that focus on new media.
Although I agree with the majority of what Rosie has previously stated, the particular paragraph that resonated with me, is the last one in which she states how the State of the News Media Report from the Pew Research Center suggests that traditional news are making the abrupt shift to new media means. I feel that Ursinus does offer many courses involving new media, however, there are few that tackle the hands-on approach. For me, I was greatly disappointed by my TV Production class that I took a year ago. All that we learned was how to operate certain TV equipment however we were not taught how to write a script or how to properly use a Teleprompter feed. I learned these skills at Hofstra University. I do feel, however, that news analysis highlights the shift from old to new and involves hands-on work. As a media student, I have to say that I feel Ursinus has given us the short end of the stick when compared to other disciplines. I feel that the lack of attention the media department receives is in direct correlation with the classes offered. Yet, as I previously noted, there are other factors such as the professor and the material being taught.
DeleteAfter reading King and Chapmans, introduction, "Key Readings in Journalism" it made sense to me about the five main points of journalism that students should know about. The development of journalism, the practice of journalism, lasting works produced by journalists, notable practitioners in the field, and a critical analysis of journalism are the five main points that journalist should focus on. When going back over these five main topics it made sense to me and I saw how this is important to the learning process in journalism. I also liked when Chapman and King referenced how new journalist should get the entry level jobs and then work themselves up the ladder. This made sense to me, and I really understood the process. It also went on to talk about how there mentors or managers would be able to shape their form of journalism so they could have their own unique writing.
ReplyDeleteAlso when looking at the State of News Media Report, it was pretty clear that as we move into a new digital age students must become aware of this and knowledgeable in the area. Since the print is going out this means that there will be less jobs available so therefore it will be very hard for students to get a job in the industry. I think that this means students will have to become more knowledgeable and experienced with digital journalism and try to adapt to the change in journalism. With this being said I do feel like it is very important to understand the past of journalism and understand how it works. This will give you a clearer understanding moving forward of what to expect.
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ReplyDeleteSome things I think that journalism and communication students need to know is how to adapt journalism in a digital era. It is because of the power of the internet that allows anybody to be a journalist. Anybody can report on daily happenings and be able to obtain all the information they need. It is because anybody can be a journalist that affects the lives and jobs of professional journalists. Therefore, it might be a good idea for journalism and communication students to learn more about the digital era and its impact on journalists and society. Then after doing some in-depth study on the digital era, students can then discuss and brainstorm ways of how to adapt professional journalism in a digital world, or discuss ways how to make professional journalism more unique and special than unprofessional/regular/standard journalism.
ReplyDeleteNews Analysis fits with our proposed recommendations for current media/journalism students because it helps students recognize the style and content of journalism today and the past. The analysis of news may help give insight into how journalism is changing and how that is impacting the success or failure of professional journalism. What's working in journalism today? What's not working? Do we need to change journalistic approaches for a changing society? How can we adapt journalism to changing technologies?
My Proposed Curriculum/Recommendations (For a Journalism Track):
Speech & Criticism (Required)
Media & Society (Required)
Communication Theory & Research (Required)
Print Journalism- journalism class
Online Journalism- journalism class
Writing For Media- journalism/media class
Media Ethics- rules and guidelines for media and journalism
TV Studio Production- journalists in the TV business/production
Intro To New Media- will help in understanding new media technologies and how it is impacting such things such as society, communications, and journalism today. Discussion and brainstorming ideas for a changing society
News Analysis- a critical analysis of news in society and the impacts of journalism. Also, discussion in how news has changed over time (style and approach).
*Highly recommended to work for the school newspaper (The Grizzly)
Other Recommended Courses:
Creative Writing- writing creatively in journalism
Statistics (?)- an objectified outlook course for an objectified discipline (journalism)
Philosophy Of Journalism- study people's thoughts and ideas about journalism. Think critically and be able to generate your own philosophy/truth about journalism
Cyberphilosophy- study people's thoughts and ideas about the internet and web. Think critically and be able to generate your own philosophy/truth about the web. Apply ideas/concepts from course in a journalism sense. What are people arguing what is the internet and how it should be used? Using those ideas/thoughts, how can I apply, or how should I approach journalism in an internet medium?
Intro To Psychology- learn concepts about human behavior and the mind. How can I use certain human behavior/psychological concepts in how we read, think, perceive, and interpret things in the mind such as news and media technologies. Does news affect behavior? How does news affect behavior or thought?
I forgot to add History Of The Media
DeleteHistory Of The Media- the history of mediums throughout time: from the Spoken to the Digital age. Think how journalism has changed in each age/revolution. What were the successes and failures of journalism through these revolutions/history? What's happening with journalism today (in the Digital era)? Brainstorm and discuss ideas in adapting journalism in a digital world. *Understanding journalism's history; understanding journalism's role and contributions to society. If we can understand media's history and journalism's history/story, then I think it's very possible we can save journalism
King and Chapman outline many important aspects of journalism education. Throughout history, the necessary curriculum has evolved significantly. Journalist need to acknowledge the implications of the public's thoughts on news media. There is a very negative view on journalism, especially by politicians. Due to this, it is important that future journalists are able to respond to this in a positive way.
ReplyDeleteIn previous times, there was a core set of skills taught to journalism students. King and Chapman explain, "how to write in an objective fashion; how to make sure stories are credible; how to develop a straightforward unadorned writing style; how to produce good work on a tight deadline." They also explain that students should be taught how to report on significant issues. However, there are other aspects of journalism that are important. The development of journalism, the practice of journalism, lasting works, notable practitioners in the field, analysis of journalism as well as social impact of journalism are all important to what journalism students should know.
After reading this and comparing it to the education I have received at Ursinus as a Media and Communications minor, I have seen that some of the skills discussed by King and Chapman are successfully being taught. For example, the social impact is something discussed in many of the classes I have taken. I think that the class news analysis provides a wide array of information about news media. Additionally, something that classes at Ursinus do well is address the changing of media, from print to online, and how it affects news and social impacts.
I agree with Ryan when she says that the Ursinus curriculum has done a good job teaching many of the skills that Kind and Chapman discuss. In classes like print and online journalism we are taught the most efficient and effective way to relay news to the public, which is a simple but very important part of journalism. I think that classes like news analysis are very important for journalism/media scholars to take. It is vital that we think about the meaning of news, how it relates to us as potential journalists, and what makes good news stories. If we learn more about the nature of news we will be able to apply it in the ever-changing industry.
DeleteBeing a Media and Communication Major, I like the point that Ryan brought up with how King and Chapman’s skills are being applied to our own education today. I have taken classes such as print journalism, online journalism, and remix culture, which have all helped me with skills such as writing in an objective fashion; making sure stories are credible; developing a straightforward unadorned writing style; and producing quality work on a tight deadline. These basic journalism skills can be applied to all types of media, but as students who are being taught to carefully analyze the media today, I think always keeping these skills in mind is very important.
DeleteLike Ryan said, between the development of journalism and the social impact journalism has today, students must learn all of the essential skills in successful journalism. With how popular things like television are, the social media, and the internet, journalism plays a vital role in how we portray certain things that are going on in our society. By keeping these skills in mind that King and Chapman brought up, you will know how to apply these skills as you move onto other classes here at Ursinus, or if you were ever to make a career out of it. Journalism has changed drastically over the years, but no matter what type of journalism it may be, these skills are always going to be have an impact on how the public views the media.
I also agree with Ryan about Ursinus's current curriculum. I feel as though these classes did not exist as much when I first entered this school and it is great to see that journalism is becoming more and more a part of Ursinus's community. I think that there is a good balance between practical classes versus theory classes, seeing as there are multiple entry level journalism classes (writing for the media, online journalism,etc.) and then classes such as News Analysis and other communications classes that focus on the in depth study of media. However, i wish there were more classes that were like News Analysis but maybe for Online Journalism specifically or perhaps a class focused on the History of Journalism and the theories taught by those who wrote great articles in their time
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ReplyDeleteAfter reading the King and Chapman reading and the Pew Research article it becomes evident to me that there are difficulties in teaching students about the field of journalism. The problem with the field is that journalism is constantly changing, and the changes literally happen as technology progresses year in and year out. Traditional journalism is nearly dead (newspaper journalists), so now the rules of journalism are changing, therefore becoming harder to teach. Anybody can be a journalist in current day with zero formal training. All they need to do is own a computer. I think the only way to teach such a changing and new field is well displayed by the Ursinus College curriculum. Media students must take at least two journalism classes, I think, which is easily enough to to gain the basic skill of journalism and its traditional practices. News Analysis as a class is pertinent to anyone aspiring to continue in the field of journalism, however like King and Chapman said many students who focus on journalism end up entering other fields. In this i think it is important to broaden the range of journalism teaching techniques and instead of primarily focusing on newspaper or online journalism writings, to instead focus on all great works of literature and investigative literature. Learning about new media techniques is also a weakness for college students. Since the forms of traditional journalism keep changing, IE. twitter and facebook, it is important that students take classes on such forms of literary work. This proves a challenge for educators because the form of journalism is new to them as well. In the end I think the art of journalism is best taught as it was traditionally by actually performing the act in the workplace and studying under those who have done it for years, while also constantly adapting and experimenting with new media forms. However, taking more than two written journalism classes while at Ursinus would truly prove to be a waste. There is no reason to study heavily into a field that will likely be dead in ten years. The history of journalism techniques and working with new media is far more pertinent for students to study than to continue working on formally writing for physical publications.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your ideas Satchel. It is true that as technology is advancing, the way that we receive and transmit news is also changing. Media today such as Facebook and Twitter make it easier, faster and virtually free for any ordinary person to stay updated with what's going on in news of the world. I agree with your comment that these highly efficient avenues of communication are in the process of killing traditional journalism at a rapid pace, ex: newspapers, magazines. Because these older forms of news medium are obviously becoming less and less relevant to society by the year, I agree with Satchel's notion that it very well may be useless to heavily study written journalism in today's age. Speaking from experience, though, I found my time taking Print Journalism last semester to be highly beneficial in the fact that it taught me about the origins of journalism. I think that it is good to have some sort of foundation in how journalism used to be because new outlets are ultimately derivatives of it. But I agree that in today's age, it is more important for journalism students to work with technology in order to grow accustomed to the direction in which the world is heading.
DeleteFirst and foremost, I think the most important thing for journalism majors to know is the disturbingly discouraging statistic that “only 24 percent of college graduates looking for jobs in journalism actually received offers , making it the toughest field in which to get a job” (King & Chapman 4). But before anyone gets too disappointed, I liked the idea that the Introduction included of journalism becoming more of a humanities-like (or CIE-like) essential to understanding how the world works (4). So, in CIE style, it makes sense to have to read a selection of works that are representative of journalism. I’m surprised that such a selection can fit into such a small book and not a Norton Anthology on journalism. In fact, I feel like my education in communication so far has really been lacking in this area. I don’t know any prominent journalists of my time and I haven’t read many articles that would be considered prominent in the journalistic world, and I think it’s about time I do.
ReplyDeleteI also think it is important for students to see the dichotomy between the financial struggles of the news industry and the societal importance of news. The Introduction of Key Readings in Journalism pointed out that there would be a breakdown of information flow if the newspaper business was to completely go out of business; however, no one is willing to pay for news. I’ll be honest, I don’t want to pay for news, but if you think about it you really should. I gained a better appreciation for and understanding of news just from reading the Introduction of this book more than I have in my media classes up to this point.
These two readings were paired well together. Mitchell's article is entirely objective, stating facts about the evolving media space without providing a map of how to proceed. King scans the history media's academic legitimacy, but asks, "'What should students of journalism know in order to claim to be educated about the field?'" (6). He says this question is yet to be answered.
ReplyDeleteMitchell more-or-less answers this question by demonstrating journalism's slide into the digital era. Today's MCS major has a much clearer idea of how to tackle the industry, any minor/major has joined at a good time. Mitchell makes it clear that print's decent means little to society's desire to consume news, and properly implemented paywalls allow for just as much revenue (if not more) for mobile platforms.
Today's journalist needs to be aware of the society he/she writes for. A well-equipped news consumer will read news throughout the day, on breaks or bus ride home. A poetry class helps develop concise, tight writing that is effective in small bites. A nice counterpart could be a creative writing class; Lule emphasizes the importance of engaging writing.
A sociology course helps define the social values that the news must uphold, and highlights boarders of acceptability. An Online Journalism course helps connect to this society with timely awareness, while an Intro to Film class may help a journalist build the more visual elements of digital news. Finally, a typing elective is a great idea. Someday, I want to know how to type in order to match the quick minds of readers all around the world.