A very, very brief history of Euro-American print journalism and the elements of news…

1. A very, very brief history of Euro-American print journalism and the elements of news…

2. In the beginning… • There were cave drawings 17,000 years ago --humans’ earliest attempts at representation, communication, and art • Caves at Lascaux, France (aren’t they beautiful and amazing?)

3. Fast forward to 1450, Germany, & Johannes Gutenberg! • Developed a method of printing from movable type that was used without important change until the 20th century.

4. …China and Korea did have movable type long before…but… • The first known movable type system was invented in China by Bi Sheng out of ceramic between 1041 and 1048 AD. • Metal movable type was first invented in Korea during the Goryeo (Koryo) Dynasty (around 1230). • This led to the printing of the Jikji in 1377—today the world's oldest extant movable metal print book. • Neither movable type system was widely used, probably because of the enormous amount of labor involved in manipulating the thousands of ceramic tablets, or in the case of Korea, metal tablets, required by the use of Chinese characters.

5. Knowledge explosion in Europe! Commoners reading! • The rapid spread of knowledge made possible by Gutenberg's printing press contributed to the Renaissance, the Scientific Revolution, and the Protestant Reformation.

6. The Penny Press, 1830s, U.S. • The labor and lower classes were able to purchase a paper and read the news. • As more people began buying papers throughout the country, news and journalism became more important overall. • Newspapers also began paying more attention to the public it served. • Information from police stations, criminal courts and divorce courts to fill their paper and make it more appealing to their new public. • The heavy dependence on advertising allowed for the low price (1 penny compared to 6 cents)

7. The purpose of journalism “The central purpose of journalism is to provide citizens with accurate and reliable information they need to function in a free society.” Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism (The Pew Research Center for the People & the Press is an independent, non-partisan public opinion research organization that studies attitudes toward politics, the press and public policy issues.)

8. Journalism has many roles • Helping define community, • creating common language and common knowledge, • identifying a community's goals, heroes and villains, • and pushing people beyond complacency • Other requirements: being entertaining, serving as watchdog and offering voice to the voiceless

9. The theory of journalism, 9 core principles • Over time journalists have developed nine core principles to meet the task. • They comprise what might be described as the theory of journalism:

10. 1. Journalism’s first obligation is to the truth • Democracy depends on citizens having reliable, accurate facts… • …put in a meaningful context. • Journalists should be as transparent as possible about sources and methods… • …so audiences can make their own assessment of the information.

11. …obligation to the truth… • Even in a world of expanding voices, accuracy is the foundation upon which everything else is built-- • context, interpretation, comment, criticism, analysis and debate. • The truth, over time, emerges from this forum.

12. 2. Its first loyalty is to citizens • While news organizations answer to many constituencies, including advertisers and shareholders, • the journalists in those organizations must maintain allegiance to citizens and the larger public interest above any other if they are to provide the news without fear or favor.

13. …loyalty to citizens… • Commitment to citizens also means journalism should present a representative picture of all constituent groups in society. • Ignoring certain citizens has the effect of disenfranchising (deprive them of civil or electoral privileges) them.

14. 3. Its essence is a discipline of verification • When the concept of objectivity originally evolved, it did not imply that journalists are free of bias. • It called, rather, for a consistent method of testing information--a transparent approach to evidence--precisely so that personal and cultural biases would not undermine the accuracy of their work.

15. …a discipline of verification… • The method is objective, not the journalist. • Seeking out multiple witnesses, disclosing as much as possible about sources, or asking various sides for comment, all signal such standards. • This discipline of verification is what separates journalism from other modes of communication, such as propaganda, fiction or entertainment.

16. 4. Its practitioners must maintain an independence from those they cover • Independence is an underlying requirement of journalism, a cornerstone of its reliability. • Independence of spirit and mind, rather than neutrality, is the principle journalists must keep in focus.

17. …independence from those they cover… • While editorialists and commentators are not neutral, the source of their credibility is still their accuracy, • intellectual fairness and ability to inform--not their devotion to a certain group or outcome. • In our independence, however, we must avoid any tendency to stray into arrogance, elitism, isolation or nihilism.

18. 5. It must serve as an independent monitor of power • Journalism has an unusual capacity to serve as watchdog over those whose power and position most affect citizens. • The Founders recognized this to be a rampart (fortification) against despotism (absolute rule) when they ensured an independent press; • Courts have affirmed it; • Citizens rely on it.

19. …independent monitor of power… • As journalists, we have an obligation to protect this watchdog freedom by not demeaning it in frivolous use or exploiting it for commercial gain.

20. 6. It must provide a forum for public criticism and compromise • The news media are the common carriers of public discussion, and this responsibility forms a basis for our special privileges.

21. …forum for public criticism… • This discussion serves society best when it is informed by facts rather than prejudice and supposition. • It also should strive to fairly represent the varied viewpoints and interests in society, and to place them in context rather than highlight only the conflicting fringes of debate.

22. …forum for discussion and problem-solving… • Accuracy and truthfulness require that as framers of the public discussion we not neglect the points of common ground where problem solving occurs.

23. 7. It must strive to make the significant interesting and relevant • Journalism is storytelling with a purpose. • It should do more than gather an audience or catalogue the important. • For its own survival, it must balance what readers know they want with what they cannot anticipate but need.

24. …make it relevant! • The effectiveness of a piece of journalism is measured both by how much a work engages its audience and enlightens it. • This means journalists must continually ask what information has most value to citizens and in what form.

25. …a trivial society?… • While journalism should reach beyond such topics as government and public safety… • A journalism overwhelmed by trivia and false significance ultimately engenders a trivial society.

26. 8. It must keep the news comprehensive and proportional • Keeping news in proportion and not leaving important things out are also cornerstones of truthfulness. • Journalism is a form of cartography: it creates a map for citizens to navigate society. • Inflating events for sensation, neglecting others, stereotyping or being disproportionately negative all make a less reliable map.

27. …an inclusive map… • The map also should include news of all our communities, not just those with attractive demographics. • This is best achieved by newsrooms with a diversity of backgrounds and perspectives.

28. 9. Its practitioners must be allowed to exercise their personal conscience • Every journalist must have a personal sense of ethics and responsibility--a moral compass. • Each of us must be willing, if fairness and accuracy require, to voice differences with our colleagues, whether in the newsroom or the executive suite.

29. …encourage individuals… • Nurture this independence by encouraging individuals to speak their minds. • This stimulates the intellectual diversity necessary to understand and accurately cover an increasingly diverse society. • It is this diversity of minds and voices, not just numbers, that matters.

30. 6 Main Elements of News • 1. Timeliness • 2. Proximity • 3. Prominence • 4. Consequence • 5. Human Interest • 6. Conflict

31. 1. Timeliness • On the day Michael Jackson died, reports of his death that day were timely. • A report three weeks later would not be (obviously).

32. 2. Proximity • News of Michael Jackson’s death had proximity value all over the world but especially in his hometown of Gary, Indiana. • 1480, from M.Fr. proximité "nearness" (14c.), from L. proximitatem (nom. proximitas) "nearness, vicinity," from proximus "nearest," superlative of prope "near." Proximal is first recorded 1727.

33. 3. Prominence • MJ’s death was big news because of his prominence • 1581, "condition of being seen," from L.L. visibilitas (see visible). Meaning "range of vision under given conditions" is from 1914. Sense of "prominence, fame, public attention" is recorded from 1958.

34. 4. Consequence • Obviously, the events of 9-11 had far-reaching consequences not just for the people in the twin towers that day

35. 5. Human Interest • A feature story that discusses a person or persons in an interactive and/or emotional way. • Presents people and their problems, concerns, or achievements in a way that brings about interest or sympathy in the reader or viewer.

36. 6. Conflict • September 30, 2007 • MINNESOTA'S NEW STATEWIDE SMOKING BAN • The Minnesota ban took effect at 12:01 a.m. today. In the United States, 22 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico have passed smoke-free laws that cover restaurants and bars. Some states have yet to enact their bans.

37. Review major points! • Gutenberg, 1300s, mass media • Advertising, affordability, democracy • Serve whole public not with neutrality but with intellectual independence • Provide what we want to know and what we may need to know • Public forum, debate, problem solving • To avoid the creation and maintenance of a trivial society • 6 Criteria for News: Timeliness, Proximity, Prominence, Consequence, Human Interest, and Conflict