Journalism For Dummies

Title Page
Copyright Page
Table of Contents
Introduction
	About This Book
	Foolish Assumptions
	Icons Used in This Book
	Beyond the Book
	Where to Go from Here
Part 1 Getting Started with Journalism
	Chapter 1 Becoming a Journalist
		Exploring the Many Roads to Journalism
			The traditional road
				Attending journalism school
				Participating in campus media
				Doing internships and fellowships
				Joining journalism organizations
			Forging new paths
				Attending a training or certificate program
				Doing freelance work
				Connecting with other journalists
		Understanding the Responsibility of a Journalist
			Being truthful
			Being accurate
			Being fair
		Identifying the Essential Skills You Need
			Researching
			Reporting
			Interviewing
			Fact-checking
		Working in a Newsroom versus Working Independently
			Barriers to entry
			Having an editor
			Having editorial control
			Being flexible
		Working on Different Platforms
			Print
			Digital
			Television
			Documentary video
			Radio
			Podcasting
			Social media
	Chapter 2 Defining Journalism
		What Journalism Is
			The “fourth estate” and democracy
				Power and accountability
				Objectivity, balance, and bias
			Journalism beats
			News versus opinion
		What Journalism Isn’t: Blogs, Tabloids, and Gossip
		Who Sets the Standards for Truth
		Becoming a Journalist
			Applying for a job
			Interviewing
			Taking writing and editing tests
		What to Expect in a Journalism Job
			The structure of a newsroom
			The business goals of a media business
	Chapter 3 Media Literacy: What It Is and Why It Matters
		Understanding Media Literacy
		Recognizing How Media Affects You
			Your right to be informed
			Your right to find the information you seek
			Your right as a citizen to monitor those in power
		Identifying Fake News
			Seeing where fake news crops up
			Distinguishing among the different types of fake news
				Misinformation
				Disinformation
				Malinformation
			Distinguishing what’s true from what’s false
Part 2 Understanding the Reporting Process
	Chapter 4 Identifying Different Types of Stories
		Looking at the Traditional Story Types
			Breaking news
			Meetings and events
			Enterprise stories
			Investigative work
			Features and profiles
			Obituaries
			Editorials
		Exploring Emerging Digital Forms
			Aggregated stories
			Listicles
			Explainers
			Interactive stories
	Chapter 5 Determining What’s Newsworthy
		Standards for Approving a Story Idea
			The impact of the idea or event
			The proximity of the occurrence to the news audience
			The timeliness of the idea
			The prominence of the people involved
			The trendiness of the idea
			How unusual a story is
			How much conflict is present
		What Drives Newsroom Decisions
			Executive editors
			Midlevel editors
			Overall newsroom culture and interest
		Working through Disagreements
	Chapter 6 Finding Sources for a Story
		What Is a Source
		Types of Sources
			Official and unofficial
				Official sources
			Unofficial sources
			Primary and secondary sources
				Primary sources
				Secondary sources
		People as Sources
			Finding sources
			Vetting sources
			Developing long-term sources
		The Voices Your Story Needs
			What to include when reaching out
			On or off the record? What it means
	Chapter 7 Conducting Interviews
		The Interview Process
			Doing your research
			Preparing questions
				Easing into the interview
				Adding facts and details to your question notes
				Writing more questions than you think you’ll need
			Taking care with vulnerable sources
		After the Interview
			Synthesizing interview discussions
			Choosing quotes
			Following up
		How to Quote Interviewees
			Paraphrase
			Direct quote
			Partial quote
			Dialogue
	Chapter 8 Doing Your Math
		Getting Good Data
		Finding the Average
			Mean
			Median
		Calculating Change
			Percent change
			Percentage point change
	Chapter 9 Fact-Checking a Story
		Getting Everything Right While Working
			Verifying during interviews
			Recording and transcribing
			Cross-checking sources
		Finishing Up Correctly
			Knowing what should be fact-checked
			Referring to interview tape
			Calling sources back
			Finding reinforcement
		Annotating a Finished Story
		Making Corrections
			What can and cannot be ethically corrected
			Who is responsible for fixing mistakes
			How to make corrections with transparency
Part 3 Working within the Bounds of Ethics and the Law
	Chapter 10 Getting Clear on the Journalism Code of Ethics
		Knowing Why Journalists Should Abide by a Code
			Considering journalists’ responsibility to inform the public
			Recognizing the importance of audience trust
		Identifying Common Principles across Codes of Ethics
			Truthfulness and accuracy
			Impartiality and fairness
			Independence
		Looking at the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics
			Seeking truth and reporting it
			Minimizing harm
			Acting independently
			Being accountable and transparent
	Chapter 11 Knowing Your Rights as a Journalist
		Understanding Your Rights as a Journalist to Cover the Government
		Covering Trials and Courts
			Official proceedings
			Court records
		Accessing Government Documents through the Freedom of Information Act
			Understanding the law
				What the law says
				The “presumption of openness”
				Who issues guidance to agencies
			Making a request
				What kinds of documents you can ask for
				The different processes of different agencies
				FOIA officers and how to find them
			Knowing the legal limitations
	Chapter 12 Coping with Common Legal Considerations
		Identifying the Most Common Legal Issues Journalists Face
			Privacy
			Trespassing
			Copyright infringement
				Written work
				Photographs
				Videos
				Music and audio
			Defamation/libel
			Breach of contract
			Contempt of court
			Plagiarism
			Sedition
		Protecting Yourself as an Independent Journalist
			Looking into your state’s reporter’s shield laws
			Turning to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press
	Chapter 13 Using Artificial Intelligence Tools
		Looking toward the Future with AI
		Seeing How Newsrooms Are Currently Using AI
			Research and reporting
			Writing
			Creating audio and video
		Identifying Potential Issues to Look Out for with AI Tools
			Inaccuracies and false sources
			Plagiarism
			Intellectual property
Part 4 Using Different Media Platforms
	Chapter 14 Print and Digital
		Working in Print: The First Form of Journalism
		Seeing How Digital Differs from Print
		Identifying the Traits of Top Print and Digital Journalists
		Writing in Print Style
			Following the inverted pyramid
			Writing features and profiles
			Using style guides
		Looking at the Roles and Responsibilities in Print and Digital Journalism
			People who write
			People who edit
			People who run the website
	Chapter 15 Television and Documentary Video
		Seeing Where Video Journalists May Work
		Identifying the Traits of Strong Video Journalism Storytelling
		Exploring Onscreen News and Long-Form Storytelling
		Identifying the Traits of Top Video and Documentary Journalists
		Making Great Video
			Structuring a video story
			Looking at news package forms and lengths
			Working on longer-form videos
		Identifying the Roles and Responsibilities of a Video Journalist
			People who are on camera
			People who are behind the camera
			People who run the website
	Chapter 16 Radio and Podcasting
		Seeing Where You Can Work as an Audio Journalist
		Understanding How Audio Differs from Other Forms of Journalism
		Listening on the Dial and Long-Form Audio Storytelling
		Identifying the Traits of Top Audio Journalists
		Structuring a Story for Audio
			News stories on the radio
			Podcasts and long features
		Looking at the Roles and Responsibilities of Audio Journalists
			People who are on air
			People who are behind the scenes
			People who run the website
	Chapter 17 Social Media
		Looking at How Newsrooms Use Social Media
		Seeing How Journalists Use Social Media
		Identifying What Top Journalists Do Well on Social Media
		Telling Stories Online
			Starting a strategy for social media stories
			Thinking through the differences in social media platforms
			Considering whether the platform prioritizes visuals or text
				Visual-first platforms
		Posting Online for Your Newsroom
	Chapter 18 Working on the Margins
		Writing Digital Marketing Content
		Creating Social Media Content
		Working in Public Relations
Part 5 The Part of Tens
	Chapter 19 Ten Tips for Covering a Beat
		Writing a Beat Report for Yourself
		Meeting Other Journalists Who Cover Your Beat
		Introducing Yourself to the Spokespeople of Small to Midsize Organizations
		Getting on the Press Lists of Large Organizations
		Going to Events Before You Need a Story
		Getting Familiar with Past Stories
		Learning Special Acronyms, Terms, and Other Language
		Creating Google Alerts to Keep Up
		Signing Up for Newsletters
		Picking Up the Phone
	Chapter 20 Ten Tips for Writing on Any Platform
		Thinking through Your Structure
		Writing an Outline Before You Write a Word
		Using Words That You Would Use in Everyday Conversation
		Giving Yourself More Time Than You Think You’ll Need
		Getting More Information to Help with Writer’s Block
		Editing Yourself First
		Stepping Away and Coming Back Later
		Using Style Guides
		Reading Examples
		Trusting Your Gut
Index
EULA