the working newsroom
DESCRIPTION
Understanding the modern working newsroom - A beginner's or outsider's briefer on the processes and personalities in the working print and television newsroomTRANSCRIPT
SEATWORK!
Give us your truthful, honest, unvarnished opinion of Philippine news media
What do you think is the role of the news media?
If someone gives an interview or holds a press conference, is the media obliged to report only the angle that the interviewer wants to highlight?
SEATWORK PA RIN!
Who do you think makes the ultimate decision on what stories get covered?
Who decides what stories go to print or get aired?
Who should you go for? Broadcast, print, or online?
Would you give gas money to reporters and cameramen?
The PERCEPTIONS
Media is melodrama Media is driven by ratings and
commercialism Media only listens to the powerful and
the personalities Media is corrupt Media asks the most stupid of questions Media likes bad news, and only bad
news
The REALITY
Partly true But also partly untrue In part, there is a great
misconception on the role of media Who is at fault?
Media Source Viewer
The BASICS
Journalism is the activity of gathering, assessing, creating, and presenting news and information.
American press institute
The BASICS
“A journalist is someone employed to regularly engage in gathering, processing, and disseminating (activities) news and information (output) to serve the public interest (social role).” Study by University of Dayton assistant
professor Jonathan Peters and Edson C. Tandoc Jr., of the Missouri School of Journalism
“News is what someone wants suppressed. Everything else is advertising. The power is to set the agenda. What we print and what we don’t print matter a lot.”– Katharine Graham
“Journalism can never be silent: That is its greatest virtue and its greatest fault. It must speak, and speak immediately, while the echoes of wonder, the claims of triumph and the signs of horror are still in the air.”– Henry Anatole Grunwald
“Journalism will kill you, but it will keep you alive while you’re at it.” – Horace Greeley
I fear three newspapers more than a hundred thousand bayonets - Napoleon
If I had my choice, I would kill every reporter in the world, but I am sure we would be getting reports from hell before breakfast - Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman
If one morning I walked on top of the water across the Potomac river, the headline that afternoon would read: President can’t swim - Lyndon B. Johnson
“I became a journalist because I did not want to rely on newspapers for information.” ― Christopher Hitchens
“By giving us the opinions of the uneducated, journalism keeps us in touch with the ignorance of the community.” ― Oscar Wilde
A good newspaper, I suppose, is a nation talking to itself - Arthur Miller
What media is not….
Contrary to what most people think, journalists do not just report what they see or hear They ask, listen, and observe Then they use editorial judgment to
determine what is relevant and newsworthy, and then rush this information on air or into print
Journalism is not stenography!
Understanding the relationship between journalists and their sources necessitates an understanding: media’s role media’s goal media’s processes and effects
ROLES AND GOALS
independent and responsible media is a necessity in any democracy
media acts as the middleman leaders and the led actors and the viewers/readers for the voiceless, the unheard, the
underrepresented bridge between what happens, and what
happens next Enlighten, educate The fiscalizer, activist
ROLES AND GOALS
media is not a platform; the medium (print, broadcast, online) is the platform
media is not the mouthpiece; it is independent, part of a social contract support and patronage in exchange for a
job well done
ROLES AND GOALS
media’s job is not to report on what you have said or done, e.g. press conferences, photo opportunities, events, etc that is the job of your PR person otherwise, the person who holds the
most events and talks the most should get the lion’s share of coverages
media is not stenography
ROLES AND GOALS
media exercises editorial judgement to determine what stories/issues/events
are to be covered of these events, what particular data
should “go on top” news angling or news peg how to present that data or angle in a
manner that would interest the public
A word on news angles and news pegs angling is the determination of what
could be the most important/significant peg of a story or event
different from sensationalizing. Sensationalizing is making a story appear to be bigger than it really is
A word on news angles and news pegs the angle you want is not necessarily
what interests the journalist complaints of context,
sensationalism, etc
THE ROLE OF MEDIA
to exercise sound, independent, and responsible editorial judgement in order to inform and enlighten the public on critical issues that are important for them to make an informed decision or action
key is sound, independent, editorial judgement
Media’s job is to
make the important interesting not all important issues are ‘interesting’
to the general public e.g. taxes, peace talks, political debates,
etc and the interesting relevant
is there more to an interesting event or an oddity that we can learn from?
For example, stories on crime, abnormal behaviour, etc
BREAKING IT DOWN
Print Broadcast
Radio and tv Online
Online news Social media
PRINT IN PH
580 newspapers 49 magazines 16 other news publications Printing 2 million copies Majority of readers are males above
30 Big papers Inquirer, Star, Bulletin
TV in PH
352 TV stations/12 in MM 782 CATV stations Government runs NBN4 and RnB
Radio in PH
49 stations in MM In countryside, 392 AM 782 FM Big Four:
DZRH DZXL DZMM AKSYON
ONLINE PH
304 registered ISPs 4.3M landline subscribers 83.2M cellphone subscribers 33.8M internet users 9.5M twitter users (10th in world)29.8 FB users
Bear in mind
Each medium has its own strengths and weaknesses
Some of them overlap, but not all
However…
Journalism hews to its basics, regardless of the medium Accuracy Fairness and balance Timeliness Relevance
Nagkakaiba sa
Production values Elements and needs
Deadlines Commercial issues
The traditional journalism formula 5Ws 1H
Who What When Where Why how
THE NEWS AND THE NEWSROOM frontline journalists deskmen editors owners/publishers
JOURNALISTS
are tasked with sourcing data gathering interviews witnessing events interacting with sources the data they collect is the baseline
for stories published
JOURNALISTS
the media sector most people are familiar with
not all journalists are frontline journalists ground pounders news readers commentators and columnists
NEWS DESk
Map out coverage of the day Normally plans the night before Deploys reporters Receives “advisories” Advises reporters on coverage and
story angling
EDITORS
the gatekeepers decide which journalists cover which
beats decide on a general coverage schedule ultimately, decide which stories are
used or pursued decide how to treat a story
that is why they are called the gatekeepers
OWNERS/PUBLISHERS
own the infrastructure employ the journalists determine overall policies of media
agencies is it independent, or beholden etc
determine priorities vis-à-vis commercial vs editorial decisions
Journalists, editors, publishers… they all have interests
personal political cultural/tribal religious financial
What matters is how you subsume the interests to the main role
THE NEWS ROOM PROCESS
at the end of a day, editors and deskmen decide on a coverage plan for the next day
plan is transmitted to the journalist journalist proceeds with the coverage
plan leeway given for flexibility and adaptation ideally, journalist can coordinate with a
senior editor (city editor or deskman
THE NEWSROOM PROCESS
before midday, story conferences, story directions
midafternoon story advisories by reporters
late afternoon story conferences editorial work
CHANGING MEDIA
earlier models, media relied merely on official reports. What you get is simply what the sitting politician wants you to hear
before the 19th century, newspapers printed mostly official dispatches from the frontline
by the end of the 19th century, media was becoming more independent
advent of 21st century, new models are changing the definition of media
What this means to YOU
Getting in means Knowing who to interact with Delivering a clear and compelling
message Delivering the message in a timely
manner (deadlines!) Being able to assist with production
requirements
For example:
Online media has the most space; It also has the most distractions The key: Compelling stories Firm and clear messages Good messaging using online tools Audio Video Graphics
For example
remember that online news has no fixed “deadline”
24 hour news cycle You can squeeze in most of the time; it’s knowing how not to get thrown
into the trash bin because you caught everyone at a bad time
For example
Know the best time to get in Know the news cycle Deadlines, ora de peligro Choose your battles Do you fight for space vs
mainstream news? Do you opt for slow news days and
times? Do you opt for current affairs?
Remember!
News now has a 24-hour cycle But even then, there are so-called
primetimes Newsrooms have a need; you can
either get in the way by being clutter, or help them fill that need
Salamat po!
SESSION 2
Working with MEDIA
SEATWORK!
Have you ever had a negative experience with the media?
Have you ever been asked for money or gifts by the media?
Do you think it is normal to give money or gifts to media?
Should you feed the media?
GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF MEDIA ETHICS Ideally, journalists do not accept
money or expensive gifts from sources
GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF MEDIA ETHICS Ideally, journalists cover stories
because of their relevance or news value Not for personal reasons Not for financial reasons
GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF MEDIA ETHICS Ideally, journalists write stories
because of their relevance or news value Not for personal reasons Not for financial reasons
GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF MEDIA ETHICS
Friendships are allowed, of course! But journos must be careful not to cross
the line News judgment is impaired Biases become apparent
Perceived and real
DURING COVERAGE…
Should you pay for hotel rooms, plane fares, food, allowances, etc?
IDEALLY:
Journalists pay their way through any coverage
This includes hotels, plane fares, food, etc
Realistically, some smaller news organizations have difficulty funding coverages Do you pay for them? Grey area?
DURING PRESSERS
Should you feed reporters and photogs?
Do you give them gasoline money and merienda money too?
WHAT ABOUT GIFTS?
WHAT DO YOU EXPECT IN RETURN? Should reporters carry your
peg/angle/line? Should you feel bad if they have
their own peg? Would you threaten, cajole, harass,
intimidate reporters who do not carry your peg?
Other news protocols
Off the record Deep background No attribution On the record
Salamat po!
SESSION 3: FRAMING YOUR MESSAGE
Workshop from Morning session
Marshall Mcluhan said:
The medium is the message The message is never independent of
the medium used to deliver it The medium affects, not just the delivery
of the message, but the way it is received and perceived
In many ways, the medium has already become the message. Content has been trumped by production values, etc
THE ELEMENTS OF A MESSAGE Issue value Target Call vision
THE ELEMENTS OF A MESSAGE MA PA WEH
THE ELEMENTS OF A MESSAGE MALAY KO
PAKIALAM KO WEH ANO NGAYON DUN
MESSAGING
Malay ko? the most important part of the message:
the content! Something the viewer does not know, or
misunderstands E.g. BBL, BDA, BDP, etc
MESSAGING
Pakialam ko? Why should I care about it? Involving the viewer, making him relate
to the issue, making it his issue! What does it mean to me? News you can use Making the message compelling E.g. resolving conflict, imrpoving lives,
more job opportunities, safety and security, etc
MESSAGING
Weh ano ngayon dun? So what can I do about it? What should I do about it? The action portion of the message Yes, you should do something, because
you are the one who can do something Empowering E,g, spread the word, join the campaign,
press your congressman, or simply, go out and vote
TIPS ON MESSAGING
Messages are best conveyed in short brief bursts of ideas
Not in long convoluted sentences or speeches
TIPS ON MESSAGING
The message must FIRST OF ALL be clear to the messenger
Surprisingly, it seldom is, even in newsrooms
TIPS ON MESSAGING
Brief bursts of ideas because This is ideal for broadcast This is also ideal for
Reporters with short attention spans Viewers with short attention spans
TIPS ON MESSAGING
Do targetting! Are your targets the academe? The NGO
community? Multilaterals? Opinion makers? Or the public?
Frame appropriately Your message Your language Your medium
TIPS ON MESSAGING
Remember the media formula Radio is medium of greatest reach Television is medium of greatest
impact Print is medium of reference
TIPS ON MESSAGING
Do you go for news, or public affairs? Strengths and weaknesses
TIPS ON MESSAGING
Unfortunately, perceptions are just as powerful as reality
So be careful with being misinterpreted
E.g. Iqbal and the “criminals” who took the video
TIPS ON MESSAGING
Sumakay sa mga isyu! You do not have to be lone rangers
TIPS ON MESSAGING
The best message-makers are the best storytellers
Tell stories the way you would want to hear them
Make the stories compelling Assist by giving data, contacts, case
studies etc
TIPS ON MESSAGING
Make it personal Make it something people can relate
to
TIPS ON MESSAGING Your statements and manifestos are
fine But media needs
Data Leads Angles Material
People need To be informed Enlightened inspired
Remember
It is not what you want to say It is what they would want to listen to
Remember
It is not how you should say it It is how they would want to hear it
Remember
It is not what you say It is what they understand
It is not about you.
It is about them.
Suriving the Interview
POSSIBLE MESSAGES
Kami lang ang rebeldeng grupo na gumawa ng blueprint for development
Kami lang ang grupo na hindi lang gyera ng gyera, plano rin ng plano
Tapos na ang gyera sa bundok, gyera naman ng tyan
BDP, di lang para sa milf o muslim
TIPS FOR INTERVIEWS
Confident not arrogant Be personable, not familiar Speak in the language you are
comfortable with Look the interviewer in the eye/ eye
contact