Aspects of Communication Journalism 2024 PDF

Aspects of Communication Journalism Dr Nicole Talmacs Purpose Content JOURNALISM: FRENCH REVOLUTION’S “THE FOURTH ESTATE” The “Fourth Estate” facilitating Transparency and accountability...

Aspects of Communication Journalism Dr Nicole Talmacs Purpose Content JOURNALISM: FRENCH REVOLUTION’S “THE FOURTH ESTATE” The “Fourth Estate” facilitating Transparency and accountability Between the people and powerful  PURPOSE: Ideals o‘Fourth Estate’ : The mediator and facilitator of truth between the ‘3 estates’ oHolding the powerful accountable and demand transparency; oReport the objective truth for citizens to be able to function properly in society as informed citizens, as well as to participate in democratic processes; oRigorous processes by which fact checking takes place both in the sources used and through editorial and legal processes prior to publication (see early court cases regarding “slander” and “defamation”); oReuters/AP: Independent, objective, unbiased reporting that provides. Where do you get your trustworthy political news and information from? ⓘ Start presenting to display the poll results on this slide. Trust in the News o https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/iran-sentences-journalists-covered-amini-death-jail.1062729 Compare Mission statements o PBS America: “PBS is a membership organization that, in partnership with its member stations, serves the American public with programming and services of the highest quality, using media to educate, inspire, entertain and express a diversity of perspectives” o Fox News: “We provide a platform for diverse perspectives, voices and views, always supporting relentless reporting and bold thoughts and opinions. We are innovators in sophisticated newsgathering methods, always searching for new ways to inform, engage and inspire audiences in both traditional and new media”. o CNN: “We are truth-seekers and storytellers. We are journalists, designers and technologists, united by a mission to inform, engage and empower the world. We bear witness to history as it unfolds and explain not just what happened, but why, and what it means to you. Our products and platforms take you to the farthest corners of the world, and they bring the world to you, delivering content and services that enrich your lives, your families and your communities. We are available on more screens in more places than any other news source. We stand for excellence in our journalism and our products. We are committed to serving you. We are CNN.” RUPERT MURDOCH AND HIS MEDIA EMPIRE Trump and Murdoch as Trump campaigns Kevin Rudd’s “meeting” prior to the 2007 election Boris Johnson’s “Guest of Honour” at the London olympics  CEO and 22% owner of Axel Spinger SE: Bild, Die Welt, Fakt, Business Insider , POLITICO EU…. (German multimedia mass media company – Springer Publishing) Mathias Döpfner Media for Europe MFE, previously named Mediaset, Italy's first and largest commercial broadcaster. 13 TV channels in the country, including Canale 5, Italia 1 and Cartoonito; three Italian radio stations and five TV channels in Spain. Also owns a 26.58% stake in ProSiebenSat 1, the German TV broadcaster. Silvio Berlusconi (1936 – 2023)  the company has 27% equity, 30% voting power in Vivendi, international freight forwarding, oil storage and pipelines in France, solid state batteries, access control systems for buildings, palm oil and rubber in Asia and Africa, olive groves in the US and wine production in France. a French mass media holding company headquartered in Paris that owns 23.6% of MFE. Widely known as the owner of Gameloft, Groupe Canal+, Havas, Editis, Prisma Media, Vivendi Village and Dailymotion, the company has activities in television, film, video game, book publishing, print press, communication, tickets and video hosting services. Berlusconi Family  Does this mean all journalism is untrustworthy because of the owners who employ them? No: we as media consumers OR as budding communications specialists and journalists simply need to become more savvy and intelligent in our capacity to interpret the purpose behind the news we consume/create: Who employs the journalists who news you are consuming? What is their interest: commercial, ideological, political? What is your journalist reporting and what are other journalists saying? PRESS FREEDOM : Reporters without borders (Reporters Sans Frontiers) o“Press freedom is defined as the ability of journalists as individuals and collectives to select, produce, and disseminate news in the public interest independent of political, economic, legal, and social interference and in the absence of threats to their physical and mental safety.’ oIndex judged by: political context, legal framework, economic context, sociocultural context and safety Press Freedom Index : https://rsf.org/en/index oReporters without borders (Reporters Sans Frontiers) oUse the interactive map to see which country’s press is/are more/less ‘free’ than yours. o Check Malta, France, UK, USA, Germany … are they ranked as well as you thought they would be? oAre you surprised by this outcome? If so, why? If not, why not?  https://www.spj.org/pdf/spj-code-of-ethics.pdf Purpose o The purpose of journalism still remains important today: as a portal for news disemination that is relevant not only to citizens to be able to function within society. This does not take away from the objectives of the owners of the news produced. LIVE POLL: What makes a news story “trustworthy”? o the news organization that publishes the story; o The person, if any, who shares the story with me ; o The story has a lot of shares, comments or likes on social media; o The sources that are cited in the story; o The specific journalist who reported the story; o My gut instinct about the story. What makes a news story 'trustworthy'? ⓘ Start presenting to display the poll results on this slide. Content: Selecting News in a TV News Room (Video) Whose who behind the News in publishing What makes a Journalist a “Journalist”? oVerifiers – the elimination of doubt about what has happened; oSense-makers – provides context or values; may go under the labels of reporting, analysis, comment or opinion; oWitnesses – many situations are still best captured, with whatever technology is available, by an experienced eyewitness; oInvestigators – hidden stories require skill, experience, patience and resources to tell. o The 21st Century Journalism Handbook, Tim Holmes, Sara Hadwin, Glyn Mottershead What is “news”? oNews is: o …the conglomeration of new facts and events that impact our lives. It is the reporting of current events. It is “people” (The 21st Century Journalism Handbook, Tim Holmes, Sara Hadwin, Glyn Mottershead) o “…that part of communication that keeps us informed of the changing events, issues, and characters in the world outside” – American Press Institute (https://americanpressinstitute.org/journalism-essentials/what-is-journalism/purpose-journalism/)  Newsworthy To be “newsworthy”, a report/feature/article should satisfy at least 2 of the following attributes: oTimeliness oT: Timely oImpact oR: Relevance oProximity oU: Unusual oControversy oT: Tension or Trouble oProminence oH: Human Interest MediaFirst oCurrency oOddity …… WHAT SELLS Deborah Potter’s Handbook ADVERTISING/PAPERS?  Third Party News Carriers determining “newsworthiness” o Many news agencies currently rely on social media to circulate the news. o Social media platforms are not altruistic platforms to aid the circulation of news – they are money-making businesses powered by algorithms, often pushing to the top articles that are not “newworthy” as judged by news agency platforms. o X has just announced news headlines will be removed from Twitter posts to “improve it’s look", with altered images only presented a user must click through. Advertisements do not face the same treatment. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/oct/05/x-twitter-strips-headlines-new-links-why-elon-musk#:~:text=known%20as%20Twitter)- ,X%2C%20formerly%20Twitter%2C%20strips%20headlines%20from%20news%20story,links%20to%20improve%20their%20look&text=X%2C%20t he%20platform%20formerly%20known,would%20make%20posts%20look%20better. NEWS: an endagered species?  Journalism is, and journalists are, a critical element to our capacity to function as a society – how do you look after it and them?