ENGL 295 - Sarah Proctor

     It is essential for journalists to understand the laws of the media, so they can be protected. They need to know when to not invade privacy whether it is through intrusion, private facts, false light, or using a person's name or photo without permission. There is a difference between online and printed legal issues and what can be posted. Corrections can only cover the journalist but so much. Not only do journalists need to be aware of the laws, but they also need to follow some sort of ethics. A journalist should proceed with caution when dealing with sensitive cases and realize when they have conflicts of interest when it comes to the story or certain people.       Journalist are protected under certain laws like the Federal Sheild Law where a journalist can not be forced to reveal a source when called to testify. It is important to not reveal the sources that wish to stay anonymous, making sure what you are posting is accurate, and continuing to mak...

The main focus is on the different types of social media and how news is published on each platform. It is the shift from people only being receivers of the media to the readers becoming contributors. Because of social media, there are so many sources; however, it can be difficult to verify how accurate those sources are. Reporting through the media is different than reporting on a traditional newspaper. There are specific techniques to use when publishing something through multimedia. People view articles differently when using different devices. Chapter 12 continues the discussion on how to write for web media and the different ways to make your article interactive and viewed on the web. All of the chapters relate to each other by discussing the different ways media has reshaped the news industry. Journalist write differently depending on where they are publishing there news. Just because a website or article looks good on a computer, does not mean it will look the same when someone ...

      Chapter nine goes over the different story forms and which one is best used for different styles of writing. It also discusses the advantages and disadvantages that come along with each style of writing. Different styles of writing may also require different types of leads. The next chapter mainly focuses on narrative writing. It provides helpful hints on how to successfully write a story in this style. It is important to observe carefully, take notes, and ask detailed questions. The theme, descriptive writing techniques, and narrative writing techniques are the most important part when it comes to storytelling.      Both of these chapters go into detail on the proper structure of writing a story and the different techniques a writer can use to draw the readers in. There are many different ways you can go about writing your story. It is important to know when to use a lot of detail and when to be straight to the point. The way a journalist lays out a ...

      There are many different types of leads that a journalist can use for their story. They can use a hard lead which is very direct and summarizes the point of the story, or they can use a soft lead which provides a little bit more of a description of what the story will be about and not nearly as direct. Journalists do not have forever to write a story now because of the rise of social media. They need to be able to think quickly and get their story out. Chapter 8 goes into detail about the best ways to write a story which starts from the preparation of the story to the ending. It discusses key ways to construct the story by keeping readers engaged and is informative on how to organize the information in a story.      Both of these chapters provide helpful tips on how to keep the readers engaged with the stories through leads and through the content of the story. It is essential to have an intriguing lead, but it is also just as important to organize yo...