BAD JOURNALISM
My last few posts have been about good journalism made of compelling stories and strong reporting. Today’s post is a complete 180. I was watching a few stories on cnn.com and a story about teens facing “sexting” charges caught my eye. The stories title was catchy and initially drew me in. However, once I clicked on the story it was all-downhill from there. First of all, the story began with an interview and as a broadcaster if your best video is someone sitting down talking into a camera, that’s not a good sign. The next thing I noticed was that the first actual video used in the story was shaky. The shot also used an unnecessary zoom, but I found the shaky video more concerning. The reporter didn’t do a horrible job of referencing, but she didn’t do a good job either. Perhaps most disturbing about this story was the reporter, Amalia Barreda’s stand up. Barreda used a stick mic for no apparent reason and decided to walk and talk from the door of the court and stop at the trial court sign. I’m not sure what was accomplished by this, and I can honestly say I have no idea what she was talking about because I was so distracted by the fact she was walking.
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/crime/2009/02/16/barreda.ma.students.sexting.wcvb
STORY IDEAS
Luckily it has become a little easier to find story ideas because as I focus on completing a package a week, it is crucial I don’t waste time searching for a story. While working on my second package about the Astroturf at Stankowski Field, I also pursued two other possible stories. First I thought I would do my story about Recycle Mania at Mizzou. However after thinking about the pros and cons of the story and if there was a story that may contain a little more news value and I switched my story to FOR ALL WE CALL MIZZOU eclipsing $1 billion. The project began Jan. 1, 2000, and it ended Dec. 31, 2008. First, the project was a way for MU to become more competitive with other research universities around the country. The campaign focused on raising money in four specific areas: students, faculty, programs and facilities. Buildings like the Reynolds Journalism Institute and Mizzou Arena were built with the money from the campaign. I scurried to email sources and create a good angle to cover the story. All of this came after I thought I would cover the The Muslim Student Organization at Missouri pushing for more prayer areas on MU’s Campus.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
Blog 3 Chris Vlahos
STORY IDEAS
Every week that I have to find three story ideas. Some weeks are a little easier than others, but for the most part three solid ideas are rare. However, on Thursday February 5th Greeley took the class on a field trip of sorts. We walked around downtown Columbia in search of story ideas, which turned into an eye opening experience. I found ten things that I thought could be good story ideas while Greeley found 41. The importance of this trip is to show how crucial it is to be observant and not be too focused on what you’re doing, but instead pay attention to what is going on around you. In that mindset I usually run at Stankowski Field when the weather isn’t too awful, so the other day when I was running I looked up from the track and on to the playing surface. I got to thinking astro turf isn’t a very forgiving surface, I wonder if Mizzou plans to change the playing surface. I did a little investigating and found out the field may receive a makeover this summer and a number of athletes that have played at Stankwoski have gotten hurt. I have pursued my sources and I plan to do my second package on the turf at Stankowski Field.
JOURNALISM
I read a story this week on cnn.com about the youngest detainee at Guantanamo Bay, 22-year-old Omar Khadr. The story begins with the quote “Kill me”, which is what Khadr told US soldiers to do to him after he killed Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Speer. The story details the lives of Khadr and Speer, while discussing the controversial issue of what the government should do about the 245 GitMo detainees and Khadr specifically. I was intrigued by this story because Khadr isn’t very much older than I am, but to think about all the evil things he has seen and done is staggering. What adds another twist to the story is that Khadr is a Canadian citizen, and the only westerner remaining at Guantanamo Bay. Caitlin Stark and Pam Benson do a good job in reporting the facts and refraining from inserting their opinions. Even though this is a tragic story I enjoyed the way it was covered and presented to the reader.
Every week that I have to find three story ideas. Some weeks are a little easier than others, but for the most part three solid ideas are rare. However, on Thursday February 5th Greeley took the class on a field trip of sorts. We walked around downtown Columbia in search of story ideas, which turned into an eye opening experience. I found ten things that I thought could be good story ideas while Greeley found 41. The importance of this trip is to show how crucial it is to be observant and not be too focused on what you’re doing, but instead pay attention to what is going on around you. In that mindset I usually run at Stankowski Field when the weather isn’t too awful, so the other day when I was running I looked up from the track and on to the playing surface. I got to thinking astro turf isn’t a very forgiving surface, I wonder if Mizzou plans to change the playing surface. I did a little investigating and found out the field may receive a makeover this summer and a number of athletes that have played at Stankwoski have gotten hurt. I have pursued my sources and I plan to do my second package on the turf at Stankowski Field.
JOURNALISM
I read a story this week on cnn.com about the youngest detainee at Guantanamo Bay, 22-year-old Omar Khadr. The story begins with the quote “Kill me”, which is what Khadr told US soldiers to do to him after he killed Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Speer. The story details the lives of Khadr and Speer, while discussing the controversial issue of what the government should do about the 245 GitMo detainees and Khadr specifically. I was intrigued by this story because Khadr isn’t very much older than I am, but to think about all the evil things he has seen and done is staggering. What adds another twist to the story is that Khadr is a Canadian citizen, and the only westerner remaining at Guantanamo Bay. Caitlin Stark and Pam Benson do a good job in reporting the facts and refraining from inserting their opinions. Even though this is a tragic story I enjoyed the way it was covered and presented to the reader.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Blog 2
CNN ran a video online that absolutely floored me. The story was about a man that was beaten to death in broad daylight in front of a grocery store in Washington D.C. The man, identified as Jose Sanchez was punched and then pushed into a mini-van causing him to bang his head and lose consciousness, ultimately killing him. What I found most disturbing was the man laid on the sidewalk unconscious for at least 20 minutes as people loaded groceries and walked right by him. The fact that no one at that market had the presence of mind to see if he was okay is a startling, sad statement on society.
From a journalist’s point of view, I thought this was a good story. The reporter interviewed grocery store employees and customers and discovered that fights like the one that took Jose Sanchez’ life are not uncommon. It seemed as if the reporter worked to make sure her reporting was accurate, she quoted court documents when explaining the reason the suspects killed the victim. This piece could lead to follow up or a detailed series exposing the violence that may frequently occur in front of this grocery store. The story goes a long way in alerting authorities and the public of a serious problem at this particular Washington D.C. grocery store.
While searching for story ideas this week I wanted to get a mix of stories with different topics. Rather than pick stories that were only events, or news reports I tried to find an investigative story, and a possible feature story. Looking at the calendar I realize that Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, so I thought it would be a good idea to visit a few of the local flower shops and find out how business will be impacted by the struggling economy. Venders have a tendency to charge astronomical prices as Valentine’s Day nears due to supply and demand, but this year their asking prices may be too high. My next idea also revolved around the economy, but it was about local restaurants and if they have noticed a change in business with the slumping economy. Recently when I have walked through downtown Columbia I have noticed a number of restaurants shutting their doors, which leads me to believe there is a growing trend of Columbia residents spending a little less on food. My last idea was the story I was actually going to pursue. The Missouri Lacrosse team is not a University sponsored sport because of title nine. If the University were to sponsor the Lacrosse team, it would have to add a female sports team so the ratio of male to female athletes would be equal. I feel this is newsworthy because there is a growing trend in high schools and colleges to make Lacrosse a varsity sport. The athletes on the lacrosse team train and work as hard as most other MU athletes, but don’t receive the same notoriety. On that same note however, I fear this may not be a good story because of the “So what?” factor. There are a number of club teams at Mizzou and there is no defining characteristic that makes the lacrosse team any more special than the rest of them.
From a journalist’s point of view, I thought this was a good story. The reporter interviewed grocery store employees and customers and discovered that fights like the one that took Jose Sanchez’ life are not uncommon. It seemed as if the reporter worked to make sure her reporting was accurate, she quoted court documents when explaining the reason the suspects killed the victim. This piece could lead to follow up or a detailed series exposing the violence that may frequently occur in front of this grocery store. The story goes a long way in alerting authorities and the public of a serious problem at this particular Washington D.C. grocery store.
While searching for story ideas this week I wanted to get a mix of stories with different topics. Rather than pick stories that were only events, or news reports I tried to find an investigative story, and a possible feature story. Looking at the calendar I realize that Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, so I thought it would be a good idea to visit a few of the local flower shops and find out how business will be impacted by the struggling economy. Venders have a tendency to charge astronomical prices as Valentine’s Day nears due to supply and demand, but this year their asking prices may be too high. My next idea also revolved around the economy, but it was about local restaurants and if they have noticed a change in business with the slumping economy. Recently when I have walked through downtown Columbia I have noticed a number of restaurants shutting their doors, which leads me to believe there is a growing trend of Columbia residents spending a little less on food. My last idea was the story I was actually going to pursue. The Missouri Lacrosse team is not a University sponsored sport because of title nine. If the University were to sponsor the Lacrosse team, it would have to add a female sports team so the ratio of male to female athletes would be equal. I feel this is newsworthy because there is a growing trend in high schools and colleges to make Lacrosse a varsity sport. The athletes on the lacrosse team train and work as hard as most other MU athletes, but don’t receive the same notoriety. On that same note however, I fear this may not be a good story because of the “So what?” factor. There are a number of club teams at Mizzou and there is no defining characteristic that makes the lacrosse team any more special than the rest of them.
Monday, February 2, 2009
week 1 blog
STORY IDEAS/ GOOD JOURNALISM
As is always the case, story ideas weren’t necessarily the easiest thing in the world to come up with. Whether it’s because Columbia is a small town, or because it’s crawling with journalists looking for a story idea sometimes feels like searching for a needle in a haystack. Couple that with the fact I am from Los Angeles and I don’t have a car in Missouri, I sometimes feel like the only story ideas I can come up with have to be in walking distance. Occasionally I can talk someone into giving me a ride, but scheduling and extracurricular activities are usually a problem. With that said, when I search for story ideas I first check komu.com to see what other students have covered. If that doesn’t work I visit columbiamissourian.com because the news stories aren’t just about things off campus, and the paper will sometimes have a good feature story. Then if I am looking for campus-centered news I visit themaneater.com. I have been fortunate enough to find a few stories I hadn’t heard about on either komu.com or columbiamissourian.com by using themaneater.com.
I was browsing the web the other day looking at stories on cbsnews.com and I came across a very interesting story. I am a Sports Broadcaster, which is why the story caught my eye; it was about Texas Tech head football coach Mike Leach. Unlike most profile stories about a successful player or coach this story detailed the oddities that make Mike Leach one of the strangest and intriguing coaches in college football. CBS Correspondent and Texas Tech alum, Scott Pelley went to Lubbock and unearthed some little known facts about the mastermind behind one of the most electric offenses in the country. In the story Leach admits a love of pirates. Frequently he motivates his players by telling them stories about pirates that lead back to football. Another interesting thing about Leach is that he is one of only a handful of coaches that never played college football, he actually has a law degree from Pepperdine, in Los Angeles. Leach wasn’t the only fascinating thing about the story. Pelley was able to gain the coach and his players trust with his tireless work ethic and alumni status. Pelley went to a Red Raiders practice and actually spoke to the players. His interest in the coach and the story was evident throughout the piece, which showed the reporters versatility given the fact he is a news reporter.
Just to play devil’s advocate, Pelley’s interest and numerous appearance in the story could be perceived as too much and that the story may have been about him more than the coach.
This is the link to the story
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/12/31/60minutes/main4694714.shtml
As is always the case, story ideas weren’t necessarily the easiest thing in the world to come up with. Whether it’s because Columbia is a small town, or because it’s crawling with journalists looking for a story idea sometimes feels like searching for a needle in a haystack. Couple that with the fact I am from Los Angeles and I don’t have a car in Missouri, I sometimes feel like the only story ideas I can come up with have to be in walking distance. Occasionally I can talk someone into giving me a ride, but scheduling and extracurricular activities are usually a problem. With that said, when I search for story ideas I first check komu.com to see what other students have covered. If that doesn’t work I visit columbiamissourian.com because the news stories aren’t just about things off campus, and the paper will sometimes have a good feature story. Then if I am looking for campus-centered news I visit themaneater.com. I have been fortunate enough to find a few stories I hadn’t heard about on either komu.com or columbiamissourian.com by using themaneater.com.
I was browsing the web the other day looking at stories on cbsnews.com and I came across a very interesting story. I am a Sports Broadcaster, which is why the story caught my eye; it was about Texas Tech head football coach Mike Leach. Unlike most profile stories about a successful player or coach this story detailed the oddities that make Mike Leach one of the strangest and intriguing coaches in college football. CBS Correspondent and Texas Tech alum, Scott Pelley went to Lubbock and unearthed some little known facts about the mastermind behind one of the most electric offenses in the country. In the story Leach admits a love of pirates. Frequently he motivates his players by telling them stories about pirates that lead back to football. Another interesting thing about Leach is that he is one of only a handful of coaches that never played college football, he actually has a law degree from Pepperdine, in Los Angeles. Leach wasn’t the only fascinating thing about the story. Pelley was able to gain the coach and his players trust with his tireless work ethic and alumni status. Pelley went to a Red Raiders practice and actually spoke to the players. His interest in the coach and the story was evident throughout the piece, which showed the reporters versatility given the fact he is a news reporter.
Just to play devil’s advocate, Pelley’s interest and numerous appearance in the story could be perceived as too much and that the story may have been about him more than the coach.
This is the link to the story
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/12/31/60minutes/main4694714.shtml
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