Fall 2014 Syllabus

JOURN 300: NEWSWRITING and REPORTING, FALL 2014-- T/TH   4-6  p.m. – Integrative Learning Center S413

Journalism 300 is a hands-on, nuts-and-bolts news writing and reporting class in which we learn and discuss:

• What is news

• How to identify and pitch a good story

• How to report and conduct interviews

• The news story "formula," especially leads and nutgraphs

• Kinds of stories and how to tell them

• The journalistic principles of fairness, accuracy, telling the truth and serving the public good

Email me anytime at MARY CAREY maryelizacarey@gmail.com, 413-588-4274 (cell)

Class blog: Journ300.blogspot.com

REQUIRED TEXT: Melvin Mencher, News Reporting and Writing (latest edition)

ADDITIONAL REQUIRED READING

AP Style Guide online

Daily newspapers and news magazines. Try to scan online and in print at least one of the local newspapers including the Collegian, Daily Hampshire Gazette or Springfield Republican every day. Also be aware of what’s on the front page of, for instance, the Boston Globe and New York Times. Each class, one or more students will bring in a newspaper article and comment on some aspect of the news, news coverage, style, choice of stories or contrast between coverage. Being conversant with what is in the news is essential to writing it.

GRADES

Grades are based on timely and thoughtful completion of in-class and out-of-class writing assignments and quizzes, multi-media blog, attendance and in-class participation. Writing criteria include news judgment, clarity of writing, grammar, accuracy, organization, spelling, conciseness, use of AP style, and meeting deadlines. Although the big picture things like news judgment and solid reporting are important, misspelling names and other seemingly minor shortcomings can ruin a story and your reputation, so they will count. Numerical equivalent of grades: A=95, A-=92, A-/B+ =90, B+88 etc.

ATTENDANCE

Not making appointments or missing the action will also undermine your career and the class. You MUST tell me BEFORE class if you are going to be absent and it has to be a legitimate excuse. (I read my e-mail regularly and have a phone message machine at home.) Otherwise you will receive zeroes for the day’s assignments. Please do not be late or leave early. More than three absences and/or repeatedly being late or leaving early will result in a significantly lowered final grade, with the grade being lowered by a full half grade for each absence over three.

CELL PHONE RINGERS MUST BE TURNED OFF. NO TAPING WITHOUT PERMISSION – IT'S ILLEGAL. NO READING FACEBOOK, UMASS MEMES etc ONLINE DURING CLASS!

WRITING ASSIGNMENTS

In-class writing assignments usually won’t be longer than 2-3 (500-750 words) typewritten pages. Most major assignments are 1,000 words or 4 pages. First drafts must be in turned in on-time for credit. Not turning in a first draft or turning in an insufficiently complete first draft will result in a significantly lower final draft grade. Among your assignments are a profile (counts for 10 percent of final grade), feature (15 percent), coverage of a speech (10 percent), issue piece (15 percent)  analysis on deadline (10  percent), blog (5 percent), deadline assignments and quizzes. See schedule for complete breakdown of how the final grade is calculated.

HONESTY

Any instance of plagiarism or any other form of cheating is cause for course failure.

Fall 2014 schedule

SPRING 2014 Schedule

JOURN 300/CAREY/ FALL 2014

Tuesday/Thursday 4 – 6 p.m.

Integrative Learning Center S413

This is a tentative schedule of topics subject to revision to accommodate the news, campus goings-on that we’ll attend and classroom visitors. Check the blog (Journ300.blogspot.com) for updates and changes. Note: Each day two or more students will bring in an article to discuss and post an "AP Style tip" to the blog.

SEPT 2 Introduction - discuss leads, effective interviewing, AP Style and (briefly) the nutgraph. Email to me at maryelizacarey@gmail.com TONIGHT 500 words about the first day of class. Should have a good lead and at least one direct quotation.

FOR NEXT CLASS: To hand in next class, a WRITTEN list of three potential speeches/presentations we can visit on campus, ASAP in the next couple of weeks preferably during class time. (We will be writing the 650-word SPEECH paper about whichever speech we attend.)  In the written list that you bring into class on Thursday, include 1) who is giving the speech and 2) the topic, where/when it is being held, a brief couple of sentences of background information about the speaker and, if possible, the topic.  We’ll pick one of the speeches you’ve identified to attend. (One option could be Laverne Cox, transgender rights activist and Emmy-nominated actress from the Netflix series Orange is the New Black, who will kick-off the Common Read Program.)

READ: Chapter 5 on Leads and Chapter 15 on Interviewing Principles

SEPT 4 - Review leads, Chapters 5 and 15 and the class blog; discuss where and when we can go to a speech

SEPT 9 In groups of 3-4, one student will interview another on a subject of his/her choice while a third student videotapes it using a phone or camera. Keep it around 3 minutes or under. We’ll upload them to the class blog and analyze them.

SEPT 11  Analyze interviewing videos, Bring in  400-500 written piece with photo based on your interview of a classmate. (5 percent of final grade) ATTEND TALK BY LAVERNE COX

NEXT: READ: Chapter 16 on speeches.

SEPT 16  SPEECH PAPER ON LAVERNE COX DUE. We will attend a talk by an outdoor journalist  and alumnus Kevin Riley. Take detailed notes, interview 2-3 audience members about the talk and write a 600 word speech/event story, due Thursday.

SEPT 18 FIRST ASSIGNMENT DUE (600 words event story on Tuesday’s speakers, worth 5 percent of final grade) In-class work on blogs; NEXT: Write a brief profile pitch to present next class.

SEPT 23  Present profile pitch; if time, work on blogs. NEXT, READ: Chaps. 2 and 3.

WRITE: 500 word “pre-first draft” profile with lead, nutgraph and quote(s).

SEPT 25:  Turn in pre-first drafts. Peer edit. NEXT, READ: Chap. 7 on the Writer's Art.

SEPT 30  Depending on which speech we attend, 650-750 word speech story may be due (10 percent of total grade)

OCT 2 In-class, deadline writing assignment #6: In pairs, interview 4 people on campus on subject TBA; write 500 word story on-deadline with quotes from each of your sources. (5 percent of total grade)

READ: Chap. 8 on Features.

OCT 7 FIRST DRAFT PROFILE DUE (INCLUDE WORD COUNT) Discuss feature stories.

PEER EDIT first draft profiles.

READ: Chapter 18 on Accidents and Disasters and Chapter 19 on Obituaries. Write Feature Pitch for next class.

OCT 9   FEATURE PITCH; if time, work on blogs.

OCT 14 NO CLASS/UMASS follows MONDAY SCHEDULE READ: Chapter 21 on Courts.

OCT 16 Discuss chapters on accident, obituaries and courts. In-class deadline assignment/obituary writing exercise (5 percent of total grade)

 OCT 21  FINAL DRAFT PROFILE DUE (1,000 words, INCLUDE WORD COUNT, 10 percent of total grade) In-class work on feature drafts. Discuss Issue paper & interviews with 2-3 "experts." Review for MIDTERM QUIZ. Next: READ: read Chaps. 11 on layered reporting. and 14 on sources.

OCT 23 ***MID-TERM QUIZ *** If time, work on blogs; do advance work on your features as a pre-first draft is due next class (5 percent of total grade)

OCT 28   PRE- FIRST DRAFT FEATURE (500 words, INCLUDE WORD COUNT) DUE. PEER EDIT.

OCT 30   FIRST DRAFT FEATURE DUE (1,000) words. In-class work on features, issue, experts.

NOV 4  Issue pitch.

WRITE: 500-word Issue PRE-First Draft to peer edit next class.

NOV 6  In-class work on Issue papers.  Peer edit Issue pre-first drafts. Final FEATURE DUE (1,000 words, include word count, worth 15 percent of total grade)

READ: Chap 20 on police and Chapters 24 on Government  and 25 on Reporters and the Law. Review Massachusetts Open Meeting Law. Discuss progress on Feature and Issue papers.

NOV 11 NO CLASS/VETERANS DAY 

NOV 13   FIRST DRAFT ISSUE (1,000 words with 4 voices, 2 of whom are "experts") due. READ: Chaps. 26 on Taste in Journalism and 27 on Morality.

NOV 18  Discuss Chapters 26 & 27; in-class work on issue paper, blogs

NOV 20  In-class work on Issue paper.  Review for FINAL QUIZ.

NOV 25 FINAL ISSUE PAPER DUE. (1,000 words; include word count, 15 percent of total grade)/END OF SEMESTER QUIZ  Discuss summary/analysis writing.

NOV 27 NO CLASS/ THANKSGIVING

DEC 2 – In-class deadline assignment 16: Watch film and write SUMMARY/ANALYSIS with quote(s) from someone in class (10 percent of final grade) on deadline, due at end of class.

DEC 4 -  LAST DAY OF CLASS/RECAP Final blog presentations

How the final grade is calculated:

Sept. 16 talk paper – 5 percent

Articles/AP tips – 5 percent

Blog – 5 percent

Interviews with your classmate (video and written) 5 percent

Speech paper – 10 percent

Oct. 2 deadline assignment – 5 percent

Oct. 16 obituary assignment – 5 percent

Profile – 10 percent

Midterm – 5 percent

Feature – 15 percent

Issue – 15 percent

Film Analysis – 10 percent

Final – 5 percent

Welcome to Fall 2014