October 8, 2007 Archives

More details on this assignment as the deadline approaches. It will ask you to apply material from the textbook.

Rescheduled from Oct 1.

Choose an event described as newsworthy to a particular community in our textbook, and explored in some detail in the textbook.  Select a current news story on a similar theme, and write a 2-page essay that examines the concept of newsworthiness, as reflected in each of your stories.  Rather than working your way mechanically through each story, or working mechanically through a list of the kinds of ways stories can be newsworthy, focus on a small number of details -- or perhaps just one.  Demonstrate your ability to note a trend and to draw a significant conclusion from your observations.

You are welcome to post your exercise in your blog, but you are not required to do so.

The purpose of this entry is for all of us to practice creating a blog entry on our individual sites, in such a way as to create a link from the new page back to this page, and from this page back to the new page that comments on it.

Imagine if you read something in a book, then pulled out a piece of your own paper and jotted down a note about it.  Somebody else who came along and read the same book would never know that a piece of paper exists somewhere with your thoughts on it.

Blogging can seem lonely and pointless unless other people read and respond to what you have written. So follow these steps, and you'll draw more readers to your writing.

Revised, as described in class on 17 Sep

Upload to Turnitin.com:

1) A Lab Report (a 400-word news article) (50%)

• Cover your contributions to the production of The Setonian (other than writing or photography)
• Include direct quotes from your supervisors and co-workers.
• Write it in the third person, following all the principles of good journalism. (Thus, on first reference you are "Firstname Lastname, a freshman at Seton Hill University," and on subsequent references you are "Lastname.")

2) Blogging Reflection (1/2 page, 25%)

• By now, you should be using your blog to post your agenda item (a brief quotation and a brief statement of what you would talk about if called on during class) for each assigned set of chapters, and 2-4 comments on peer weblogs.
  
• I encourage you to publish your half-page reflections on your blog (but this is not required).
• In your reflection, include a link to a blog entry that you feel demonstrate your ability to reflect on and discuss the assigned readings with your peers.
  

3) Term Project "action item" (25%)

• With respect to your term project, describe your progress since your last "action item."
  
• Very briefly, sketch out where you feel you should be by the time you write your next portfolio.
• If you have actually produced substantial work towards your project, include it here for my feedback.
• For the first portfolio, your action item may simply have been a proposal and a rough timeline. For this portfolio, possible action items might include

• A complete timeline.
• A one-page handout for the "New Media Journalism" website.
• A draft of a letter to publicize a journalism contest, and a list of addresses for mailing.
• A list of URLs that link to pages you have "webbified" (adding links and formatting for the online reader) on the Setonian Online.

4) In Turnitin.com, there is a separate slot for Exercise 2