DOCSLIB.ORG

Truth and Untruth in in the Battle for Media Coverage Publicity Stunts in Terms of News Factor Theory

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Truth and Untruth in in the Battle for Media Coverage Publicity Stunts in Terms of News Factor Theory Truth and Untruth in in the Battle for Media Coverage Publicity Stunts in Terms of News Factor Theory Zoë Visser 10151931 Master’s thesis Graduate School of Communication Master’s programme Communication Science Thesis supervisor: dr. J.W. Boumans Friday June 24th 2016 Abstract The professions of PR and journalism have been changing and widely discussed by scholars and professionals in both fields. Increasing workload in journalism demands journalists to accept an increasing number of ready-made source texts. PR professionals provide such materials, organizing both truthful and untruthful publicity stunts with the aim of becoming the subject of news. Despite all studies on the news selection process, publicity stunts are rarely covered in research. This study aims to take a first step in theorizing both types of stunts in the news process. For this purpose, a quantitative content analysis of the most validated news factors in journalistic selection processes is carried out on a range of stunts and media publications on these stunts in the Netherlands. Results show that publications on untruthful stunts score significantly higher on news factor intensity than truthful stunts, and that non-commercial organizations (governmental and NGOs) score significantly higher on news factor intensity than commercial organizations. No organizational contexts explaining for a higher number untruths in publicity stunts were discovered. It was however found that he truth of a third of untruthful stunts was doubted by the journalist covering the news event, while none of the truthful stunts were questioned. This implies that journalists are capable of distinguishing truthful and untruthful stunts to some extent. Future research could provide more insight in the reasons for launching an untruthful stunt. Since this study has not found organizational circumstances that could predict the incorporation of untruths in stunts, the question remains: what does? KEYWORDS: journalism, PR, news selection process, churnalism, publicity stunts, PR hoaxes, news factor theory. 2 Introduction Over time, the professions of public relations (PR) and journalism have changed - and so have their mutual relationships. Globalization has led to blurring lines between journalism and other forms of public communication (Deuze, 2008). Nowadays, journalists face the consequences of organizational downsizing and loss of editorial control over the creative process (Deuze, 2008, p. 7). Increasing workload demands journalists to make different choices and accept ready-made source texts more easily, opening up for PR as well. At first sight that serves a solution to challenging circumstances, but the development has triggered concerns from several angles. In Flat Earth News, Nick Davies (2008) criticized the increasing use of prefabricated news, labelling it as ‘churnalism’. Although churnalism open doors for organizations’ visibility in the media, their PR practitioners have worries about its consequences too (Jackson and Moloney, 2015). Critics argue that the problem with churnalism is that it enables propaganda by sources and threatens the reliability and credibility of the news media (Davies, 2008; Jackson and Moloney, 2015). Although these charges are strong, there are some well-known examples of Dutch journalists feeling misled by sources that presented ready-made news in their own interest (Schreuder, 2014; Schapendonk, 2013). For example in 2013, when Dutch restaurants presenting a Caesar salad on their menu received a reprimanding letter stating that a so-called ‘Caesar Cardini’ had the only lawful patent on the name Caesar. For this reason none of these restaurants would have the right to keep the Caesar salad on their menu. Luckily for many chefs, the patent did not exist: it was a stunt by a brand of salad dressing. But when that came out, several media had unfairly covered the event as news already (Kok, 2013). Publicity stunts are a favourable means for publicity (Anthill, n.d.). Over years many publicity stunts have been covered in Dutch media (Mulder, 2015). And untruth, such as apparent in the Caesar example, is no requirement for news value since there are completely 3 truthful and transparent examples too (Borgdorff, 2013; Zandberg, 2016). Still, journalists unknowingly allow untruthful stunts in the news (Schreuder, 2014; Schapendonk, 2013). How does this happen? Is it always possible for journalists to see the difference and discover the truth in time? Similar questions occupy scholars and professionals in the fields of both journalism and PR. It has been extensively studied how certain facts reach the news, and more precisely, how several actors and factors can contribute to this news selection process. Especially news factor theory has provided an interdisciplinary, integrative approach to the news selection process by combing individual perspectives, professional and organizational routines, cultural influences and the public’s perceptions (Schafraad & Kroon, 2013). This approach has therefore given much insight into relevant factors (Schulz, 1976; Eilders, 2006). One would expect that this large body of research has also addressed the publication success of publicity stunts, being a favourable means for organizations to present their news (Anthill, n.d.). This is however not the case: not only in news factor theory, but in communication science as a whole, research on publicity stunts is surprisingly scarce. Publicity stunts have rarely been conceptually defined, and the notions of untruthful stunts or PR hoaxes seem especially unknown in literature. The incongruence of the deployment of these stunts with the lack of scientific knowledge on its methods and effectiveness justifies the call for research into this matter. Therefore, this study applies the knowledge on news factor theory to a sample of Dutch publicity stunts over several years. Both truthful and untruthful publicity stunts will be assessed on a range of the most validated news factors in journalistic selection processes (Eilders, 2006), in order to answer the central question of this study: “To what extent can truthful and untruthful publicity stunts be characterised in terms of news factor theory?” By combining an exploratory and hypothesis-based approach, this study aims to take a first step 4 in theorizing both untruthful and truthful publicity stunts, covering their methods, characteristics and appearance in the media. Theoretical Background In order to understand the function and development of publicity stunts in the news process, the professional roles of relevant actors need to be distinguished first. After conceptualising these roles, it can be clarified how the professions and activities relate to each other. Publication Relations Although many different definitions of public relations (PR) have been offered, the activity is generally approached as strategic communications between an organization and its publics (Vasquez & Taylor, 2000, p. 324). These publics consist of its employers, customers and prospects, activist groups, NGOs and the financial community (Cornelissen, Carroll & Elving, 2009, p. 2). According to Cornelissen, Carroll and Elving, an important public that is often overlooked in corporate communication literature is the news media (2009, p. 2). This can be explained by the fact that many PR practitioners view the news media as a channel for reaching diverse stakeholders, rather than as a stakeholder or audience themselves (Cornelissen, 2011, p. 145). However, communicating with the media is a central activity in publication relations, because these are important for reaching the public (Cornelissen, 2011, p. 145). When communicating with the media, PR practitioners have to make sense of a certain event within the organization, so it can be framed in such a way that the different publics outside of the organization will likely accept its message (Cornelissen, Carroll & Elving, 2009, p.4). 5 Organizations can become a subject of the news because they consciously seek publicity. In this case, an organization can decide to just send out a press release (Cornelissen, 2011, p. 153), or organize a publicity stunt to display or even create news value (PR stunt, n.d.). Publicity stunts are often regarded as an attempted hype, in which PR is used as a means of generating excitement quickly and artificially (Spicer, 1993, p. 55). Since publicity stunts are not broadly discussed in academic literature, a precise shared definition currently lacks. On the basis of the previously mentioned characteristics and context, the following definition is developed by for the purposes of this study: “a publicity stunt regards an event that is communicated to the media in order to generate publicity, and ideally excitement, for an organizational issue, product or the organization as a whole”. In practice, many organizations employ press releases to draw public attention to the publicity stunt in the first place. In order to ‘create’ news value, some organizations tend to go further than others. Over time, many Dutch publicity stunts have reached the news (Mulder, 2015); but some of these stunts eventually turned out to be completely or partially manipulating truth (Schreuder, 2014; Schapendonk, 2013). Publicity stunts from this untruthful category have in common that these are communicated towards the media with one or more essential aspects of the story consciously hidden, or even replaced with an untrue piece of information. Due to the insufficient conceptualization of publicity
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Perceived Credibility of Professional Photojournalism Compared to User-Generated Content Among American News Media Audiences
    Syracuse University SURFACE Dissertations - ALL SURFACE August 2020 THE PERCEIVED CREDIBILITY OF PROFESSIONAL PHOTOJOURNALISM COMPARED TO USER-GENERATED CONTENT AMONG AMERICAN NEWS MEDIA AUDIENCES Gina Gayle Syracuse University Follow this and additional works at: https://surface.syr.edu/etd Part of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Gayle, Gina, "THE PERCEIVED CREDIBILITY OF PROFESSIONAL PHOTOJOURNALISM COMPARED TO USER-GENERATED CONTENT AMONG AMERICAN NEWS MEDIA AUDIENCES" (2020). Dissertations - ALL. 1212. https://surface.syr.edu/etd/1212 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the SURFACE at SURFACE. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations - ALL by an authorized administrator of SURFACE. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ABSTRACT This study examines the perceived credibility of professional photojournalism in context to the usage of User-Generated Content (UGC) when compared across digital news and social media platforms, by individual news consumers in the United States employing a Q methodology experiment. The literature review studies source credibility as the theoretical framework through which to begin; however, using an inductive design, the data may indicate additional patterns and themes. Credibility as a news concept has been studied in terms of print media, broadcast and cable television, social media, and inline news, both individually and between genres. Very few studies involve audience perceptions of credibility, and even fewer are concerned with visual images. Using online Q methodology software, this experiment was given to 100 random participants who sorted a total of 40 images labeled with photographer and platform information. The data revealed that audiences do discern the source of the image, in both the platform and the photographer, but also take into consideration the category of news image in their perception of the credibility of an image.
    [Show full text]
  • How Relevance Works for News Audiences
    DIGITAL NEWS PROJECT FEBRUARY 2019 What do News Readers Really Want to Read about? How Relevance Works for News Audiences Kim Christian Schrøder Contents About the Author 4 Acknowledgements 4 Executive Summary 5 Introduction 7 1. Recent Research on News Preferences 8 2. A Bottom-Up Approach 10 3. Results: How Relevance Works for News Audiences 12 4. Results: Four News Content Repertoires 17 5. Results: Shared News Interests across Repertoires 23 6. Conclusion 26 Appendix A: News Story Cards and their Sources 27 Appendix B: Fieldwork Participants 30 References 31 THE REUTERS INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF JOURNALISM About the Author Kim Christian Schrøder is Professor of Communication at Roskilde University, Denmark. He was Google Digital News Senior Visiting Research Fellow at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism January–July 2018. His books in English include Audience Transformations: Shifting Audience Positions in Late Modernity (co-edited, 2014), The Routledge Handbook of Museums, Media, and Communication (co-edited 2019) and Researching Audiences (co-authored, 2003). His research interests comprise the analysis of audience uses and experiences of media. His recent work explores mixed methods for mapping news consumption. Acknowledgements The author would like to thank the Reuters Institute’s research team for their constructive comments and practical help during the planning of the fieldwork, and for their feedback to a draft version of this report. In addition to Lucas Graves, whose assistance in editing the manuscript was invaluable, I wish to thank Nic Newman, Richard Fletcher, Joy Jenkins, Sílvia Majó-Vázquez, Antonis Kalogeropoulos, Alessio Cornia, and Annika Sehl.
    [Show full text]
  • FOLLOWING a COLUMNIST AP English Language Originated by Jim Veal; Modified by V
    WAYS TO IMPROVE MEMORY: FOLLOWING A COLUMNIST AP English Language Originated by Jim Veal; modified by V. Stevenson 3/30/2009; reprint: 5/24/2012 Some of the most prominent practitioners of stylish written rhetoric in our culture are newspaper columnists. Sometimes they are called pundits – that is, sources of opinion, or critics. On the reverse side find a list of well-know newspaper columnists. Select one (or another one that I approve of) and complete the tasks below. Please start a new page and label as TASK # each time you start a new task. TASK 1—Brief Biography. Write a brief (100-200 word) biography of the columnist. Make sure you cite your source(s) at the bottom of the page. I suggest you import a picture of the author if possible. TASK 2—Five Annotated Columns. Make copies from newspapers or magazines or download them from the internet. I suggest cutting and pasting the columns into Microsoft word and double-spacing them because it makes them easier to annotate and work with. Your annotations should emphasize such things as: - the central idea of the column - identify appeals to logos, pathos, or ethos - (by what means does the columnist seek to convince readers of the truth of his central idea?) - the chief rhetorical and stylistic devices at work in the column - the tone (or tones) of the column - errors of logic (if any) that appear in the column - the way the author uses sources, the type of sources the author uses (Be sure to pay attention to this one!) - the apparent audience the author is writing for Add a few final comments to each column that summarizes your general response to the piece— do not summarize the column! This task is hand-written.
    [Show full text]
  • Beyond Objectivity and Relativism: a View Of
    BEYOND OBJECTIVITY AND RELATIVISM: A VIEW OF JOURNALISM FROM A RHETORICAL PERSPECTIVE A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University by Catherine Meienberg Gynn, B.A., M.A. The Ohio State University 1995 Dissertation Committee Approved by Josina M. Makau Susan L. Kline Adviser Paul V. Peterson Department of Communication Joseph M. Foley UMI Number: 9533982 UMI Microform 9533982 Copyright 1995, by UMI Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. UMI 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, MI 48103 DEDICATION To my husband, Jack D. Gynn, and my son, Matthew M. Gynn. With thanks to my parents, Alyce W. Meienberg and the late John T. Meienberg. This dissertation is in respectful memory of Lauren Rudolph Michael James Nole Celina Shribbs Riley Detwiler young victims of the events described herein. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I express sincere appreciation to Professor Josina M. Makau, Academic Planner, California State University at Monterey Bay, whose faith in this project was unwavering and who continually inspired me throughout my graduate studies, and to Professor Susan Kline, Department of Communication, The Ohio State University, whose guidance, friendship and encouragement made the final steps of this particular journey enjoyable. I wish to thank Professor Emeritus Paul V. Peterson, School of Journalism, The Ohio State University, for guidance that I have relied on since my undergraduate and master's programs, and whose distinguished participation in this project is meaningful to me beyond its significant academic merit.
    [Show full text]
  • Should Kids Be Allowed to Buy
    DECEMBER 21, 2020 ISSN 1554-2440 No. 10 Vol. 89 Vol. BIG DEBATE Should Kids Be Allowed to Buy Some places in WATCH Mexico have banned THESE VIDEOS! . SCHOLASTIC.COM/SN56 kids from buying junk Find out what’s hiding in junk food food. Should we do Titanic. the same in the U.S.? Explore the Become an expert on hurricanes. BIG DEBATE Should You Be Banned From Buying AS YOU READ, THINK ABOUT: What are ways that eating too much junk food can affect your health? magine going to a store and not being allowed to buy a bag of chips. The reason? You’re too young! What exactly is That’s what may happen in one state in Mexico, which junk food? I It’s food and drinks that recently banned the sale of unhealthy snacks and sugar- sweetened drinks to kids younger than 18. Several other are high in fat, salt, or Mexican states are considering passing similar laws. sugar and have little The goal of these bans is to improve kids’ health. nutritional value. Research shows that eating too much junk food can lead to obesity—the condition of being severely overweight. People with obesity are at higher risk for health problems such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes. But some people argue that a ban on buying junk WORDS TO KNOW food isn’t a good way to change kids’ eating habits. calories noun, plural. units that measure the amount of energy Should states in the U.S. also consider banning the released by food in the body sale of junk food to kids? consequences noun, plural.
    [Show full text]
  • Subsidizing the News? Organizational Press Releases' Influence on News Media's Agenda and Content Boumans, J
    UvA-DARE (Digital Academic Repository) Subsidizing the news? Organizational press releases' influence on news media's agenda and content Boumans, J. DOI 10.1080/1461670X.2017.1338154 Publication date 2018 Document Version Final published version Published in Journalism Studies License CC BY-NC-ND Link to publication Citation for published version (APA): Boumans, J. (2018). Subsidizing the news? Organizational press releases' influence on news media's agenda and content. Journalism Studies, 19(15), 2264-2282. https://doi.org/10.1080/1461670X.2017.1338154 General rights It is not permitted to download or to forward/distribute the text or part of it without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), other than for strictly personal, individual use, unless the work is under an open content license (like Creative Commons). Disclaimer/Complaints regulations If you believe that digital publication of certain material infringes any of your rights or (privacy) interests, please let the Library know, stating your reasons. In case of a legitimate complaint, the Library will make the material inaccessible and/or remove it from the website. Please Ask the Library: https://uba.uva.nl/en/contact, or a letter to: Library of the University of Amsterdam, Secretariat, Singel 425, 1012 WP Amsterdam, The Netherlands. You will be contacted as soon as possible. UvA-DARE is a service provided by the library of the University of Amsterdam (https://dare.uva.nl) Download date:27 Sep 2021 SUBSIDIZING THE NEWS? Organizational press releases’ influence on news media’s agenda and content Jelle Boumans The relation between organizational press releases and newspaper content has generated consider- able attention.
    [Show full text]
  • FACTS Summary
    Fast Food Advertising: Billions in spending, continued high exposure by youth J U N E 2 0 2 1 Fast-food consumption among youth remains a significant public health concern. The findings in this report demonstrate that fast-food advertising spending increased from 2012 to 2019; youth exposure to TV ads declined, but at a lower rate than reductions in TV viewing times; many restaurants continued to disproportionately target advertising to Hispanic and Black youth; and restaurants did not actively promote healthier menu items. Restaurants must do more to reduce harmful fast-food advertising to youth. B A C K G R O U N D Excessive consumption of fast food is linked to poor diet and weight outcomes among children and teens,1 and consumption of fast food has increased over the past decade.2 On a given day, one-third of children and teens eat fast food, and on those days they consume 126 and 310 additional calories, including more sugary drinks, compared to days they do not eat fast food.3 Moreover, fast food consumption is higher for Hispanic and non-Hispanic Black teens, who also face greater risks for obesity and other diet-related diseases, compared to non-Hispanic White teens. 4, 5 While many factors likely influence frequent fast-food consumption,6-8 extensive fast-food advertising is a major contributor.9 Frequent and widespread exposure to food marketing increases young people’s preferences, purchase requests, attitudes, and consumption of the primarily nutrient- poor energy-dense products promoted.10-12 Fast food is the most frequently advertised food and beverage category to children and teens, representing 40% of all youth-directed food marketing expenditures 13 and more than one-quarter of food and drink TV ads viewed14.
    [Show full text]
  • The Protection of Journalistic Sources, a Cornerstone of the Freedom of the Press
    Thematic factsheet1 Last update: June 2018 THE PROTECTION OF JOURNALISTIC SOURCES, A CORNERSTONE OF THE FREEDOM OF THE PRESS According to the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights, the right of journalists not to disclose their sources is not a mere privilege to be granted or taken away depending on the lawfulness or unlawfulness of their sources, but is part and parcel of the right to information, to be treated with the utmost caution. Without an effective protection, sources may be deterred from assisting the press in informing the public on matters of public interest. As a result, the vital “public watchdog” role of the press may be undermined. Any interference with the right to protection of journalistic sources (searches at journalists’ workplace or home, seizure of journalistic material, disclosure orders etc) that could lead to their identification must be backed up by effective legal procedural safeguards commensurate with the importance of the principle at stake. First and foremost among these safeguards is the guarantee of a review by an independent and impartial body to prevent unnecessary access to information capable of disclosing the sources’ identity. Such a review is preventive in nature. The review body has to be in a position to weigh up the potential risks and respective interests prior to any disclosure. Its decision should be governed by clear criteria, including as to whether less intrusive measures would suffice. The disclosure orders placed on journalists have a detrimental impact not only on their sources, whose identity may be revealed, but also on the newspaper against which the order is directed, whose reputation may be negatively affected in the eyes of future potential sources by the disclosure, and on the members of the public, who have an interest in receiving information imparted through anonymous sources and who are also potential sources themselves.
    [Show full text]
  • "'Who Shared It?': How Americans Decide What News to Trust
    NORC WORKING PAPER SERIES WHO SHARED IT?: HOW AMERICANS DECIDE WHAT NEWS TO TRUST ON SOCIAL MEDIA WP-2018-001 | AUGUST, 2018 PRESENTED BY: NORC at the University of Chicago 55 East Monroe Street 30th Floor Chicago, IL 60603 Ph. (312) 759-4000 AUTHORS: David Sterrett, Dan Malato Jennifer Benz Liz Kantor Trevor Tompson Tom Rosenstiel Jeff Sonderman Kevin Loker Emily Swanson NORC | WHO SHARED IT?: HOW AMERICANS DECIDE WHAT NEWS TO TRUST ON SOCIAL MEDIA AUTHOR INFORMATION David Sterrett, Research Scientist, AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research Dan Malato, Principal Research Analyst, AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research Jennifer Benz, Principal Research Scientist, AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research Liz Kantor, Research Assistant, AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research Trevor Tompson, Vice President for Public Affairs Research, AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research Tom Rosenstiel, Executive Director, American Press Institute Jeff Sonderman, Deputy Director, American Press Institute Kevin Loker, Program Manager, American Press Institute Emily Swanson, Polling Editor, Associated Press NORC WORKING PAPER SERIES | I NORC | WHO SHARED IT?: HOW AMERICANS DECIDE WHAT NEWS TO TRUST ON SOCIAL MEDIA Table of Contents Introduction ..................................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Choosing an analytic approach ..................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. I. Inductive coding ................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Cairncross Review a Sustainable Future for Journalism
    THE CAIRNCROSS REVIEW A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE FOR JOURNALISM 12 TH FEBRUARY 2019 Contents Executive Summary 5 Chapter 1 – Why should we care about the future of journalism? 14 Introduction 14 1.1 What kinds of journalism matter most? 16 1.2 The wider landscape of news provision 17 1.3 Investigative journalism 18 1.4 Reporting on democracy 21 Chapter 2 – The changing market for news 24 Introduction 24 2.1 Readers have moved online, and print has declined 25 2.2 Online news distribution has changed the ways people consume news 27 2.3 What could be done? 34 Chapter 3 – News publishers’ response to the shift online and falling revenues 39 Introduction 39 3.1 The pursuit of digital advertising revenue 40 Case Study: A Contemporary Newsroom 43 3.2 Direct payment by consumers 48 3.3 What could be done 53 Chapter 4 – The role of the online platforms in the markets for news and advertising 57 Introduction 57 4.1 The online advertising market 58 4.2 The distribution of news publishers’ content online 65 4.3 What could be done? 72 Cairncross Review | 2 Chapter 5 – A future for public interest news 76 5.1 The digital transition has undermined the provision of public-interest journalism 77 5.2 What are publishers already doing to sustain the provision of public-interest news? 78 5.3 The challenges to public-interest journalism are most acute at the local level 79 5.4 What could be done? 82 Conclusion 88 Chapter 6 – What should be done? 90 Endnotes 103 Appendix A: Terms of Reference 114 Appendix B: Advisory Panel 116 Appendix C: Review Methodology 120 Appendix D: List of organisations met during the Review 121 Appendix E: Review Glossary 123 Appendix F: Summary of the Call for Evidence 128 Introduction 128 Appendix G: Acknowledgements 157 Cairncross Review | 3 Executive Summary Executive Summary “The full importance of an epoch-making idea is But the evidence also showed the difficulties with often not perceived in the generation in which it recommending general measures to support is made..
    [Show full text]
  • News Values and Newsworthiness
    News Values and Newsworthiness Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Communication News Values and Newsworthiness Helen Caple Subject: Journalism Studies Online Publication Date: Jun 2018 DOI: 10.1093/acrefore/9780190228613.013.850 Summary and Keywords How events become news has always been a fundamental question for both journalism practitioners and scholars. For journalism practitioners, news judgments are wrapped up in the moral obligation to hold the powerful to account and to provide the public with the means to participate in democratic governance. For journalism scholars, news selection and construction are wrapped up in investigations of news values and newsworthiness. Scholarship systematically analyzing the processes behind these judgments and selections emerged in the 1960s, and since then, news values research has made a significant contribution to the journalism literature. Assertions have been made regarding the status of news values, including whether they are culture bound or universal, core or standard. Some hold that news values exist in the minds of journalists or are even metaphorically speaking “part of the furniture,” while others see them as being inherent or infused in the events that happen or as discursively constructed through the verbal and visual resources deployed in news storytelling. Like in many other areas of journalism research, systematic analysis of the role that visuals play in the construction of newsworthiness has been neglected. However, recent additions to the scholarship on visual news values analysis have begun to address this shortfall. The convergence and digitization of news production, rolling deadlines, new media platforms, and increasingly active audiences have also impacted on how news values research is conducted and theorized, making this a vibrant and ever-evolving research paradigm.
    [Show full text]
  • Let's Talk About …
    Let’s talk about … News Writing By Jeanne Acton, UIL Journalism & ILPC Director News Writing … gives the reader information that will have an impact on them in some way. It usually flows from most important to least important. “What is news? It is information only.” - Walter Cronkite, former CBS News anchor Transition/Quote Formula Lead: Most important information. Focus on newest information. Focus on the future. Additional Information: Important information not found in the lead. Sometimes not needed. Linked Side Notes: 1) Each box is Direct Quote: a new a para- Connects to the additional information or lead. Use more than one sentence. graph. 2) Story should flow Transition: from most Next important fact or opinion for the story . important to Use transition words to help story flow . Transi- least important tion can be a fact, indirect quote or partial information. quote. Linked Direct Quote: Connects to the first transition. Use more than one sentence. Do not repeat the transition in the quote. DQ should elaborate on the transition. DQ should give details, opinions, etc. Transition: Next important fact or opinion for the story . Use transition words to help story flow . Transi- tion can be a fact, indirect quote or partial Linked quote. Direct Quote: Connects to the second transition. Use more than one sentence. Do not repeat the transition in the quote. DQ should elaborate on the transi- tion. DQ should give details, opinions, etc. and so on!!! until the story is complete Let’s start at the beginning with … LEADS. Let’s talk about Leads Lead: Most important information.
    [Show full text]