SYLLABUS
BACKPACK JOURNALISM ABROAD
COMM-535-E02L
Film and Media Arts Division School of Communication American University
10 May-18 June 2010
Professor William F. Gentile
Office: Mary Graydon Center (MGC) 320 Cell: (202) 492-6405 E-mail: [email protected]
This distance learning course is an online version of the existing Foreign Correspondence course (COMM-544) which has been highly successful at American University since I created the class for the School of Communication (SOC) and first taught it in Spring 2004. I normally teach this course while I am at work in the field. I first taught it in Spring of 2008 while embedded with a company of U.S. Marines in Afghanistan. On that occasion I shot and produced the story, “Afghanistan: The Forgotten War,” for NOW on PBS, using the “backpack journalism” model. (You can see this piece online at http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/428/index.html )
The idea behind this course is to transmit the lessons I learn in the field to you at home, in part through my blog, http://www.billgentilebackpackjournalism.blogspot.com . As you will see on that blog, I’ve just returned from conducting two backpack journalism workshops in Mexico, where I also helped inaugurate the Mexican Foundation for Investigative Journalism.
The backpack journalism model, which I’ve employed since the 1990s, is generally characterized by one journalist using a hand-held video camera to produce a version of visual communication more intimate and more immediate than that generated with shoulder-held cameras and a crew that includes camera person, sound person, producer and correspondent.
From your perspective, this course is ideal for online, distance instruction, as collaboration is key to the success of most journalistic endeavors and collaboration will be critical to the collective success of this class. The efforts of each individual will determine, in part, the success of the larger group, as we all have shared goals and expectations.
Resources
“FRONTLINE JOURNALISTS: Death and Danger in Afghanistan,” a one-hour documentary I shot and produced in 2005 depicting the work of foreign correspondents in that war-torn Central Asian nation. This film is available for your viewing in the American University library, in the Reserves section.
The Foreign Correspondence Network (FCN) Web site, www.foreigncorrespondence.org , which I manage and maintain, for use with the in-class Foreign Correspondence course and, now, for the Distance Education version of that course. The site includes a “Resources” section that will be vital to your work during the semester.
The FCN is a support system of American University alumni living and working in more than 30 countries around the world. These alumni have agreed to provide information and advice to AU students planning to work abroad. I will provide their contact information.
I also created and manage the AU Foreign Correspondence Network Facebook site, another tool that you may find highly useful: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=187770340054 .
I have compiled a Correspondent Master List so you can access foreign correspondents around the world to inquire about the Target Country or Region where aspire to work. This is posted on Blackboard. Blackboard (BB) will be our primary means of communication during the semester. If students have BB or technology problems please contact [email protected] .
Our Blackboard site will provide you the week-by-week guidance on Course Readings and posts from your colleagues, as well as my instruction. We will use the FCN site primarily for Resources. You can also look at my personal site, www.billgentile.com , for a look at some of my previous work, the trajectory of my career and the kind of work I do today.
My Vimeo channel, Backpack Journalist, includes examples of work done by students in my Backpack Documentary classes, as well as my Backpack Journalism Workshops.
Text
Associated Press (AP) Stylebook and Libel Manual. Updated annually, this is available online from on-campus AU computers at www.apstylebook.com/american .
Objectives (What I teach you)
The mechanics, structure and technique of the craft of foreign correspondence. How to construct a Trip File. How to construct a “bridge” to the country or region of your choice. How to become a freelance foreign correspondent. How foreign news gets to you. How to distinguish between good reporting and bad.
2 This course is designed to prepare students to work as print, broadcast, photo or video journalists, as well as documentary makers and social media producers, in a foreign country of their choice. We normally define “foreign correspondent” as any journalist working in a country not his/her own and filing information to an outlet outside that country. We examine the structure/process of news/information gathering. This course also provides research skills and training applicable in business, non-profit, non-governmental organizations.
“Foreign Correspondence” is modeled after a course I took in graduate school during the mid- 1970s. This course launched my own career in foreign correspondence, laying the groundwork for an internship at the Mexico City News and, eventually, a full-time staff position as foreign correspondent/editor for United Press International (UPI) in Mexico City.
Especially now, in a world made small by travel and communication, and embroiled in conflict, the exchange of information is a worthy, even crucial, endeavor.
You should think of this course as a “How-To Become a Freelance Foreign Correspondent” course. You should think of this Syllabus as your step-by-step guidebook to doing so. There are two ways, or paths, to become a foreign correspondent: The conventional way and the unconventional way. This course focuses on the latter of the two.
Your main objective during this course is to identify a country or region in which you want to work, to research that country or region, and to build a Trip File, which is a conceptual/informational bridge to that country or region. This “Trip File” contains history, background and analysis of the social, economic, political, military situation of your Target Country or region. It requires conventional research and communication with State Department sources here in Washington as well as in the Target Country. It requires communication with diplomatic representatives of that country. It requires communication with journalists and other contacts in the Target Country. It includes a budget and a map. You must present me with three Installments of a comprehensive document that includes story or project ideas to execute once you are there. In other words, you should be able to take your Trip File and appropriate funds to your selected country and execute the job you envision performing in that country. This syllabus lists the details and the due date for each of the three Installments, and other requirements.
You are required to write one Washington-datelined article (three, double-spaced or 750 words) that would be of interest to readers/viewers in your Target Country. A one-page, single-spaced Proposal for this story is also required. If you are not located in Washington as this assignment becomes due, the dateline may be the place at which you are located.
You will be required to read various articles that are now on the Foreign Correspondence site.
You will be required to read foreign datelined stories in The New York Times.
Outcomes (What you will learn)
The identity of the men and women who send us information from abroad. How the organizations for which foreign correspondents work actually function.
3 What makes good or bad reporting from abroad. Whether the job of foreign correspondent is attractive to you. Whether you have the skills to be a foreign correspondent. Whether you have the commitment to become a foreign correspondent. Whether the craft is a viable endeavor in the country or region of your choice.
Participation Guidelines (We are all in this together.)
By signing up for this course you are, in effect, entering an informal agreement to collaborate with (read “support”) the group. In this sense, we are all in this together. Journalism, you will find, is a highly collaborative craft.
Your overriding objective during this course is to construct a Trip File, which will be submitted in three Installments. (Please see the syllabus for details of the Trip File requirements.) The key outcome is to decide whether you have the will and the wherewithal to work as a foreign correspondent in the country or region of your choice.
Your first task in this course is to choose a country or region of the world where you want to work as a foreign correspondent. This course is designed to prepare you to work as a freelance foreign correspondent. The key to the endeavor is to select a country or region that generates enough news and information to sustain you, where you can work and live at an acceptable cost, and where you perceive an opening for your talents and skills despite competition. Your personal interest in the country and region should be an important element in your selection of what we call a “Target Country” or “Region.” And language skills can be a tremendous asset if you have them – or a huge liability if you don’t have them. The general rule of our craft is that it’s much easier to get a start in a place like Turkey or Egypt, with lots of news, proximity to a major story in the region and relatively cheap living, than it is in London with somewhat predictable news stories, very high living costs and vicious competition among hundreds of correspondents.
The construction of the Trip File will require a significant amount of research and writing. Collaboration with me and with your colleagues in the class is essential. To ensure this collaboration, you are required to participate on a regular basis.
Please keep in mind that the “standard” for full participation in a three-credit, face-to-face course is 37.5 hours in class -- not counting the additional time you are expected to spend working on the course out of class. The 37.5 hours of class time alone, then, divided by six weeks means that you should spend a bare minimum of six hours and 15 minutes a week on this class. This may sound exorbitant, but remember that this course is compressed into just six weeks, as opposed to being spread out over 15.
So what are the participation guidelines? Aside from logging on each day, what will be expected of you? What should you contribute? How often, and what, will you be expected to post?
I will use the launch of each of the three Installment periods as a springboard for instruction, discussion, research and contribution (see Schedule) to your individual – and our collective –
4 enterprise. I will expect substantive, constructive directives and suggestions as to how each of you can procure the information you are seeking to include in that Installment of the Trip File.
You are expected to actively participate by 9 pm on Mondays in response to the Readings, and Thursdays by 9 pm in response to the posts of others in the class.
In addition, you are expected to submit Installments I, II and III at the designated times.
Students cannot pass this course without engagement with the instructor and with other students. Students cannot pass this course without active participation. Your participation will be evaluated largely on frequency of your posts, on the length and depth of your posts, and on the “value” of each post.
You will be asked to participate and to post on reading assignments and on each of the three Installments required to build your Trip Files.
The first Installment, for example, involves the procurement of background and current events information on each or your Target Countries. The “value” of your individual post depends on how your contribution helps you and your colleagues in finding that background and current events information on their (or any, for that matter) country or region.
Each of the three, two-week periods of this course will coincide with the construction of Installments I, II and III. The instructor will begin each period with directions and assignments.
Be careful with the use of humor online, as it often does not translate. Be careful with the use of CAPITALS online, as if often is misinterpreted as SHOUTING.
For assistance, you can call me on my cell phone, which is listed at the beginning of this syllabus. It’s always best to set up a telephone conversation by first messaging and confirming online.
To determine whether or not your level of participation is appropriate for this class, ask yourself this simple question: Do other members of this class consider me a valuable asset whose collaboration contributes to the individual and collective goals of this class?
Schedule
Week 1 Introductions and Objectives. Introduce yourself and post your own objectives for this course. Identify the Target Country or Region of the world where you want to work and immediately set up Google and Yahoo alerts for your respective Target Countries . These alerts will channel stories to you about your chosen Target Country or Region.
5 Watch “FRONTLINE JOURNALISTS: Death and Danger in Afghanistan,” a film I made in 2005 that follows a number of foreign correspondents working in that Central Asian country. It is a good example of how I worked as a “backpack journalist” to make the film.
Readings: TBA.
Week 2 Readings: TBA.
Submit Installment I of your Trip File.
Week 3 Readings: TBA.
Begin investigating the field of foreign correspondents in your Target Country.
Proposal due for DC-dateline story.
Week 4 Readings: TBA.
Submit Installment II of your Trip File.
Week 5 Readings: TBA.
Begin work on formulating your work plans, logistics report and budget for Installment III of your Trip File.
DC-dateline story due.
Week 6 Readings: TBA.
Submit Installment III of your Trip File.
Blackboard
During the semester, I will communicate with you, individually and collectively, through Blackboard. I will also post your grades on Blackboard, so you can monitor your progress through the entire semester.
Others
ASSIGNMENTS TURNED IN LATE WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED, EXCEPT IN EXTREME CIRCUMSTANCES WHICH MUST BE DISCUSSED WITH THE
6 INSTRUCTOR BEFORE DUE DATE. THERE ARE NO EXTENSIONS. IN FAIRNESS TO YOUR COLLEAGUES, THERE CAN BE NO EXCEPTIONS.
Grading
Writing assignments submitted for this class must adhere to the Associated Press (AP) Stylebook, an excellent investment if you plan to pursue a career in this field.
Class participation 300 points DC story 100 Trip File 600 points (200 per Installment)
TOTAL POSSIBLE POINTS: 1,000
Grade Scale
A 950-1000 A- 900-949 B+ 860-899 B 830-859 B- 800-829 C+ 750-799 C 720-749 C- 700-719 D 690-699 F 689 or fewer points
Your work will be graded on a number of indices. You will be graded primarily on the level of achievement of the stated goals of each assignment. In addition, I will take into consideration the amount of effort and ambition that you invest in each assignment. Stated differently, I will give you more credit for more muscle you put into the assignment.
The grade of A is awarded for excellence, the very best work in the class. An A student turns in all work on time with consistently very high standards of quality, creativity and original thinking. This person produces outstanding products and performs exceptionally in presentations and critiques.
The grade of B is awarded to students who have turned in all work on time, and consistently completed work in a high quality manner. The work shows creative thinking, extra effort, and care in presentation. This person has demonstrated knowledge that surpasses the basic material and skills of the course.
The grade of C is earned when all class work is turned in and the student has mastered the basic material and skills of the course. This person participated in class and demonstrated knowledge of the basic material and skills. This is the average grade in the class.
7 The D or F is given for work that is incomplete, late, and/or does not demonstrate mastery of the basic material and skills of the course. A grade of D or F may also be given to students with more than three unexcused absences.
Creative Property Rights
By enrolling in this course, you grant the University permission to have your work, which you created in conjunction with this course, copied and distributed (in print, electronic, and/or any digital medium) and to incorporate your work, in whole or in part, into derivative works for educational, research, archival, promotional, and other purposes consistent with the mission of American University.
Academic Integrity Code
Standards of academic conduct are set forth in the University's Academic Integrity Code. By registering, you have acknowledged your awareness of the Academic Integrity Code, and you are obliged to become familiar with your rights and responsibilities as defined by the Code. Violations of the Academic Integrity Code will not be treated lightly, and disciplinary actions will be taken should such violations occur. Please see me if your have any questions about the academic violations described in the Code in general or as they relate to particular requirements for this course.
Student Resources
If you experience difficulty in this course for any reason, please don’t hesitate to consult with me. In addition to the resources of the department, a wide range of services is available to support you in your efforts to meet the course requirements.
Academic Support Center. If you need assistance with writing or composing the required class assignments the Academic Support Center has a Writing Lab for undergraduate students. The center also offers study skills workshops, individual instruction, tutor referrals and services for students with learning disabilities. (885-3360, MGC 243).
The Writing Center: This center is an additional resource for students in need of writing assistance. (885-2991, Battelle-Tompkins 228).
Disability Support Services (885-3315, MGC 206) offers technical and practical support and assistance with accommodations for students with physical or psychological disabilities. If you have a disability and might require accommodations in this course, please notify me with a letter from DSS or ASC early in the semester so that we can make arrangements to address your needs.
Counseling Center: If you are experiencing emotional stress or personal problems which are impeding your ability to function in and/or outside of the classroom the counseling center can
8 provide confidential assistance. The Center offers counseling and consultations regarding personal concerns, self-help information, and connections to off-campus mental health resources. (885-3500, MGC 214).
NOTE
This Syllabus is a guideline, a statement of intent. The instructor reserves the right to change this syllabus, in response to circumstances that arise during the semester, and with appropriate prior notice, to achieve the objectives listed above.
TRIP FILE
The Trip File is the major component of this class. It is your road map to the country or region of your choice. It is the culmination of research, analysis and communication during the entire semester. It contains background and analysis of the cultural, social, economic, political and military situation in the country of question. It requires conventional research as well as communication with State Department sources here in Washington and in the country of your choice. It requires communication with diplomatic representatives of that country based here in Washington. It requires communication with foreign correspondents, members of the FCN, as well as individuals/organizations of your particular interest, based in that country.
The Trip File is the basic preparation that any foreign correspondent would execute upon accepting an assignment to a foreign post. The Trip File includes three viable Story Ideas that you would formulate if actually given the opportunity to work in that country. If you are a freelancer, these are the ideas that you would pitch to a media outlet before leaving for the Target Country.
As with other components of this class, the Trip File is not an academic exercise to be forgotten and forsaken after the class is over. Instead, it is a road map to the country or region of your choice. It is a plan of action.
In the best of cases, each of you should be able to hand your respective Trip File and appropriate funds to another person in this class and that person should be able to go to that country and successfully work on the Story Ideas that you have outlined.
You will turn in the Trip File in three installments, each worth 200 points of the total 1,000 possible points that will determine your final grade. The three installments are:
Installment I: Summary of past/present in Target Country.
Introduction . (One, double-spaced page.) This is a synopsis of the Trip File. It is a quick description of what’s inside the File. It points out why your Target Country is important, and why you are qualified to cover it. Why is this country or region important to you? Why is it important to us? Think clearly. Write well.
9 Background . (At least two pages, single-spaced.) Please put this in your own words. Don’t just copy and paste material you pull from the Internet. Make it interesting. Tell me about your Target Country’s social, economic and political history. What makes the country or region what it is today? Is your own personal history intertwined with the history of your Target Country? If so, tell me about it.
Current situation/analysis . (At least three, single-spaced pages.) This section should be designed to inform the reader of the current-day situation in the Target Country. You should transition from the previous section on background to explain how that history manifests itself today.
What kind of social, economic, military, political system exists in your Target Country today? Give me key demographic and geographic data about this country. What is the total population? What languages do the people speak? What religion does the majority of the population belong to? What is the literacy rate? What is the average life expectancy? What is the per capita income? What does the country produce? On what is the economy based? What is the Gross National Product (GNP)? What is the Gross Domestic Product (GDP)?
What does this all mean for an audience in the United States? How is that country connected to my everyday life here in the United States? Why is your Target Country important to an American? What is the specific audience for material that you generate from that country?
Of special importance is the status of the media. Is it free? Does the populace have access to newspapers, television and radio? What about the Internet? Is it accessible? How does this affect you as a foreign correspondent? Will you, as a journalist, be free to work there? Do you need a government press pass?
What about the logistics? Do you need a visa to get there? Special vaccinations? How will you get there? What airline? Where will you stay? Is it safe? How much will it all cost?
Like any proper journalistic endeavor, all this information must be sourced. Cite the research you’ve done in books, newspapers, magazines, Internet, television/radio reports and interviews. Were the interviews done in person? On the phone? On line?
NO footnotes, please.
NOTE : Installment I is due at midnight EST on Friday 21 May, which is the end of the Week 2.
Installment II: Summary/analysis of correspondents and coverage.
This section is a Who’s Who of coverage in your Target Country. Which foreign news and information-gathering organizations operate in your Target Country. Who works for them? Are they full-time staffers? Freelancers? Local hires?
10 How many foreign correspondents live in your target country? How many are American? Which organizations do they work for? Are they staff correspondents? Are they stringers, freelancers or local hires? What kinds of stories are they generating? How can you add to that coverage?
Tell me about the coverage coming out of that country. Is it comprehensive? Is it plentiful? In other words, where can you fit in? How does the coverage by American media differ from that of Western European media, and the Target Country’s own national media?
To complete this section, you will have to set up Google and Yahoo alerts on your computers – immediately. You will have to perform LexisNexis searches. You will have to scour the Internet. You will have to communicate with journalists in your Target Country. A number of key news services, such as the British Broadcasting Corporation and National Public Radio, provide information about their correspondents on their respective web sites. You will have to communicate with some of these correspondents. You should communicate with AU alumni in your Target Country.
Installment II must be at least six, single-spaced pages long.
NOTE : Installment II is due at midnight EST on Friday 4 June, which is the end of Week 4.
Installment III
Story Ideas You will submit three (3) Story Ideas. One story will be on the economy of the Target Country. The second will be on politics. The third will be a feature of your choice.
Each Story Idea should be at least one (1) single-spaced page long. Make it interesting. Make it compelling. Try to answer the “ABC Nightline Test,” a simple question that is asked of anyone pitching a story to that organization: “So What?” In other words, “Why should this organization devote time and money to your idea? Why is it important?
Budget . You must include a budget listing costs for a 15-week (one regular semester) stay during which you would complete your work. Include a map of your Target Country or region.
This Installment will include a list of contacts, both here in the United States and in your Target Country/Region. The list will distinguish between which persons you have made contact with and which you have not made contact with. The list also will include the contact information for each of these persons, i.e., telephone numbers or e-mail addresses, depending on how you made contact with each person.
NOTE : Installment III, which completes your Trip File, is due at midnight EST on Friday 18 June, which is the end of Week 6.
D.C.-dateline story
11 WASHINGTON, 11 June 2010 – This assignment is a 750-word story (about three, double- spaced pages) on a topic that would interest readers in your Target Country or region. This assignment is due at midnight EST on Friday 11 June, which is the end of Week 5. A one-page, single-spaced Proposal for this story is due at midnight on Friday 28 May, which is the end of Week 3.
This is a piece that would interest readers in your Target Country. For example, if your destination is Russia, this might be a feature story on the burgeoning Russian community here in Washington, DC. It could be a personality profile about a highly successful Russian immigrant here in the United States. It might be an analysis of U.S. foreign policy toward Russia.
Your story could be published in the Moscow Times. If your destination is Mexico City or Monterrey, your article might be published in La Jornada (assuming somebody would translate it) or the English-language paper in Monterrey.
The purpose of this exercise is to force you to become familiar with the outlook of the people who inhabit your target country and how that relates to this country. Once you get to your destination, you’ll be filing stories about how events there affect readers/viewers/listeners here .
Just as importantly, this story and your connection to the publication in your Target Country, could be your foothold in that country and the beginning of your career as a foreign correspondent.
What You Can Expect From Me As the Instructor
Expect me to give you the benefit of my experience of working as a journalist in the field since 1977.
Expect me to explain clearly and succinctly everything that I require of you during this course.
Expect me to respond in a timely fashion to your queries.
Expect me to make myself available by e-mail, telephone or in person as is necessary.
Expect me to provide you any contact I might have with colleagues in the field or in administrative positions who might help you achieve your career objectives.
Expect me to promote you and your work to the extent that your talent and effort deserve that support.
Expect me to grade you fairly.
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