3.00 Intro to Ethics

           What does it mean to be ethical? The Oxford Dictionary describes it as “morally good or correct”. Basically, an ethical person is someone who does the right thing. I wholeheartedly agree with this definition because in my opinion, someone who is ethical is not only fair and makes good decisions, but also does what’s necessary to keep those around them (as well as themselves) safe. I believe that although many people make unintelligent decisions and mistakes every day, the majority know the difference between right and wrong, and aren't heartless. An example of an ethical person is someone who might help out a friend who’s in a tough spot, or pick up trash from off the street when they know it doesn't belong there. An ethical person does what’s right not because they have to, but because it’s better for everyone. They're morally aware, and know how to judge a situation and think for themselves, “Should I do this? Is it going to harm someone, or help them?”

           Based on my description of an ethical person, I believe that the right thing to do in the example presented within the lesson would be to tell the parents. When your friend gives a stranger their home address, they are not only putting themselves in danger, but putting everyone else in the household in danger as well. If a person confronted in that situation doesn't aware the adults, a serious crime could take place in the home due to an unknown person knowing their whereabouts and other personal information. An ethical person would know that the best thing to do would be to inform the parents. A person does not have to go along with everyone’s wishes or be the best secret-keeper to be ethical. It is better to be safe than sorry, and a person’s life is more important than how they feel about you. If a friend is truly a friend, they'll thank you one day for telling someone.

          Ethics has to be one of the most important parts of journalism aside from pulling out information. What good is a story if it’s all a bunch of lies? An ethical journalist is fair to the public, reliable, and works hard for correct information. The entire company must be ethical as well, or else not one journalist will be trusted. A news company that lies to their readers, listeners, or viewers and gives them unfair, biased reports won’t receive as many readers/listeners/viewers as organizations that give the truth, and nothing but the truth. Without ethical journalism, the way we look at our news would be the same way many people look at undefined, blurry pictures of “bigfoot”. 

2.05 Internet: News, Blogs, etc.

       Throughout the years, many different ways that we receive our news has been created. What started out with just newspapers that took hours, sometimes even days to put together, has now evolved into radio, television, and the most popular source of this generation; the internet . Of course different people have different ways of getting their news, but mine and many others personal favorite is the internet. Not only is it more convenient and easier to access, but the content is updated constantly! No longer will you have to wait weeks and months to be in the know like we have to with newspapers and magazines. The new age has offered us our news in a matter of seconds, including live feeds of large-scale news.

          Although every form of news has its major differences, they share some similarities too. For one, there’s the painfully obvious; they all deliver news! The radio is a very unique type of news. It only involves audio, so the broadcaster has to be very in depth about the information they are giving and what they are describing. Television is a little similar to radio in the fact that it includes audio as well as visuals. When compared to television and radio, newspapers are even more unique because they share the least similarities with the other types. The majority of it is just reading.

           Furthermore, I consider the internet to be a supreme combination of all news sources accessible to us. From the internet you have easy access to radio streams, newspaper/web articles, videos with news broadcasts, and much more. That is why it’s one of, if not the most, used mediums when it comes to everything media.  I believe the internet will continue to be number one because it’s always changing with the world. While most people (particularly the younger generations) prefer to get their news this way, there are others who refuse and don’t like using the computer or internet.

           Speaking of those who prefer traditional methods over the more modern ones, there are still other ways for them to receive their news the way they like to. Like my uncle, some like to sit down with a glass of coffee or milk in the morning as they read from the paper. Others like my dad will watch the morning or evening broadcasts on the TV. For those like my mother who simply don’t have the time or patience to watch or read the news, they listen to the radio as they go about their day. Whether on the way to work, picking up the kids from school, or headed anywhere really, radio stations make it possible to catch up on the news without wasting time.

           In conclusion, I get my news from many places. Whether it is radio, television, magazine, or word of mouth, I’m very versatile. But in my personal opinion, the World Wide Web is by far the best. No more waiting for newspapers to print or for broadcasts to stat, just pull out your computer, laptop, cell phone, tablet, iPad, and get everything you need in a matter of seconds. As I said before, some may think differently, which is perfectly ok too. Everyone has their preferences, but the speed and variety of the internet appeals to me the most. I understand that many people enjoy the wait and anticipation of their favorite newspaper or magazine, and if it’ worth it, why not? They may not cover as many subjects on the spot, but they may appeal to you. The different ways of getting news is infinite, so enjoy them all! 

2.04 Broadcast--Television

           For this blog post, I watched ABCNews from Saturday, October 5^th 2013.  I would classify this particular news show and its segments as mainly entertainment news. While they do inform the viewers of events that took place and what is going on in the world, the majority of their content is reports on entertainment, celebrity news, and the latest trends. One of the shows I watched was ABC’s Good Morning America, also called GMA, with anchors Lara Spencer, Robin Roberts, Josh Elliot, George Stephanopoulos, and Sam Champion. On the round table they reported on and discussed topics such as Britney Spears’ music video and the latest music to top the billboard chart, although later in the day, ABC also reported on political events such as the Government Shutdown and its effects on countries in the Middle East.

         As for ABC, the amount of opinion in their segments depends on the show. ABCNews has a total of five shows (GMA, World News, Nightline, 20/20, This Week) in which they cover varying subjects in segments from just a few minutes long to a full hour. I watched a 20/20 hour long report that aired on October 4^th, called “Out of Bounds” with Elizabeth Vargas and David Muir. This report was broken into three sections, one about police breaking the law, another about violent children, and a teenage girl involved in a scandal. The show was comprised of interviews with the alleged criminals, victims, experts, as well as friends and relatives of them. Although very captivating and entertaining to watch, I found the videos to be very informative as well. They only delivered facts about the case, and were unbiased when interviewing subjects. However, on the GMA segments, the anchors sit at a round table and openly discuss and express their feelings about certain topics. For example, after the report on Britney Spears’ new music video, Sam Champion remarked, “I think it’s a fun video, it’s just enough, and I agree.”

          Overall, the informative aspects of these shows are very thorough. I believe that even shows such as GMA are trust worthy and reliable despite the sometimes opinionated reporters. The show presented both facts and opinions and successfully managed to separate the two. During interviews I noted that the reporters were neutral in their questions and responses and their personal opinion on the matter was never really exposed.  I got the feeling that this was a very experienced news broadcast and the reports were professional. I also understood the point of views of everyone involved in their reports, and the fact that they always put a name and face to their sources, as opposed to just “A close friend of Britney’s”, made the information much more credible to me.

2.01 Newspapers: How do Newspapers make money?

The newspaper industry is a business, and like most businesses, money is an important factor if not the most important. How else can they continue what they do if they're not supported financially? The real question is how do newspapers make their money? Especially when you’re able to read them for free on a little something called the internet. Well, if we're talking online, there are usually advertisements in the side bar that contribute money to the news company. But if we’re talking the traditional printed newspapers, subscriptions and ads are some of the main sources of their money. According to Daryl E. Owens of the Orlando Sentinel, “Each advertisement is sold based upon word count, length of publication, and special features such as highlighting and font manipulations.” Many organizations will pay a lot of money to advertise in newspapers that many people in the area reads, which is why organizations tend to be high in price when selling add spaces.

           Another tactic companies use to gain money is developing a fan base for their newspapers. Many companies have larger income when they're trusted and have a habit to them. When a newspaper isn't consistent in its delivery, naturally the customer won't be interested in buying anymore.  Once a large fan base is established, companies can offer subscription rates. These rates allow more customer input into the company, and inevitably, more money (Porter Tim., “How Newspapers Make Money”). Furthermore, we live in an age surrounded by technology. This ultimately helps bring in more company to news organizations. Thanks to advanced cell phones, iPads, tablets, or other app-containing technologies, news companies like the New York Times and Wall Street Journal can reach out to readers by selling apps. These apps can range from free to as high as they want it to be. This benefits the company because now they're charging for apps on top of charging for their usual paper.

           In conclusion, while advertisements, subscriptions, and technology bring in revenue, newspapers mainly make money because they offer something that readers want; interesting, reliable, and worthwhile content. A newspaper puts together all the latest in local and national stories, columns with interesting facts or info, comics, local event listings, and other information that will keep the reader always coming back for more.

2.00 Intro: What is News?

          So, what is news really? Is it something to be heard? To be seen? Is it something people watch or read? Is it something you can find in a magazine? My response is that news is all of the above. News is a universal entity. There’s a saying that it’s not the destination that counts, but the journey. How news travels is just as important as the news that is received. There’s the news that comes from a friend, which may or not be true because everyone has a different perspective and way of retelling an event. Then there’s the news that comes from an article, which usually has more detail and is significantly more reliable. Although the friend’s story may just seem like gossip, it’s still a form of news.

           News is just as much about entertaining as it is about informing. When telling someone a story, the goal is to make it sound as interesting and engaging as possible, so we add in as much details as we can recall, and perhaps even exaggerate a few. It’s the same way with most news. Naturally, people do not want to hear about anything that is not of interest to them. If it’s boring, it won’t be looked at, and much less bought. Journalists want people to read their newspapers, to subscribe to their magazines, to watch their reports on television, so they have to be able to grab the audience’s attention. The more unique and original the story is the better. Charles Anderson, an American journalist who wrote for the New York Tribune, put it best when he said “When a dog bites a man that is nothing new. But when a man bites a dog? That’s news.”

 According to the Oxford Dictionary, news is “newly received information, especially about recent events”, and whether it is taken from a reliable source or not is irrelevant. Although that’s considered to be the “official” definition of news, journalists and writers alike have their own interpretation and ideas. As American journalist Kurt Loder states, “News is anything that is interesting, that relates to what’s happening in the world, what’s happening in areas of the culture that would be of interest to your audience.” To put it simply, news is anything newsworthy. News varies depending on the topic of interest, and adjusts for the audience its targeting. News is quite literally for the people and by the people, but isn’t always of the people. If you have ever started a conversation with “Hey, did you hear about..?” Or, “You will not believe what happened the other day…” then you were just about to share some news.

01.02: Evolution of American Journalism

In this lesson I learned about the history of American Journalism, and  a lot about how it has changed over time. From 1600's all the way to the 21st century,  Journalism has been a huge part of our society. Many would probably think, "What? You mean newspapers? Nobody reads those!" Well, newspapers aren't the only forms of journalism. That magazine article on the top ten most dangerous diets? That was written by a journalist. Heard about  the recent VMA performances on the radio? That's a form of journalism too. Journalism has progressed rapidly over the past centuries and continues to change. It makes up a good portion of our media too; television, radio, magazines, it's how we get our daily dose of what's going on in the world, and it's been around for centuries.

Poor Richard's Almanack, published by Benjamin franklin was one of most popular newspapers in the mid 1700s, making Benjamin Franklin an even more popular and successful man. Other examples of early journalism are The Pennsylvania Gazette (another from Franklin), Publick Occurrences, Cherokee Phoenix, New York Harold & the Tribune, and the ever popular New York Times. But  newspapers weren't the only way to get up to date on current events back then. There was also radio, and the very creative photojournalism. After all, they say that a picture is worth a thousand words. Though journalism was very different back then, it was also very complex. Due to technologies like the computer not existing yet, everything had to be put together by hand. Just imagine all those long hours of the day and night spent sitting in front of the typewriter; and if a single error was made you'd have to start the process all over again! Talk about tough, but back then they did what had to be done.

Journalism is only able to exist thanks to a little thing called the The First Amendment. If you were to look at the constitution, you'd see that the Bill of Rights doesn't protect any private establishments, only journalism. We have freedom of speech thanks to this amendment, and are able to share our views with the world. Because the government protects journalists, they are protecting the people as well. So the next time you get onto facebook or twitter to like or comment on your friend's awesome status, or you turn on the the television to your favorite news program, remember our founding fathers. I believe the great Oscar Wilde put it best when he said "In America the President reigns for years, and Journalism governs for ever and ever".