JRN270

JRN270: Introduction to Journalism

Semester: Fall 2010

Time: MWF 12:55 a.m. - 1:45 p.m.

Room: 316 CRAG

Professor: Andrew R. Cline, Ph.D.

E-mail: acline@missouristate.edu

Office: 384 CRAG

Office hours: MWF 10:45 a.m. to noon and 1:45 p.m. to 2:30

Office phone: 836-4923

URLs

Faculty web site

IMPORTANT: You are responsible for all the information and instructions in this syllabus. Please read it carefully. Please ask questions about anything you do not understand.

Prerequisites: Completion of the Missouri State first-year English composition requirement.

Required Texts: Inside Reporting (2nd edition), Working With Words (6th edition), the Springfield News-Leader (FYI: Often used as a negative example), and one national daily of your choice (e.g. The New York Times, USA Today, the Wall Street Journal.)

Additional required materials: One USB flash drive. Bring it to every class so that you may store your work. Do not store your work on a lab computer.

Course Description and Goals

The purpose of JRN270 is to give you a grounding in the basic theories and practices of journalism, especially concerning its practice for textual media such as print and the World Wide Web. Further, this class will acquaint you with the history of American newspapers in order to give you a long-range perspective on the continuing evolution of journalism in the American context. The following competencies will be the focus of this class and must be demonstrated by you in order to pass with a grade of ‘C’ or better:

1. a basic knowledge of, and ability to produce, the standard news story for print and new media (including correct style, grammar and usage);

2. a basic knowledge of common types of news articles and their purposes;

3. a basic knowledge of journalistic ethics and responsibility;

4. the ability to copy-edit your work efficiently and effectively;

5. the ability to define news in a given situation based upon standard professional values and practices;

6. a basic understanding of how news consumers understand and use journalism;

7. a basic understanding of the changing role of journalism in American culture;

8. a basic understanding of the First Amendment and the role of journalism in public affairs;

9. a basic understanding of the weblog in news coverage and media criticism.

Educational Philosophy

JRN270 is a discussion/lab course. This class is a public forum. I will rarely give traditional lectures. Instead, I expect the class, as a community of learners, to engage in intelligent and critical discussion about the topics listed in this syllabus and other topics as they may arise based on your interests. Cogent verbal participation is crucial to your success in this class.

This class also requires a large measure of gumption on your part. The book is designed to be digested in small bites rather than large, time-consuming chunks. That should make it easy for a committed student to keep up with the reading and study load in this class. Keep up you must. I begin each class with these assumptions:

1. You have read all the material.

2. You have checked into at least some supplemental material.

3. You are familiar with the news of the day.

4. You are prepared to discuss reading assignments and ask questions.

5. You are interested in either becoming a journalist or learning about journalism.

It is important for your success in this class to help make my assumptions come true.

Attendance

The Missouri State attendance policy states: “Because class attendance and course grade are demonstrably and positively related, the University expects students to attend all class sessions of courses in which they are enrolled.”

Excellent attendance is necessary to pass this course. I do not, however, have a specific attendance policy designed to penalize you for lack of attendance. As far as I'm concerned, you attend at your choice (i.e. you reap the rewards or suffer the consequences of your choices). No in-class activity may be made up except as noted below.

Regarding attendance and illness: If you have symptoms of a communicable illness (e.g. fever and/or a severe cough--especially during flu season), for the sake of your health and the health of your classmates, please stay home and take care of yourself. I will excuse you from class work. If you show up to class hacking and wheezing, I will ask you to leave.

Regarding sports and other official Missouri State functions: You are excused to attend events sponsored by Missouri State for which you play an important role, e.g. an athlete traveling to play a sport. Please let me know about your participation before your absence.

Lab assignment make-ups: I am happy to excuse you from class as needed, but making up lab assignments presents certain difficulties. You may miss 1 lab assignment without penalty, although missing even one is not a good idea. Otherwise, I offer no make-ups for lab assignments.

Grading

Many students think grades are painful to receive. Trust me, they are just as painful to give. So we're in this together. Considering the current structure of the academy and our society, it is necessary for me to rank your performance by assigning you letter grades based on my assessment of your work. Grades do not reflect your worth as a human being or even your potential to become a successful media professional (however you define that). A grade is a sign of a single performance in a class--nothing more.

A 'C' signifies average work/accomplishment. A 'C' is not a bad grade. I know some of you think it is a bad grade. And if you're one of those students who absolutely must earn an 'A' (for whatever reason), then I suggest you do excellent work.

I believe you are largely in control of the grade you earn in my class. Certainly, outside pressures intrude. You will find that I am happy to work with you so that you may achieve the level of success you seek. But this is important for you to understand: I place a much higher priority on learning and understanding than I do on grades. This means that if you approach this class with enthusiasm and a genuine desire to learn, your grade should take care of itself.

OK, now for the standard line:

Your written work must be accurate (usage, grammar, content), correct in form and content as outlined in the assignments, and on time. I will evaluate your articles and weblog entries primarily on these criteria. Please avoid the following errors: 1- misspelling a proper name (e.g. person or company) or misstating a title, 2- misstating a fact or making a factual error. Such errors will be costly because they are costly in the professional practice of journalism.

Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the due date. I will grade you for the course in these areas:

Lab assignments: 30 percent

Weblog reporting/writing/publishing assignments: 40 percent

Mid-term style/professional conventions exam: 10 percent

Comprehensive final exam: 20 percent

Plus/Minus Grading: I will use Plus/Minus grading for this class. Tests are scored on a numerical basis as follows.

100-95 = A

94-90 = A-

89-87 = B+

86-83 = B

82-80 = B-

79-77 = C+

76-73 = C

72-70 = C-

69-67 = D+

66-63 = D

62-60 = D-

59-?? = F

MSU policy:

Grades are awarded to indicate the quality of a student’s work and are assigned as follows (point values per credit hour appear in parentheses): Consistent with the Faculty Senate action of February 14, 2008, the plus/minus grades will be implemented beginning with the Fall 2009 semester. The following are current grade definitions:

A (4.00): Outstanding work. Outstanding achievement relative to the level necessary to meet course requirements. Performance was of the highest level. Excellence while meeting course objectives was sustained throughout the course. Not only was the student’s performance clearly and significantly above satisfactory, it was also of an independent and creative nature.

A- (3.70): Excellent work. Excellent achievement relative to the level necessary to meet course requirements. Performance was clearly and significantly above satisfactory, and was creative and independent.

B+ (3.30): Near excellent work. Achievement was significantly above the level necessary to meet course requirements. Performance was clearly and significantly above satisfactory, and was creative and independent.

B (3.00): Very good work. Achievement significantly above the level necessary to meet course requirements. Performance was very good, although not of the highest level. Performance was clearly and significantly above satisfactory fulfillment of course requirements (For undergraduates: B = meritorious: For graduates B = adequate).

B- (2.70): Good work. Achievement at a level just above that necessary to meet course requirements. Performance was notable.

C+ (2.30): Slightly above satisfactory work. Achievement that meets the course requirements. Performance was slightly more than adequate.

C (2.00): Satisfactory work. Achievement that meets the course requirements. Performance was adequate, although marginal in quality (For undergraduates: C = adequate: For graduates: C = inadequate).

C- (1.70): Slightly below satisfactory work. Achievement that barely meets the course requirements. Performance has been slightly below satisfactory and was marginal in quality.

D+ (1.30): Passing work. Achievement below satisfactory in meeting course requirements. Student demonstrated below satisfactory achievement in meeting course objectives, yet fulfilled a sufficient enough portion of the course objectives that repeating the course is not necessary unless required by the academic unit.

D (1.00): Minimum passing work. Achievement barely worthy of credit. Student demonstrated unsatisfactory achievement in meeting course objectives, yet fulfilled a sufficient enough portion of the course objectives that repeating the course is not necessary unless required by the academic unit.

F (0.00): Failed – no credit. A failure to meet course requirements. The work of course objectives were either: 1) completed but not at a level of achievement that is worthy of credit, or 2) have not been completed and there was no agreement between the instructor and the student that the student would be awarded an “I” (incomplete).

The final word on grades: I think the mark of a serious student is the willingness to seek help, assessment, and advice in person. That means if you hope to be a serious student of the mass media and/or journalism (and if you expect me to think of you that way), then I expect to see you in my office. I expect to converse with you regularly about class, Missouri State University, our local community, and the world at large. I expect you to bring me drafts of your articles so that we may work on them together. If you show interest and desire, I will not let you fail.

Deadlines: Journalism is a deadline-driven business. This class will operate like a news organization in that regard, so you must meet all deadlines.

MSU Policies:

Academic Integrity

Missouri State University is a community of scholars committed to developing educated persons who accept the responsibility to practice personal and academic integrity. You are responsible for knowing and following the university’s Student Academic Integrity Policies and Procedures, available at www.missouristate.edu/policy/academicintegritystudents.htm. You are also responsible for understanding and following any additional academic integrity policies specific to this class (as outlined by the instructor). Any student participating in any form of academic dishonesty will be subject to sanctions as described in this policy. If you are accused of violating this policy and are in the appeals process, you should continue participating in the class.

Statement of nondiscrimination

Missouri State University is an equal opportunity/affirmative action institution, and maintains a grievance procedure available to any person who believes he or she has been discriminated against. At all times, it is your right to address inquiries or concerns about possible discrimination to the Office for Equity and Diversity, Park Central Office Building, 117 Park Central Square, Suite 111, (417) 836-4252. Other types of concerns (i.e., concerns of an academic nature) should be discussed directly with your instructor and can also be brought to the attention of your instructor’s Department Head. Please visit the OED website at www.missouristate.edu/equity/.

Statement on disability accommodation

To request academic accommodations for a disability, contact the Director of the Disability Resource Center, Plaster Student Union, Suite 405, (417) 836-4192 or (417) 836-6792 (TTY), www.missouristate.edu/disability. Students are required to provide documentation of disability to the Disability Resource Center prior to receiving accommodations. The Disability Resource Center refers some types of accommodation requests to the Learning Diagnostic Clinic, which also provides diagnostic testing for learning and psychological disabilities. For information about testing, contact the Director of the Learning Diagnostic Clinic, (417) 836-4787, http://psychology.missouristate.edu/ldc.

Cell phone Policy

As a member of the learning community, each student has a responsibility to other students who are members of the community. When cell phones or pagers ring and students respond in class or leave class to respond, it disrupts the class. Therefore, the Office of the Provost prohibits the use by students of cell phones, pagers, PDAs, or similar communication devices during scheduled classes. All such devices must be turned off or put in a silent (vibrate) mode and ordinarily should not be taken out during class. Given the fact that these same communication devices are an integral part of the University’s emergency notification system, an exception to this policy would occur when numerous devices activate simultaneously. When this occurs, students may consult their devices to determine if a university emergency exists. If that is not the case, the devices should be immediately returned to silent mode and put away. Other exceptions to this policy may be granted at the discretion of the instructor.

Emergency Response Policy

Students who require assistance during an emergency evacuation must discuss their needs with their professors and Disability Services. If you have emergency medical information to share with me, or if you need special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated, please make an appointment with me as soon as possible.

For additional information students should contact the Disability Resource Center, 836-4192 (PSU 405), or Larry Combs, Interim Assistant Director of Public Safety and Transportation at 836-6576.

For further information on Missouri State University’s Emergency Response Plan, please refer to the following web site: http://www.missouristate.edu/safetran/erp.htm

Dropping a class

It is your responsibility to understand the University’s procedure for dropping a class. If you stop attending this class but do not follow proper procedure for dropping the class, you will receive a failing grade and will also be financially obligated to pay for the class. For information about dropping a class or withdrawing from the university, contact the Office of the Registrar at 836-5520.

Class Behavior: Please do not 1) Sleep in class; 2) Do homework in class; or 3) Engage in willful ignorance.

Syllabus (subject to change)

IR = Inside Reporting

WWW = Working With Words

Week 1. 8/23

Class introduction

Introduction to journalism

What is journalism? What is news?

Week 2. 8/30

Read: IR Chapter 1

Read: WWW All "journalism tips" in the first half of the book

The Story of Journalism

History and the Future

Week 3. 9/6

Read: IR Chapter 2

How Newsrooms Work

Labor Day 9/6 No class

Week 4. 9/13

Read: IR Chapter 3

News Writing: The Basics Part 1

Lab #1

Week 5. 9/20

Read: IR Chapter 3

News Writing: The Basics Part 2

Lab#2

Week 6. 9/27

Read: IR Chapter 4

Reporting: The Basics Part 1

Lab#3

Week 7. 10/4

Read: IR Chapter 5

Reporting: The Basics Part 2

Lab #4

Week 8. 10/11

Monday: Test Prep

Wednesday: Exam

Fall Break 10/14-15

Week 9. 10/18

Read: IR Chapter 8

Monday: Exam review