Campus Journalism

• Scope and Nature of Journalism:

  • Journalism is concerned with the collection and dissemination of news through print and electronic media
  • Involves areas of work like reporting, writing, editing, photographing, broadcasting, or cable casting news items
  • Journalism can be found in newspapers, magazines, televisions, radios, and the internet
  • Newspapers are the oldest format for journalism and originated as "journals"
  • Magazines contain a variety of articles published regularly and focus on specific subjects
• • Television news journalism, including radio, is known as news broadcasting and includes additional material like sports coverage and weather forecasts
  • Internet communications have revolutionized the way news is published, offering a multitude of sources
• Journalism versus Literature:

  • Journalism and literature are both forms of writing consumed by the public
  • Journalism is based on facts and actuality, while literature is based on the imagination of the writer
  • Journalism has main genres like news, editorial, and features, while literature is categorized into prose and poetry
  • Journalistic genres follow a strict method of dividing ideas through paragraphs, while literature has a variety of forms and styles
• Tenets of Journalism:

  1. Responsibility:

  • Journalists have the obligation to write the truth regardless of the cost
  • Journalists must defend facts and the truth behind the news
  • Journalists are responsible for transmitting veracity to the public

  2. Freedom of the Press:

  • Freedom of the press is a basic right that should be safeguarded
  • Topics can be written about as long as there is no violation of the laws

  3. Independence:

  • Journalists should maintain independence in their reporting
• Independence in journalism means that the services of a journalist should be committed to the interest of the general public and not driven by the interest of money
• Objectivity, Truthfulness, and Accuracy:

  • Checking the veracity of data and information before they are published is an example of being accurate and truthful
  • Facts are the solid foundation of journalism, so media men should not conceal the truth by fabricating facts or publishing misquotes and erroneous statistics
  • Objectivity involves avoiding conflicts of interest in the treatment of articles and in the way arguments and news are written
  • Partisan news and biased interviews violate the ideals of journalism; journalists should differentiate between news and opinion
• Fairness:

  • Advocating objectivity is to be fair in presenting information in any journalistic field
  • Journalists should always present both sides of the coin, both sides of the argument, and both sides of controversial issues
  • Journalists must respect the privacy of individuals unless there is a warrant of a public right
  • True journalists should rectify errors if they make a mistake, leading to errata in newspapers
• Killers of Balanced Reporting:

  • Yellow Journalism sensationalizes stories or issues with eye-catching headlines
  • New Journalism expands the definition of journalism and writing techniques, sometimes blurring the lines between fiction and nonfiction
  • Advocacy Journalism supports a specific point of view on an issue, focusing on corporate business practices, government policies, and social issues
  • Stylistic Journalism emphasizes imaginative, stylized writing of stories, considering newspapers as "the literature of immediate fact"
• • Editorializing involves giving the reporter's opinion rather than facts, or expanding news about an insignificant happening for publicity
• Functions and Duties of the Press:

  • The quality of the newspaper must be reflected in the editorial policy, influencing the academic community
  • Newspapers must have integrity and readers' confidence
  • Newspapers may educate, stimulate, assist, or entertain, balancing public interest and gains
  • The fundamental quality of the newspaper rests on the content and editorial product, rising readers' educational level and fostering an active young generation
  • Freedom of the press comes with the responsibility of truth in the news, practicing journalism principles without bias and self-interest
• Limitations of the Press:

  • Reports may not be complete and may contain mistakes due to limitations in the timeframe for submission
  • Journalists may not have enough time to reach all sources of information, leading to incomplete perspectives in stories
  • The press can be manipulated by the powerful, elite, and politicians, influencing public opinion and policy decisions