Are you in a union?

When I started work here a couple years ago, I was invited to join the media union. I was all for it, being a fan of Utah Phillips music, and was surprised at the number of people who advised against joining.

I didn’t see anything wrong with joining. Workers pay for the privilege of belonging to a group that will protect them from the ‘boss man.’
I don’t picture management here as the enemy, instead I see the higher-up people as the ones we’re fighting against for raises and job security.
Our union contract at the moment is up for negotiation, and the division between management and writers and editors has caused some tension in the newsroom. Is this normal?

Are unions common in the industry?
If you’re in a union, do you see your immediate supervisors as the ones to fight against? Do unions do more good than cause problems?

I get the feeling unions may be outdated – and that’s a scary thought.

Please share your union experiences if you have them!

Rex Smith, editor of the Times Union, wrote a column about speaking at a journalism school in New York – and he shared his two of advice for young journalists which I thought was worth sharing:

First, we can teach them that somewhere in the morass of spin and distortion and misunderstanding, a picture of what’s true can emerge, and that there is no higher value than helping people understand the truth, however hard it may be to find. We can remind them that most problems in journalism occur when reporters aren’t energetic about pursuing a story and when editors settle for a half-finished report. Good journalism, they should learn, is relentless.

Second, we can stress that while opinions are interesting, more valuable journalism emerges from independent intellects that fight the sway of others’ persuasion. The journalism of affirmation that is gaining popularity, gathered and presented with a point of view in mind, reinforces a target audience’s preconceptions. It’s as nourishing to the civic enterprise as potato chips are to the body. We need to underscore for students that there’s a higher value to the journalism of verification, which seeks to find and report what’s true.

It may sound like a lecture — like something an old guy would pass along to a bunch of young people. Well, what can I say? It’s a suit talking, hoping there’s some value that may survive into a decade too distant to see.

As a recent college graduate, I think it’s great that Columbia invited Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to speak on its campus. His appearance is a testament to tolerance and free speech.
In no way do I think the Iranian president is a good person, or agree with what he said, and I don’t think his appearance means that the country supports him, but the fact that a college feels comfortable inviting him and letting him share his thoughts makes me proud to live in the United States. No way would Iran let President Bush give a speech there without censoring him and carefully monitoring its broadcast.

On NPR today I heard an interview with an Iranian man who said he didn’t vote for Ahmadinejad but that the speech at Columbia made this man rethink his allegiance and decide to support the president, and that he knows other Iranian men who had the same reaction. I’m puzzled by this because I, like everyone I know, do not support him (not that it really matters because I don’t live in Iran). But that interview made me think — maybe the people who live there agree? Maybe he’s giving the people what they want?

I don’t think I can truly understand a culture where homosexuality ‘doesn’t exist’ and the Holocaust, which in my wildest dreams cannot think of a way that could all be made up, ‘doesn’t exist’ either. Not to mention all the women’s rights issues. The most I could do is read, watch, and learn about it, but I don’t think I could really understand.

Later I heard the introduction given Ahmadinejad by Columbia President Lee C. Bollinger. I feel that Bollinger verbally attacked his guest. As an invited guest, no matter his ridiculous beliefs, I feel there was really no need to verbally assault Ahmadinejad. His words told us all we need to know.
Students are smart enough to judge for themselves if they agree or disagree with Ahmadinejad’s words and actions.

Did you watch the speech? Do you disagree or agree with my reactions to the matter?
What do you think of Columbia’s invitation and Bollinger’s introduction?
What do you think of what Ahmadinejad said?

I saw this contest announced on the International Journalists Network Web site:

Young journalists across the globe can enter the contest for the “Young Creators Award,” a digital journalism grant for people younger than 25.  Last day to apply: Oct 15.

The award, sponsored by John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and MTV, will give up to $500,000 to young creators with compelling ideas for digitally delivering news. The award is a component of the Knight News Challenge, an annual competition awarding US$5 million for innovative ideas using digital technology to transform community news.

Click here for the Young Creators Award Web site.

With Murdoch working to make the Wall St. free online, and with this discussion I found about free online newspapers, I wondered what the next gen journos think on the topic.
Sure the pundits, publishers and higher-ups have all had their say – but we’re the ones who will be staffing and running the next-gen newspapers.
I think newspapers should most certainly be free online. As the discussion linked to above so eloquently states:
“Sure, people subscribe to the print edition in substantial numbers, but as we’ve discussed before, they’re really only paying for delivery, not the content. Users do pay for delivery online, just not to the newspaper company. They pay it their broadband provider.”
Now share what you think?

Q.
I am just starting my journalism career.  I’m in j-school and work at the local daily, and though I’m reporting stories, I’m kind of learning on the fly.  A problem I’ve run in to is that when I’m taking notes and trying to quote someone, sometimes I get back to the office and I either can’t read what I’ve written or it’s incomplete, the victim of a fast talker and a slow note-taker.  When I write stories, I try to be as accurate as I possibly can, but sometimes I know that these quotes are not 100 percent accurate; they’re close, but some words are not verbatim.

I think this is a cardinal sin.

How can I fix this problem? Is it as big a problem as I fear? Do other reporters do this?

A.
You’re right, this is a cardinal sin. The fact that you’ve realized that is very good – too many times journalists don’t understand that ethical lines matter a great deal. In this biz, our reputation depends on people’s trust in our work.

This is an easy fix. Beginning reporters may see that pro journalists use only notebooks and can take notes furiously fast, without error. Please take these suggestions into consideration for getting accurate notes:

• Use a computer: Most people have good typing skills – so if doing an interview by phone pull open a word document and type away. Remember to save during the times you are asking questions.
• Tell the source: Beginners have a good opportunity in that they are beginners. Tell your sources that you are new and they need to slow down. If they look puzzled – tell them it’s because you care about getting what they say right. They’ll be impressed.
• Use a tape recorder: But, remember to make sure that it’s working as you are recording an interview, tell the person being interviewed that you are using a tape recorder as back up so you can make sure your notes are accurate, and use a notepad to take notes (don’t rely on just the recorder) and if you note a really good quote that you couldn’t get written down in time write down the time on the recorder (so you can quickly find it again).
• Call people back: No, you won’t always have time to call people back – but in most cases you will. If you just couldn’t get quotes written down in time or if the person said nothing quotable, call them back. They’ll again be impressed – and you’ll probably get better quotes the second time.
• Don’t quote: Sure quotes are great to weave through stories, but if you’re up against deadline and only have the choices of a made-up quote or no quote please, please, please choose the latter. If you’re editor wants to know why there is no quote, tell them why – openly and honestly – and they’ll again be impressed.
• Practice taking notes: I learned how to take good and fast notes (without looking at my notepad – which really helps in emotional interviews) by working as a waitress at Chili’s for four years. Practice taking notes any way you can. If you have to, take a class in shorthand.

Any other suggestions?

Compilation news sites are extremely useful. The compiled news site I use most often is GoogleNews.
But I’ve recently noticed the ability to rank stories by number of hits is growing in popularity. One such site is Digg. Another is Del.icio.us. Both I found through a celebrity gossip Web site – a far cry from what I consider news.
Users of the sites can post or recommend a Web page. The stories selected most often by users head to the top of the page.
This works similar to the Google or Yahoo! “most viewed articles” link.
This loosely-democratic form of gate-keeping is really a great concept, allowing readers to hand-pick their own front page, but at the same time, the stories that often are linked here are in no way serious news stories.
People tend to click more often on soft stories, ‘weird’ news and even blog posts.
That kind of ‘news’ is fun to read but I hope users of top viewed articles also check out the more important stuff so they will be aware and active citizens who actually know what’s going on in the world, things like who’s running for president and the state of the war in Iraq or community news that directly affects the reader. And maybe serious, community-affecting news will make it to the top of the list.
My wish is that everyone strives to be more aware, and to gain understanding and knowledge throughout life. I know this is probably futile, as many people don’t know who their senators are, but a girl can hope!
What are your top news stories day to day? Do they focus on serious news or fluffy stories? Do we prefer features to hard news?
Do SPJ blog readers subscribe to sites like Digg or use compilation news sites?
Is this the direction media’s headed?

The Emmy Awards happened a few nights ago, and I only just realized that now.

I do like to watch TV, and this may be ignorant or stuck-up of me, but I don’t enjoy awards shows. They bore me and I truly don’t care who wins.

My paper and our Web site give these endless awards shows lots of space, including analysis of who won and who deserved to win, and which actor wore which designer dress.

But I don’t see how that’s news, aside from a short ‘who won’ section in features. I think these things belong in entertainment, or features sections.

Anyone willing to change my mind?

The L.A. Times did a great piece here on what they called ‘freegans,’ people who don’t pay for things, and instead recycle what is already around, like grocery store food in dumpsters.

Logically I completely agree with the concept. There’s a lot of food, furniture, and everything you could think of, that goes to waste.
But… I also am not willing to dig through stinky moldy bad food to find a good loaf of bread. Though I will take cardbord boxes from dumpsters, or furniture people leave out on the street.

If the idea were more socially acceptable, I think store owners would put the good stuff on top, knowing it’s not going to waste.

Read the article (you have to have a free LAtimes online log-on) and tell me what you think!

What a great job by the Rocky Mountain chapter on throwing something just for us young’uns!
Anyone know of other SPJ chapters holding similar events?

The Colorado Pro SPJ Chapter will host a seminar for young journalists from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 29, at the Penrose Library in Colorado Springs. Max Potter of 5280 Magazine, Armando Arietta and Larissa Bachelor of the Rocky Mountain News, and Ellen Sweets and Erin Emery of The Denver Post are scheduled to speak. More information: Contact Leticia Steffen at leticia.steffen@colostate-pueblo.edu.