Designing Assignments to Build Financial Journalism Skills by Pam Luecke
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Transcript of Designing Assignments to Build Financial Journalism Skills by Pam Luecke
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R E Y N O L D S B U S I N E S S J O U R N A L I S M W E E K A R I Z O N A S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y
J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 3
Designing Assignments To Build Financial-Journalism Skills
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Goals:
� How to teach business journalism in a town of any size
� How to get 20-year-olds to care about business � How to demystify business and economics � How to get beyond basic speech/press conference
stories � How to have a little fun in class
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12 ACEJMC skills and competencies
Business journalism assignments can address many of these! 1. demonstrate an understanding of the history and role of professionals and
institutions in shaping communications;
2. demonstrate an understanding of the diversity of peoples and cultures and of the significance and impact of mass communications in a global society;
3. demonstrate an understanding of professional ethical principles and work ethically in pursuit of truth, accuracy, fairness and diversity;
4. think critically, creatively and independently;
5. write correctly and clearly in forms and styles appropriate for the communications professions, audiences and purposes they serve;
6. apply basic numerical and statistical concepts;
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1. History and role of professions
� Magazine Tracking ¡ Assign each student a different publication to follow for the
term ¡ In addition to content, have students report on ownership,
audited circulation, online strategies, internship possibilities ¡ Have students follow one of the publication’s reporters on
Twitter, as well ¡ Require oral presentation, one-page fact sheet and “memo to
an executive” ¡ Arrange presentations chronologically, beginning with “The
Economist”
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Variations
� Have class complete market analysis after presentations ¡ Propose a NEW business magazine to fill an unfilled niche ¡ Which magazine will be next to fold?
� Substitute business television shows and websites ¡ Have students show representative segments
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Variations, continued
� Follow economists’ blogs ¡ About.com list:
÷ http://economics.about.com/od/interestingandfunny/tp/economics_blogs.htm
¡ WSJ top 25: ÷ http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124769381962047691.html
¡ Keep your own class blog ÷ http://www.blogger.com/home?pli=1
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Skills learned
� Media history � Media economics � Business-communication skills � Oral-presentation skills
¡ Use peer-feedback sheets
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2. Diversity and global society
� “Working” assignment ¡ Discuss Studs Terkel’s 1974 book:
÷ Working: People Talk About What They Do All Day and How They Feel About What They Do.
¡ Play excerpts from interviews with him ¡ Ask each student to identify a person outside of the university
orbit to interview about how he or she feels about work ¡ Record interview ¡ Turn in unedited AND edited transcript ¡ Discuss in class – have each read an excerpt
� Post their edited transcripts: ¡ W&L website
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Resources for “Working”
} NPR story about Terkel’s tapes } http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=3892055
} Terkel Interview } http://www.studsterkel.org/index.html
} New York Times “American Album” } http://www.nytimes.com/ref/us/album_index.html
} Marketplace } “Day in a Worklife”
http://www.marketplace.org/topics/life/day-work-life-jingle-writer } TV shows/ Movies:
} Undercover Boss, The Office
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Variations
� Encourage video interviews, audio clips � Require photos of interview subjects � Allow students to work in pairs � Put more limitations on choices to drive home
particular learning objectives: ¡ Hourly workers ¡ Racial diversity ¡ Manufacturing jobs ¡ Older workers ¡ Laid-off workers
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Skills learned
� Interviewing techniques � Oral history techniques � Listening skills � Gets students outside of comfort zones � Grass-roots perspective on business community
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Tips
� Assignment is more complicated than it seems. � Be explicit about grading criteria.
¡ Selection of interview subject ¡ Ability to draw out person on the topic ¡ Skill at editing the transcript
� Ask students to come up with story ideas from the interviews.
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3. Professional ethics
} Plan One } Give students names of business journalists to research, e.g.:
} R. Foster Winans } Lou Dobbs } Dan Dorfman } Chris Nolan (San Jose Mercury-News) } Chiquita stories, Cincinnati Enquirer } Chrystal Cox (Oregon blogger)
} Give an oral and/or written report that: } Describes fully the circumstances that led to the ethical problem and what the
person did. } Describes what happened to the journalist as an immediate result of his
actions. } Describes what the key ethical principles were in this case and whether you
agree with how it was handled. } Updates us on where the person is now. } Discusses the implications (if any) this case has for business journalists today.
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Professional Ethics
� Plan Two ¡ Distribute SABEW ethics code. ¡ Develop real-life ethical scenarios and pose them to individual
students or teams. ¡ Examples:
÷ Flowers from a source ÷ Dating a source ÷ Acting on a stock tip ÷ Bloggers and product reviews ÷ Who pays for lunch ÷ Free airplane trip/tickets/samples ÷ Requests to change article posted online ÷ Investing in stocks of local companies, sector funds, etc.
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Professional Ethics
� Plan Three ¡ Role of the financial press in the economic cycle
÷ “What is Financial Journalism for - Ethics and Responsibility in a Time of Crisis and Change,” Professor Damian Tambini, UK
¡ Federal Reserve article: “Consumer Sentiment and the Media?” ÷ http://www.frbsf.org/publications/economics/letter/2004/
el2004-29.html ¡ Telegraph column:
÷ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/edmundconway/4109557/Media-is-partly-to-blame-for-the-recession.html
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4. Think critically
� Enron ¡ Have students watch DVD of “Enron: Smartest Guys in the
Room” (or, heaven forbid, read the book!) ¡ Write essay arguing a point of view:
÷ Focus on transgressions of one “culprit” ÷ Was this a “perfect storm”? ÷ Compare/contrast with fall 2008 meltdown ÷ Role of the press
¡ Devote a class to discussion
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Other meaty movies
� “The Insider” ¡ Role of a watchdog ¡ Can link to discussion of “whistleblowers” as sources
� “Wall Street” and “Wall Street II” ¡ First one is dated, but a classic ¡ Debate “greed is good” and business ethics ¡ Changes in technology and the role of the press
� “Social Network” ¡ Business strategy
� 2008-09 Meltdown: “Margin Call,” “Too Big to Fail”
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Other meaty books
� “The Travels of a T-shirt in a Global Economy,” Pietra Rivoli ¡ Good introduction to globalization and trade ¡ Aimed at college students
� “Nickeled and Dimed,” Barbara Ehrenreich ¡ Insights into issues of wages, benefits, Wal-Mart
� “The Selling of the American Dream,” Micheline Maynard
� “Boomerang,” Michael Lewis ¡ Global dimensions of recent financial crisis
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5. Write clearly and professionally
� Final journalistic story ¡ Major story on a public company with ties to your community ¡ Expect students to use all skills covered during the term ¡ Teach the process. ¡ Describe assignment early in term. ¡ Require story pitches and likely source list ¡ Require a story conference with you ¡ Ask for a second, more developed story proposal ¡ First draft – graded! ¡ Peer editing of drafts ¡ Final draft
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Variations
� Spend a class or two on story organization � Devote a class to students’ oral descriptions of story
focus and reporting obstacles � Have entire class do final story on the same
company: ¡ Collaborators on key interviews ¡ Competitors on final stories ¡ Grade on originality of angle
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Topics from 2008-2012
� Restaurants: calorie-consciousness, green movement, Obamacare
� Mohawk Carpet, Ford � Retailers
¡ Wal-Mart, Peebles, Dollar Tree, Lowe’s, Kroger, Food Lion ¡ Distribution: Target, JCrew ¡ Blockbuster, GameStop, RedBox
� Advance Auto Parts: online strategy � Weight Watchers � nTelos (small regional telecom); Rosetta Stone
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6. Apply numerical concepts
� Deadline earnings exercise ¡ Go to Yahoo Finance calendar for earnings or conference calls
÷ http://biz.yahoo.com/cc/ ¡ Pick a company you’ve heard of that is releasing earnings at a
convenient time AND having a conference call ¡ Give students the company’s press release ¡ Require a cogent story in 55 minutes that includes comment
from the CEO’s conference call
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Variations
� Play conference call in class � Let students do exercise as a take-home � Give them a choice of companies � Have deadline competition for BlackBerry “alert” � Note: A controlled earnings exercise in advance in
advisable
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7. Other assignments
a) SEC scavenger hunt b) Holiday retail round-up c) Humanizing an economic indicator d) Profile of Fed chairman e) Closet survey
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a) SEC Scavenger Hunt
� Pick a company of local interest � Go through SEC filings from last 2 years (or more!)
and look for small nuggets of information � Craft 20 or so questions to which they must find
answers � Require citations of document number and date � Discuss in class
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Key skills
� Comfort getting around sec.gov � Appreciation for value of primary sources � Better understanding of the purpose of various
filings � Underscores the value of public documents to locate
incidental information – e.g. a board member’s age, who a company views as its competitors, which other boards an executive serves on – and, of course, executive compensation
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b) Holiday retail round-up
� Divide local retail community into categories, e.g. ¡ Toys, specialty clothing, discount stores, electronics
� Assign or let students pick a store from each category � Ask them to interview the store manager and file a 150-word feed
about the store’s holiday outlook (or sales) � Put feeds in a common electronic folder � Add recent press releases from trade groups, statistics from the
Commerce Department, etc. � Give students 55 minutes (or more or less) to write a local retail
outlook story
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Variations
� Can be done before or after Thanksgiving – or post-Christmas
� Make part of the grade the quality of the student’s feed
� Show students examples of retail roundups in advance
� Offer best stories to the local media
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c) Economic indicators
} Select key economic indicators and assign one to each class member (or let them draw)
} Ask each to prepare a fact sheet or memo about the indicator, including: } What it measures } Who measures it – and how } How often it is released } Any controversies about the measurement } Is it leading, lagging or coincident?
} Ones to include: } Retail sales, durable goods, Consumer Price Index, GDP (though not
technically an indicator), unemployment } Sources: Economic Indicator Calendars
} http://www.newyorkfed.org/research/national_economy/nationalecon_cal.html
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Economic indicators, part two
� After class presentations about indicators, ask each student to write a story humanizing and localizing an indicator.
� Doesn’t need to be the one they reported on � Good ones to use: retail, housing starts,
unemployment
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Variations
� Begin with general discussion of indicators ¡ Phone interview with someone who compiles unemployment data
� Include fun ones: ¡ Lipstick
÷ http://www.investopedia.com/terms/l/lipstickindicator.asp ¡ Hemlines
÷ http://bigpicture.typepad.com/comments/2006/04/short_or_short_.html
¡ Super Bowl ¡ Starbucks
� Have class pool for each unemployment-rate announcement
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d) Profile of Fed chairman
� Combines writing exercise and research on Fed’s mission and history
� Can frame profile as: ¡ Advance obit ¡ “Resignation/retirement story” ¡ Changing of the guard
� Tip: Tell students to be careful where they print out their stories!
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e) Closet survey
� A little, ungraded assignment � Engaging way to begin discussion of trade and globalization � Ask each to examine 12 clothing labels and write down the
country of origin � In class, go around the room and keep a tally on the
blackboard of how many items were made on each country/continent
� Discuss implications: ¡ Bangladesh fire/Shirtwaist factory
� Variation: Ask each student to wear to class that day something made in the USA
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Final thoughts
� Mix it up � Befriend professors in economics, accounting,
business, law � Keep topics fresh � Teach from the headlines � Have class pools or “consensus estimates”
¡ Where Dow will be at the end of the term ¡ What unemployment rate will be next month ¡ GDP estimate ¡ Reward winner with chocolate
� Sustain YOUR interest; their interest will follow!