JOUR2003 News Writing and Reporting Semester 1,...

Unit study package code: JOUR2003

Mode of study: Internal

Tuition pattern summary: Note: For any specific variations to this tuition pattern and for precise information refer to the Learning Activities section.

Workshop: 1 x 3 Hours Weekly

This unit does not have a fieldwork component.

Credit Value: 25.0

Pre-requisite units: 1557 (v.0) Journalism Introduction to Print 111 or any previous version OR JOUR1000 (v.0) Introduction to Print or any previous version

Co-requisite units: Nil

Anti-requisite units: Nil

Result type: Grade/Mark

Approved incidental fees: Information about approved incidental fees can be obtained from our website. Visit fees.curtin.edu.au/incidental_fees.cfm for details.

Unit coordinator: Title: DrName: Kathryn ShinePhone: +618 9266 4638Email: [email protected]: Building: 208 - Room: 411Consultation times: Please email me to schedule a time if you would like to

meet.

Teaching Staff:

Administrative contact: Name: Meg BastianPhone: +618 9266 7621Email: [email protected]: Building: 208 - Room: 428

Learning Management System: Blackboard (lms.curtin.edu.au)

Unit Outline

JOUR2003 News Writing and Reporting Semester 1, 2016

Faculty of Humanities Department of Journalism

JOUR2003 News Writing and Reporting Bentley Campus 23 Feb 2016 Department of Journalism, Faculty of Humanities

Page: 1 of 12CRICOS Provider Code 00301J

The only authoritative version of this Unit Outline is to be found online in OASIS

http://fees.curtin.edu.au/incidental_fees.cfm

http://lms.curtin.edu.au/

Acknowledgement of Country We respectfully acknowledge the Indigenous Elders, custodians, their descendants and kin of this land past and present.

Syllabus An introduction to news writing and reporting for publication, whereby students develop news gathering, writing and research skills and an awareness of different styles and genres within print and online journalism.

Introduction In this unit, students become reporters for the Department of Journalism's online publication. Students learn how to generate ideas, undertake research, conduct interviews and write in news style to tight deadlines. The highly practical nature of the unit provides students the opportunity to experience work-integrated-learning.

Unit Learning Outcomes All graduates of Curtin University achieve a set of nine graduate attributes during their course of study. These tell an employer that, through your studies, you have acquired discipline knowledge and a range of other skills and attributes which employers say would be useful in a professional setting. Each unit in your course addresses the graduate attributes through a clearly identified set of learning outcomes. They form a vital part in the process referred to as assurance of learning. The learning outcomes tell you what you are expected to know, understand or be able to do in order to be successful in this unit. Each assessment for this unit is carefully designed to test your achievement of one or more of the unit learning outcomes. On successfully completing all of the assessments you will have achieved all of these learning outcomes.

Your course has been designed so that on graduating we can say you will have achieved all of Curtin's Graduate Attributes through the assurance of learning process in each unit.

Curtin's Graduate Attributes

On successful completion of this unit students can: Graduate Attributes addressed

1 Critically analyse, evaluate and select sources of news content

2 Research and develop news story ideas and explain and justify ideas to staff and students

3 Explain news publication practices and processes and apply news writing skills to create atricles of publishable quality

4 Interpret the relevance and significance of local, national and international news and current affairs

Apply discipline knowledge Thinking skills (use analytical skills to solve problems)

Information skills (confidence to investigate new ideas)

Communication skills Technology skillsLearning how to learn (apply principles learnt to new situations) (confidence to tackle unfamiliar problems)

International perspective (value the perspectives of others)

Cultural understanding (value the perspectives of others)

Professional Skills (work independently and as a team) (plan own work)

Find out more about Curtin's Graduate attributes at the Office of Teaching & Learning website: ctl.curtin.edu.au





http://ctl.curtin.edu.au/

Learning Activities Workshops include the following activities:

l Interactive lectures which will provide essential information for students preparing to submit news articles for publication.

l Student-led discussions about the news of the week l Discussion and analysis of news articles and news websites l Workshopping of story ideas and draft articles l Collaborating with students from the News Production and Editing unit l Newsgathering, interviewing, writing and editing exercises.

Learning Resources Essential texts

The required textbook(s) for this unit are:

l Lamble, S. News as it Happens, 2nd edition, Oxford University Press: Melbourne, 2013.

(ISBN/ISSN: 9780195520408)

l Wilkinson, J.S., Grant, A.E. and Fisher, D.J., Principles of Convergent Journalism, 2nd edition, Oxford University Press: New York, 2013.

(ISBN/ISSN: 9780199838653)

l Curtin Journalism Staff (2014). Curtin Journalism Style Guide. Curtin University.

(ISBN/ISSN: 8880002087535)

Recommended texts

You do not have to purchase the following textbooks but you may like to refer to them.

l Alysen, B., Oakham, M., Patching, R. and Sedorkin, G. Reporting in a Multimedia World, 2nd edition, Allen & Unwin: Sydney, 2011.

(ISBN/ISSN: 9781742374338)





Assessment Assessment schedule

Detailed information on assessment tasks

1.

BREAKING NEWS REPORT This assessment provides an opportunity for students to work to a tight deadline to prepare them for the time pressures associated with contemporary journalism in an online environment. Early in the semester (in class), each student wil be assigned a day on which they will complete this assessment. On their assigned day, students will be required to file a short news article of 300-400 words on a current or breaking news topic. They will choose an idea, carry out research, conduct interviews, write the article and file it into the website content management system by 1pm. Students will be shown how to use the content management system in class. It is the student's responsibility to ensure they know how to use the system before the date of their assessment. Students will email their proposed idea/s to their editor before 9am on the day of their assessment to get permission to proceed. If two students want to cover the same story, the editor will allow only the student who made first contact to do so. The other student will have to pick another story to work on, except in the case of a very big breaking news story (which must be approved by the Unit Co-ordinator). The article will be uploaded and saved to the website by 1pm. Tutors will have access to the system and will be able to see if the article has been saved after 1pm. Students will then copy their article into a Word document (.doc) and upload it, with a completed news cover sheet (available in Blackboard under "Unit Materials") to Turnitin by 1.30pm. Students should check their email for a receipt immediately after submitting to Turnitin. Failure to submit to Turnitin will result in the student receiving a "0". Information about how the breaking news report is assessed will be available on Blackboard. Further details and guidance about this assessment will be provided in lectures and tutorials.

NOTES FOR NEWS ARTICLE SUBMISSION: THIS APPLIES TO ASSESSMENTS 1, 2 and 3

l The articles will be assessed on newsworthiness, content, structure, style and spelling. l All elements of the articles, including background information and interviews, should be original

work which has not been submitted for any other units at any time. l You must interview at least TWO sources for each article to pass the content element of

the assessment. l To produce a high-quality, publishable article you must interview appropriate authoritative

Task Value % Date DueUnit Learning Outcome(s)

Assessed

1News report 20 percent Week: 5,6,7

Day: TBA Time: 1pm

1,2,3

2

News day 30 percent Week: 9,10,11 Day: TBA Time: 4pm deadline for article submission

1,2,3,4

3News report 30 percent Week: 13

Day: Monday Time: 10am

1,2,3

4Presentation 20 percent Week: Weekly

Day: In class Time: In class

1,4





sources. More information about this will be provided in class. l You must not interview friends or family members as this may create a conflict of interest and is

unprofessional. l You must comply with the Curtin Journalism Style Guide. l As reporters, your work is only complete after the article is cleared for publication. This means you

may be asked to do further work on your article after it has been submitted in order for it to be published. News production is a team effort and you will need to work closely with editors, photographers and others throughout the process.

l All articles submitted as part of News Writing and Reporting are considered for publication and, if published, will be subject to significant public scrutiny as well as potential legal action under defamation laws. Hence every effort must be made to ensure all information contained in the articles is accurate and has been verified. All people interviewed must be informed that the comments made during their interview may be published. Any student who attempts to provide misleading or false information in a news article will be penalised for misconduct.

EXTENSIONS Should you have a legitimate reason for not being able to write an article on your assigned day, you will need to lodge a formal application for an extension. Generally, the grounds on which a student can request an extension are:

l compassionate grounds (certified by a Curtin counsellor, minister of religion or medical practitioner)

l medical grounds (certified by a medical practitioner) l psychological grounds (certified by a registered psychologist).

A student unable to submit an assessment or make a presentation on the assigned date must contact the unit coordinator in advance to request an extension.

2. NEWS DAY REPORT

All News Writing and Reporting students will be assigned a day during weeks 9, 10 or 11 to work as a reporter for the website in the Department of Journalism newsroom. You will work with News Production and Editing students and journalism staff. You may write several articles during the day but are required to submit only one for assessment. You should choose a more developed article of at least 400 words to submit. Your article will be assessed according to newsworthiness, content, structure, style and spelling, and you will also be assessed on your professionalism in the newsroom. More information will be provided in class.

You will need to submit the article in two ways:

1. File to the website content management system. This is the version that is edited by the News Production students, for use on the website. You should write and upload your website articles according to the guidelines which will be provided to you in class.

2. Electronic submission via Turnitin on Blackboard as a Word document and with a completed news article cover sheet. This is the version that is marked by your tutor. The deadline to submit the version for marking is 4pm on the day you are rostered to work in the newsroom. Failure to lodge via Turnitin will result in a student being given a "0". Students should check their emails for a submission receipt immediately after uploading the assignment to Turnitin.

Please see NOTES FOR NEWS ARTICLE SUBMISSION in the section above for further information about the requirements for this assessment.

EXTENSIONS

Should you have a legitimate reason to request an extension, you will need to lodge a formal application





as outlined in the section above.

3. NEWS REPORT

The final article will be a more developed news story of 500-600 words. It will need to be well-researched, well-written and about a relatively timeless topic. It will be due at the start of week 13. More information about this will be provided in class and a marking rubric will be made available on Blackboard.

You will need to submit the article for assessment in two ways before the assigned deadline of 10am on Monday May 23 (week 13):

1. File to the website content management system. This is the version that is edited by the News Production students, for use on the website. You should write and upload your website articles according to the guidelines which will be provided to you in class.

2. Electronic submission via Turnitin on Blackboard as a Word document and with a completed news article cover sheet. This is the version that is marked by your tutor. Failure to lodge via Turnitin will result in a student being given a "0". Students should check their emails immediately after uploading via Turnitin to ensure a receipt has been received.

Please see NOTES FOR NEWS ARTICLE SUBMISSION under the first assessment for more information.

EXTENSIONS

Should you have a legitimate reason to request an extension, you will need to lodge a formal application as outlined in the section above. REQUIREMENTS FOR LODGING PHOTO REQUESTS

Because the articles you submit are for publication, photographs are required. Photographs are taken by the students enrolled in the Photojournalism unit, however, those students require information from the News Writing & Reporting students in order to provide the photgraphs. As a result, News Writing & Reporting student are required to work with photojournalism students in the newsroom on their News Day and submit a photo request form for their final article. The photo request form must be submitted one week before the deadline for the final article.

4. NEWS PRESENTATION

A strong knowledge and understanding of news and current affairs is crucial for reporters. You should make it a daily habit to follow the news in various forms of media and think critically about it. For this assessment you will present an overview of the news of the past week to the class. One student will be assigned to present on local and national news from print and online news, and another student will present on international news from print and online.

You will need to identify the news stories that got the most attention in the mainstream news over the past week. You should name at least five and show at least one as an example via the classroom projector screen. You also need to explain why you think those topics/issues/events received so much attention and whether you think they were deserving of it – i.e. were they genuinely newsworthy? If not, why not? You should also choose one example to illustrate how an alternative or niche news outlet reported on an issue or event in a different way to a mainstream news outlet. Which treatment of the story did you prefer and why? You should pick one or two news stories – from either mainstream or alternative media – that you really enjoyed reading or that provoked a strong reaction. You will need to show the example/s to the class and explain its strengths - whether they may be the writing, the photo, the topic itself or a combination of factors.

The aim of this presentation is to inform yourself and your classmates about the news but also to present the information in an engaging and compelling way. The presentation will be timed and should be no longer than 10-12 minutes. A grading rubric for this assessment will be provided.





EXTENSIONS Should you have a legitimate reason that you are unable to make your presentation on the agreed date, you will need to lodge a formal application as outlined above.

Pass requirements

To successfully complete this unit students must submit all assessments and receive a final mark of 50 or above.

Fair assessment through moderation

Moderation describes a quality assurance process to ensure that assessments are appropriate to the learning outcomes, and that student work is evaluated consistently by assessors. Minimum standards for the moderation of assessment are described in the Assessment and Student Progression Manual, available from policies.curtin.edu.au/policies/teachingandlearning.cfm

Late assessment policy

This ensures that the requirements for submission of assignments and other work to be assessed are fair, transparent, equitable, and that penalties are consistently applied.

1. All assessments students are required to submit will have a due date and time specified on this Unit Outline. 2. Late submission of assessments is not accepted in this unit. Students will receive a zero mark for any

assessment item submitted late.

Assessment extension

A student unable to complete an assessment task by/on the original published date/time (eg examinations, tests) or due date/time (eg assignments) must apply for an assessment extension using the Assessment Extension form (available from the Forms page at students.curtin.edu.au/administration/) as prescribed by the Academic Registrar. It is the responsibility of the student to demonstrate and provide evidence for exceptional circumstances beyond the student's control that prevent them from completing/submitting the assessment task.

The student will be expected to lodge the form and supporting documentation with the unit coordinator before the assessment date/time or due date/time. An application may be accepted up to five working days after the date or due date of the assessment task where the student is able to provide an acceptable explanation as to why he or she was not able to submit the application prior to the assessment date. An application for an assessment extension will not be accepted after the date of the Board of Examiners' meeting.

Deferred assessments

If your results show that you have been granted a deferred assessment you should immediately check your OASIS email for details.

Supplementary assessments

Supplementary assessments are not available in this unit.

Referencing style

The referencing style for this unit is APA 6th Ed.

More information can be found on this style from the Library web site: http://libguides.library.curtin.edu.au/referencing.

Copyright © Curtin University. The course material for this unit is provided to you for your own research and study only. It is subject to copyright. It is a copyright infringement to make this material available on third party websites.





http://policies.curtin.edu.au/policies/teachingandlearning.cfm

http://students.curtin.edu.au/administration/

http://libguides.library.curtin.edu.au/referencing

Academic Integrity (including plagiarism and cheating) Any conduct by a student that is dishonest or unfair in connection with any academic work is considered to be academic misconduct. Plagiarism and cheating are serious offences that will be investigated and may result in penalties such as reduced or zero grades, annulled units or even termination from the course.

Plagiarism occurs when work or property of another person is presented as one's own, without appropriate acknowledgement or referencing. Submitting work which has been produced by someone else (e.g. allowing or contracting another person to do the work for which you claim authorship) is also plagiarism. Submitted work is subjected to a plagiarism detection process, which may include the use of text matching systems or interviews with students to determine authorship.

Cheating includes (but is not limited to) asking or paying someone to complete an assessment task for you or any use of unauthorised materials or assistance during an examination or test.

From Semester 1, 2016, all incoming coursework students are required to complete Curtin’s Academic Integrity Program (AIP). If a student does not pass the program by the end of their first study period of enrolment at Curtin, their marks will be withheld until they pass. More information about the AIP can be found at: https://academicintegrity.curtin.edu.au/students/AIP.cfm

Refer to the Academic Integrity tab in Blackboard or academicintegrity.curtin.edu.au for more information, including student guidelines for avoiding plagiarism.

Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Expectations Curtin students are expected to have reliable internet access in order to connect to OASIS email and learning systems such as Blackboard and Library Services.

You may also require a computer or mobile device for preparing and submitting your work.

For general ICT assistance, in the first instance please contact OASIS Student Support: oasisapps.curtin.edu.au/help/general/support.cfm

For specific assistance with any of the items listed below, please contact The Learning Centre: life.curtin.edu.au/learning-support/learning_centre.htm

l Using Blackboard, the I Drive and Back-Up files l Introduction to PowerPoint, Word and Excel





https://academicintegrity.curtin.edu.au/students/AIP.cfm

http://academicintegrity.curtin.edu.au/

https://oasisapps.curtin.edu.au/help/general/support.cfm

http://life.curtin.edu.au/learning-support/learning_centre.htm

Additional information Ethical Practice in Journalism at Curtin The highest standard of ethical conduct is expected in the way students obtain and present information. The Code of Ethics of the journalists’ section of the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance is our guideline for professional conduct. In addition, the following regulations apply to all activities associated with Journalism courses, especially those directed at a particular publication.

1. You should identify yourself as a reporter researching an assignment or gathering information for a Curtin University journalism project, publication or assignment.

2. You must not go “undercover” or misrepresent who or what you are in any way. 3. You must respect confidences. Because meaning varies concerning terms such as “off the record” and

“background information”, Journalism at Curtin defines these terms in the following ways, and you are expected to abide by these definitions: "On the record” means the information may be published with or without attribution. “Off the record” means the information given by a source may not be used - either with or without attribution. Should another source offer the information on the record and independently of the first source, it would not be unethical to use it. However, it would be unethical to take the information provided by the first source and then attempt to get it verified by other sources on the record. This would amount to a betrayal of the confidence. “Background information” means the information may be used but without attribution to the source. NOTE: Entering into an off-the-record relationship with a source should be treated with great caution because of the potential ethical problems. It probably would be better not to agree to go off the record. You should be wary of stories that cannot be sourced. A source will sometimes attempt to apply an “off the record” disclaimer retrospectively. You are not obliged to accede to such an instruction, demand or request. Be sure to clarify the status of the conversation or interview when phrases like “off the record” are used. Meaning varies - it is possible, for example, a source may mean “background” when the term “off the record” is used. Seek a clear understanding of the meaning intended.

4. You must not break the law when gathering information for publication. 5. Permission must be obtained from a source to audio record an interview. The law requires this as well. The

use of concealed recorders is not permitted. 6. Chequebook journalism is banned. Neither our reporters nor our publications pay for information other than

fees required by statutory authorities (such as freedom of information or company searches). 7. We do not accept “freebies” (inducements, gratuities, gifts, tickets) of any kind. 8. We do not publish “advertorials” (advertisements disguised as editorial copy). Editorial information is

published on its own merits. 9. All material obtained from an already published source such as another news website must be fully attributed.

Plagiarism in any form is not permitted. 10. You are encouraged to double-check facts and quotes with sources. However, you generally discouraged

from reading back or emailing whole stories to sources prior to publication. If you are having difficulty with a particular story and source, discuss the situation with your editor or lecturer.

11. You should be wary of conflicts of interest. Our publications may see fit to declare such a conflict of interest when a story is published. Please advise your editors and lecturers when such conflicts arise (for example, through work, family, sporting affiliation, political party membership, religious views, etc.).

12. Stories involving criminal activity, corruption and dishonesty may present particular problems in meeting the requirements outlined here. Any difficulties should be discussed with the appropriate journalism staff.

Enrolment

It is your responsibility to ensure that your enrolment is correct - you can check your enrolment through the eStudent option on OASIS, where you can also print an Enrolment Advice.





Student Rights and Responsibilities It is the responsibility of every student to be aware of all relevant legislation, policies and procedures relating to their rights and responsibilities as a student. These include:

l the Student Charter l the University's Guiding Ethical Principles l the University's policy and statements on plagiarism and academic integrity l copyright principles and responsibilities l the University's policies on appropriate use of software and computer facilities

Information on all these things is available through the University's "Student Rights and Responsibilities" website at: students.curtin.edu.au/rights.

Student Equity There are a number of factors that might disadvantage some students from participating in their studies or assessments to the best of their ability, under standard conditions. These factors may include a disability or medical condition (e.g. mental illness, chronic illness, physical or sensory disability, learning disability), significant family responsibilities, pregnancy, religious practices, living in a remote location or another reason. If you believe you may be unfairly disadvantaged on these or other grounds please contact Student Equity at [email protected] or go to http://eesj.curtin.edu.au/student_equity/index.cfm for more information

You can also contact Counselling and Disability services: http://www.disability.curtin.edu.au or the Multi-faith services: http://life.curtin.edu.au/health-and-wellbeing/about_multifaith_services.htm for further information.

It is important to note that the staff of the university may not be able to meet your needs if they are not informed of your individual circumstances so please get in touch with the appropriate service if you require assistance. For general wellbeing concerns or advice please contact Curtin's Student Wellbeing Advisory Service at: http://life.curtin.edu.au/health-and-wellbeing/student_wellbeing_service.htm

Recent unit changes Students are encouraged to provide unit feedback through eVALUate, Curtin's online student feedback system. For more information about eVALUate, please refer to evaluate.curtin.edu.au/info/.

Recent changes to this unit include:

1. Introduction of a breaking news report assessment to prepare students for the time pressures associated with contemporary journalism.

2. Introduction of a news presentation to replace the news test. 3. Increased focus on improving news writing skills. 4. Integration of the lecture into the workshops.

To view previous student feedback about this unit, search for the Unit Summary Report at https://evaluate.curtin.edu.au/student/unit_search.cfm. See https://evaluate.curtin.edu.au/info/dates.cfm to find out when you can eVALUate this unit.





http://students.curtin.edu.au/rights/

mailto:[email protected]

http://eesj.curtin.edu.au/student_equity/index.cfm

http://www.disability.curtin.edu.au/

http://life.curtin.edu.au/health-and-wellbeing/about_multifaith_services.htm

http://life.curtin.edu.au/health-and-wellbeing/student_wellbeing_service.htm

http://evaluate.curtin.edu.au/info/index.cfm

https://evaluate.curtin.edu.au/student/unit_search.cfm

https://evaluate.curtin.edu.au/info/dates.cfm

Program calendar

Program Calendar – Semester 1 2016

Program Calendar – Semester 1 2016

Week Begin Date

Pre-readings Tutorial/Other Assessment Due

Orientation 22 February

Orientation Week

1. 29 February

Unit outline - please print and bring to class.

Explanation of the unit and filing to the website

2. 7 March Lamble pp39-62 and pp106-136

Alysen pp54-69

Newsgathering and research

Story ideas

News presentations

3. 14 March Curtin Style Guide

Lamble pp161-184

Wilkinson pp18-25 and pp157-167

Alysen p199-219

Writing

Writing exercises

Story ideas

News presentations

4. 21 March

Wilkinson pp39-44 and 199-205

Breaking News

and Photography Basics

Story ideas

News Presentations

5. 28 March Tuition Free Week

6. 4 April Lamble pp139-160

Wilkinson pp25-35

Alysen et al pp137-153

Interviewing

Story ideas

News Presentations

Breaking News Days

7. 11 April

Alysen pp103-106

Reporting Health, Science and

Research

Story ideas

News Presentations

Breaking News Days

8. 18 April Tuition Free Week

9. 25 April TBA Student consultations Newsroom assessment

10. 2 May TBA Covering the Arts and

writing colour

Story ideas for final article

News presentations

Newsroom

assessment

11. 9 May Alysen pp154-170

Lamble pp128-131

Number Crunching/Business

Story ideas

News presentations

Newsroom assessment

12. 16 May TBA Reporting Education News presentations





Drafts workshop

13. 23 May Newsroom News presentations

Final article due

14. 30 May TBA Reflection

Feedback

Future of Journalism.

Where to from here?

News presentations

15. 6 June Study Week

16. 13 June Examinations

17. 20 June Examinations





JOUR2003 News Writing and Reporting Semester 1,...

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