As we come to the close of this semester, I would like to end with one of the same topics we first began with: the future of journalism. It's not as dire as many would believe, as this article points out.
Secondly, remember that it's not just words that we have to be careful with, but photographs and video reporting as well. Thanks to amazing software programs like Photoshop, it's incredibly easy to alter a photograph to make someone or something appear better (or worse). While that's fine for something like a senior picture, it's completely unethical to alter a photograph or video accompanying a news story. You wouldn't change someone's quote. Yet some people don't see anything wrong with changing a photograph. Remember, photojournalism must abide by the same ethical principles of truth and accuracy.
And on that note, here is a video clip from a few years ago when political satirist and TV host Jon Stewart criticized Fox TV's Sean Hannity for playing with the facts, the visual facts that is. Click here to watch the clip from the show. Pay close attention to the video and what Stewart is calling Hannity out for. (By the way, Hannity later apologized for what he called an "inadvertent mistake".)
Secondly, remember that it's not just words that we have to be careful with, but photographs and video reporting as well. Thanks to amazing software programs like Photoshop, it's incredibly easy to alter a photograph to make someone or something appear better (or worse). While that's fine for something like a senior picture, it's completely unethical to alter a photograph or video accompanying a news story. You wouldn't change someone's quote. Yet some people don't see anything wrong with changing a photograph. Remember, photojournalism must abide by the same ethical principles of truth and accuracy.
And on that note, here is a video clip from a few years ago when political satirist and TV host Jon Stewart criticized Fox TV's Sean Hannity for playing with the facts, the visual facts that is. Click here to watch the clip from the show. Pay close attention to the video and what Stewart is calling Hannity out for. (By the way, Hannity later apologized for what he called an "inadvertent mistake".)
I hope you've enjoyed our journalism class and the journalism blog. Each of you has the potential to be an excellent writer and editor, as well as a critical observer of the media. Share a final thought about the article, the video clip and/or what you consider to be the most important thing you have learned about journalism this semester.
Waldsmith's Dispatch will be on hiatus until September 2012 when a new crop of aspiring writers joins me for another semester of journalism boot camp!
