truth and JOURNALISM!!!

in the student presentation last week in Comms 239, we talked a lot about presses and democracy, and the USA's versions and methods of journalism compared to other nations versions and methods. it was very interesting. it also made me thing. a lot......

we are really lucky. we have the most open, free, fair, and balanced press system in the world! we have a government that allows and insists that the press be a gatekeeper, watchdog, and information system for a free democracy to rely on. i found it really interesting what other kinds of press systems different nations have, so i am going to include some information about them on this lovely blog:

1) LIBERAL MODEL:

this model is most common in america, canada, australia, new zealand, and other democratic and free nations. it focuses on the production of mass media for the purpose of informing the public. it encourages the media as a watchdog. it encourages a high level of professionality from ournalists, meaning, they need to be balanced, truthful, and fair. this is what makes america so great. our journalists are truthful. sure, we have networks like FOX and NBC that are openly either liberal or conservative, but that is what makes us a liberal society. we have stations that are OPENLY either right or left. we know what we are getting! the governemtn does not use the media as a toold to get the people to think how they want them to think or vote how they want them to vote. the government needs the media to get information out, not the other way around!!!

2) POLARIZED PLURALIST MODEL:

this model is common in southern european countries. the polarized pluralist model took me a while to understand, mainly because it is not that different from the liberal model. the main difference in the two is that the polarized pluralist model has more government intervention when it comes to content of the media. the published media is meant for the upper class and educated readers. the government uses the media as a tool and publishes through them. the newspapers, magazine, and televised news shows are highly politically controlled.

3) DEMOCRATIC CORPORATIST MODEL:

the democratic corporatist model is the most interesting, in my opinion. it is found most commonly in northern european countries such as norway, denmark, and switzerland. the democratic corporatist model means that nations publishes lots of widespread media to their citizens that are highly politically swayed. the media has no shame when it comes to publishing things that favor a certain political party or group. i found this section of the presentation very interesting, mainly because i went on a study abroad to london from january-april of this year. during one of those weeks, 4 friends and i went to copenhagen, denmark. while i was there, i picked up some literature from the train station. i got some newspapers and magazines to read during a long train ride to one of the many danish castles we were visiting. i had my translation book with me, and, to entertain myself, i began translating. even before i knew a single thing about any of these journalistic models we have read so much about in this class, i noticed that their published materials were very political. and, just as we read about in class, the journalists themselves did NOT have to be fair at all. they were not the watchdogs or gatekeepers. they were political players and campaign advocates for a certain candidates or subject. it was so strange for me to read that, and made a huge impression on me. i brought those magazine and newspapers home with me and still have them. my own little piece of the democratic corporatist model. here are so shots of us in copenhagen denamrk. never ever have i been so FREEZING. never ever visit denmark in mid-february. brrrrr.

the famous "little mermaid" statue.

the copenhagen temple.

so that is a very BASIC overview of the three models of journalism.

the other subject we discussed and read about for last week's class was that or TRUTH and what exactly that means. in our book: ELEMENTS OF JOURNALISM by bill kovach and tom rosenstiel, TRUTH is defined as the "first and most confusing principle" of journalism.

in the book, they state:
"truth, it seems, is too complicated for us to pursue...."
why is it so complicated? because truth can change. truth can be debated. what is true for me might not be true for YOU.

example: i know the church is true. most of us in this class know the gospel to be TRUE. but what about the other people randomly walking around on the street with us mormons? if we asked them if the church is true, would they agree? most likely not at all. we might be able to convince them, but they would not think the church is true. does that make it any less true for us?? no. this is why it is also tricky for journalists to define exactly what TRUTH is.

tom brokaw, one of my favorite reporters from NBC said:

"journalism is a reflection of the passions of the day. News is whatever is 'most newsworthy on a given day.'"

so true! what is true today may be false tomorrow. that is the beauty of news. it is ever changing. in this blog post, i would rather not debate about what is true and what is not true, but rather just state as a matter of fact that i don't believe we will ever know exactly what is true and what is false. the most important thing for me to do, as a journalist, is to get the facts straight and accurate. these two goals put together are the closest we can get to truth. if we report what we know in a professional and factual way then that is all that we can do, and that, in essence, is truth.

i remember as a little kid i used to sing this song in primary. i think it's an appropriate song that we as journalists can sing. it speaks of truth and being fair and honest. and it does so in a catchy, fun, cute, and retro-throwback way. enjoy. and remember: NEVER TELL A LIE.....

social media and the future of journalism.

social media.

now this is something i can talk about for days on end.

i LOVE social media. and i am way good at it. is it possible to have social media be one of those talents discussed in the doctrine & covenants?? cause...pretty sure i have been blessed with the divine gift of face-stalking.

there is so much i can say about social media. i could talk about how:

-social media is the number one way people connect with each other. forget actually talking in person. old school.......

-ashton kutcher has more followers on twitter than there are people in switzerland.

-If Facebook were a country it would be the world’s 4th largest between the United States and Indonesia (note that Facebook is now creeping up – recently announced 300 million users)

-If you were paid a $1 for every time an article was posted on Wikipedia you would earn $156.23 per hour

-There are over 200,000,000 Blogs

-What happens in Vegas stays on YouTube, Flickr, Twitter, Facebook…

these are just some fun facts. there are many more out there that are simply MOND BLOWING. check out:

http://socialnomics.net/2009/08/11/statistics-show-social-media-is-bigger-than-you-think/

do it now.

social media is HUUUUUUMONGOUS. seriously people, think about it. 5 years ago, no one had a facebook relationship for everyone to gossip over. people found out their roommates were engaged because they told them, not because they accidentally saw it on facebook before she had time to call her roommate back. (no........i'm not bitter........). people had no idea what joe jonas was eating for breakfast each morning because no one followed him and twitter because he had no twitter account and neither did anyone else. no one uploaded hilarious videos onto youtube so their grandma across the country could see it. no one cared about sharing pictures on photobucket or flickr, they just developed them down at the costco and mailed out copies to friends and families.

TIMES HAVE CHANGED. i am the biggest guru for social media. yes, it is a colossal waste of my time and every bad grade i have ever received has not been because i am dumb or not a good student, but rather because i was up late on facebook or twitter or youtube. it's so sad. this blog post was actually a healthy awakening for me, because i thought to myself as i started:

"social media is big....but i don't think it really influence me or changes my life THAT much. it's more of just something i do when i am bored."

after further contemplation and research, i decided that i am so into social media. i mean, seriously, look at this. IT IS PATHETIC: please take a gander at how pitiful my life is.

youtube:

twitter:

photobucket:

linkedin:

facebook:

blog:

bah hahah. embarrassing??? kind of. but maybe i shouldn't be embarrassed that i have an account, profile picture, short description of myself, and at least 2 followers on practically every social media outlet invented.

maybe it's a good thing!!!

this is a nice segway into the purpose of this blog post: SOCIAL MEDIA AND JOURNALISM.

in my broadcast journalism class, we are required to do a web version of out news stories each week. we do this because most people don't get the news now at 5 o'clock on their couches while having a nice chat with their wife and kids. they get their news on their iphones. they get it on their emails. they get it whenever they are on their computers during a lunch break at work. if we did not evolve with the news/website relationship then we would all soon be out of business.

i put all my news stories on youtube because if i have a prayer of getting hired at a news station after graduation then i want potential employers to be able to readily access my stories on youtube. i have a blog where i post my thoughts and feelings and pictures for anyone who wants to get to know me or know anything about my life can read about it. i would be perfectly happy for future employers to check out my blog. in fact, i recently ordered MOO cards. ever heard of them?? they are trendy little business cards you can hand out. on the website where you design your own MOO cards, they encourage us to put our blogs on there......cool huh?? that is the kind of world we are living in. the social media we choose to be involved in is now intertwined into WHO we are. i am whatever is on my blog, or whatever is on my facebook, or whatever is said on my twitter.

this past summer, i worked at the american red cross for their PR department. i was in charge of social media. i worked tirelessly on their twitter account and facebook page, because i realized that it could make a world of difference for us. i started following a bunch of other red cross chapters and local news reporters and columnist in las vegas (where i was working), and pretty soon we had hundreds of followers. we also got lots of facebook requests once we started publicizing our page. we put our news releases, press releases, event information, and helpful facts about water safety or fire safety on our pages. this was a great example to me about how the future of journalism relies on social media. we had SO MUCH more interest in what we were doing once we used social media. we received more donations and got more volunteers. the old ladies who i worked with who had never heard of facebook were blown away.

i believe that social media is the world's most fun method of advertising and contacting people. journalims and social media is a beautful combination. now more people can voice opinions about news stories or debated topics. there is a never-eding amount of space to publish whatever we want. we are not restricted to a 30 minute newscast or a 30 page news paper. if i wanted to, i could go and write a 593 page essay on any topic i want, publish it on my blog, and wait for the comments to come from weird people who actually had time to read it. that is the beauty of journalism and social media. i have said it once, and i will say it again: SOCIAL MEDIA IS MAKING EVERYONE IN THE WORLD A JOURNALIST.

i love it.

i am not embarassed i have about a trillion social media windows currently open on my computer. i am not embarassed that it took my twice as long as it should have to write this blog post because i kept getting distracted on facebook, or because i was busy uploading my news story for channel 11 news this week on youtube and emailing it to my parents. NO SHAME. that is the world we live in. they even made a movie about it, and i am going to watch it. so there.

so, face-stalkers, blog-stalkers, and fellow tweeters. welcome to the new world. and mom, if you are reading this, get a facebook. it's only a matter of time.

watch this video for a jaw-dropping experience regarding social media:

what is journalism for?

PoP QuIz TiMe!!! about------------->journalism.

what is it for????

A. for spreading information

B. for providing citizens with the information they need to be free and self-governing

C. for creating a public forum for public criticism and compromise

D. so that there is a career that makes it acceptable and even hilarious for people to act like this:

E. all of the above.

ok i hate multiple choice questions passionately, but this seemed like a great way to start off my second blog post about journalism. the answer, naturally, is E. (don't you just hate when the answer is "all of the above??" so annoying....)

all of those answers plus many more is what journalism is for. actually, the MOST correct one is b, and we will discuss that soon. it is necessary, as previously discussed in my 1st blog post, for our society to be the way that it is, meaning, free and self-governing. in regards to option D, it also provides a place for weird people such as myself to have a fun and interactive jobs at newspapers and t.v. stations, which provide time to make up awesome hand clapping and paper tapping sequences.

in class, we determined that the answer to the question: "what is journalism for?" is this:

TO PROVIDE CITIZENS WITH THE INFORMATION THEY NEED TO BE FREE AND SELF-GOVERNING.

such a powerful statement. we NEED journalism to be free and self-governing.

in bill kovach & tom rosentiel's book: the elements of journalism, they said:

"journalism's first obligation is to the truth...the desire that information be truthful is elemental...the most important quality is that it be usable and reliable...truthfulness creates, in effect, the sense of security that grows from awareness and is at the essence of news."

i believe this summarizes nicely the role of journalism in society. to provide not only that INFORMATION we discussed so heavily in my first blog post that makes up the definition of journalism; but also making sure that this information is TRUTHFUL and ACCURATE.

Who's job is that.....?????

yup, OURS. journalists.

Can you imagine sitting down to watch the evening news at 5 each night with your family and hearing them read the headlines but not trusting them? this might seem like a broad example, but really think about it. when we watch the news, we trust them. we believe everything that they say. we take it as FACT, and often spread what we heard to other people because we trust them SO MUCH that we are sure we are giving out good information.

now what if that was not the case? it certainly isn't like that in every country. our awesome first amendment provides us with the surety that what we are hearing and seeing is true. countries such as germany during WWII, communist china, and albania have either no free speech or restricted speech or speech that is controlled and regulated by the government. WE ARE SO LUCKY. the fact that we CAN watch the 5 o'clock news and know that we are getting good solid information is not only a relief, but a blessing.

i want to talk more about how the journalist caries the responsibility for truthfulness....but we will save that for another blog post.

other roles that journalism plays in society include (but are not limited to):

-gate keeping, aka deciding what information the public should know and what it should not.

-keeping people involved in the news

-building up a community, citizenship, and democracy

how many of you readers remember september 11th? i do. so vividly. i was in 6th grade. i remember as the news unfolded we got it first from the news broadcasters across america who knew, basically nothing, but told us everything they did know. what made this day such a defining day for journalists everywhere was that they stuck to what they knew, and made sure they told only that. we knew we were getting accurate information and we held on to their every words.

here is a clip that exemplifies professional journalism. as the anchors of the TODAY show witnessed a 2nd plane crashing into the world trade centers, we watched it with them. how would you have acted? think about it....... yup, that is why we are not all anchors on the TODAY show. this clip gives me goosebumps whenever i see it. watch:

this clip is just what this blog post is trying to encompass: relaying facts to a curious audience.
being truthful. being professional. using video and sound to get information out to the public.

this may be an extreme example, but it gets my point across. we knew we were being fed the facts as they came. and we were able to be sure of this because of the credibility our nation's journalists have established through truthfulness.

in closing, journalism is for US. it is for the public. it is for everyone who has ever found something out from reading, listening, or participating in any form of journalism. it is an integrated part of our society and one of the greatest things about this nation......and i am grateful for that every single day of my life.

week 1 of my new journalism blog

This semester in one of my Comms classes, (principles of journalism), we have been asked to keep a blog. I am extraordinarily excited about this assignment. Never ever have I received an assignment in college that I have already DONE. It's a great feeling. All I have to do to get credit and receive a good grade is keep up a blog with thoughts about media and the journalism that includes photos, links, and my opinions. Also, I have to tweet. Tweet about journalism from my twitter account: https://twitter.com/annahayes517. CLICK HERE to check that out. These assignments are the PERFECT Anna Hayes assignments. I already do all these things! I decided to make my own blog for this class to keep all my assignments separate from my personal documentation of my life. It will make things easier for everyone.

I truly am excited for this assignment. I have a passion for journalism and the media. It is my major, (broadcast journalism), and I chose that major for a reason. The study of journalism and being a part of the journalism process absolutely fascinates and entertains me. I have loved it since I woke up early each morning before middle school to watch my Aunt Heidi anchor the morning show on our local Fox station in Las Vegas. I would, naturally, have to change the channel immediately as soon as the clock struck 7 a.m. to ensure that I was able to hear my favorite sentence of the day: "live, from Rockefeller Plaza, this is TODAY!" That show had it all, and, in my middle-school mind, was the ultimate dream job. Chatting it up with Matt Lauer while talking about breaking news and interviewing celebrities or hosting concerts. Those anchors were so lucky. It wasn't until I got to BYU and took a tour of the news room on my very first day on campus that I realized I could do that too! I could be on T.V. and share the news with everyone. I could interview people (maybe not celebrities quite yet, but people nonetheless), and I.....I could be....A JOURNALIST.

This particular subject we have been asked to blog about is: what is journalism and who is a journalist.

Let me start out with the first question:

WHAT IS JOURNALISM?

To answer this question, i turned to the source of all my knowledge and one of the more credible online information sites: WIKIPEDIA. (does sarcasm come through on a blog?)

Wikipedia defines journalism as: the investigation and reporting of events, issues, and trends to a broad audience. Although there is much variation within journalism, the ideal is to inform the citizenry.

Hmmm. I agree. This is a great definition. Journalism is investigation and reporting. It is information meant for a large audience. It is used to INFORM.Inform is the key word, here. Informing people is always the focus of journalism. Let's establish that as the answer to this question. Journalism means communicating as a means of informing. How many times can I say inform in one paragraph??? Gees. Well, I would rather not focus the majority of this blog post on what exactly journalism is, because I believe that journalism is defined by the journalism, so, we move on:

WHO IS A JOURNALIST?

I love this question. No, false, I don't love this question. I ADORE THIS QUESTION. It is one of my favorite topics to discuss and whenever this question comes up during one of my classes I am always bubbling with answers and knowledge from the mind of Anna: aspiring journalist. Let's start this portion of my blog post out with a youtube video (youtube is so great, don't you just love it?)

This is what a journalist is NOT:

hahaha. I LOVE Rita Skeeter. One time I dressed up as her for a Harry Potter movie premiere:

uncanny, right??

Rita Skeeter is a Daily Prophet reporter in the Harry Potter series, as well as one of the greatest characters from the mind of J.K. Rowling. Rita Skeeter is a liar, manipulator, and a huge rule breaker when it comes to reporting and writing factually about events. However, she has some redeeming qualities that will serve as a great segway into my answer about who a journalist is. Rita Skeeter is feisty, energetic, out for an informative story, a woman who knows her audience, and wants to captivate them. Ignore that fact that she is a liar and uses a magic quick-quotes-quill to take notes on, (seriously jealous of that...), and Rita Skeeter is one heck of a journalist.

In Jim Willis' book entitled The Mind of a Journalist, he states:

"What motivates a young person to become a journalist? This is a very common competitive profession that primarily takes college graduates who are highly literate and who have high levels of intellectual curiosity. Yet these young journalists received average starting salaries of only $30,000 in 2006. Why make the effort? Why would a college student, active in student life and in the plethora of organizations that come with it, turn to a profession that tends to isolate its members from socializing with others? Journalism does not rate that high in popularity among the general public, and many parents worry that their children will not be able to make much of a living if they become journalists."

Willis does a thorough job later on in his book of answering his question. However, I want to answer it. WHY indeed would a young and intelligent college student want to work in a competitive and stressful environment for such little pay? It makes no sense....

Well, take it from this college student, the industry is fun. It is exciting to be a journalist. I had my first glimpse of what it would be like to be a news reporter during the summer of 2009 when I interned at Fox5 in Vegas on the MORE show and loved every moment of it. It is only now that I have taken a lot of Comms classes and become involved in the BYU news program that I realize how truly CLUELESS I was when I started the job, but I left realizing that I was a good journalist.

But alas, I digress, and we still need to answer: WHO IS A JOURNALIST?

During our first class in Principles of Journalism, we discussed this question. I jotted down some of my fellow students' answers:

-journalists are the voice of the voiceless

-journalists are independent monitors of power

-journalists provide a public forum for public criticism and comment

-journalists make the news significant, relative, and interesting

I love all these answers, and I agree with all of them. Journalists have a huge role in today's world. We are the unofficial 4th branch of government. We have a huge influence in everyone's lives and have a huge impact on government, politics, and the change we want in the world. We are the people who spread good news and bad news, and the people that everyday citizens rely on for obtaining information.

When answering the question WHO is a journalists, I believe that everyone who wants to be a journalist can be a journalist. In our modern world of facebook, blogging, tweets, and iPhones; we have the world of information sharing at our fingertips. Fifty years ago, if someone wanted to be heard by massive amounts of people and share their opinion on something or share a news story, they had to contact their local paper, write an editorial, wait for it to get approved, maybe have it published, and then hope someone would read it. Nowadays you can get on blogspot.com, make a blog, update your blog, and have millions of potential readers instantaneously. I have been a journalist for years now, ever since I dove into the world of social media and communication. I may have a college degree in a few years that will enable me to get a job and be an "official" journalist complete with a cubical at a local station and a shiny press pass, but I believe that I have been a journalist now for quite some time and a no college degree was needed for me to feel that way.

I love when people tell me they read my blog. I absolutely adore it. Some people get creeped out by the whole internet "stalking" world we find ourselves in right now. I personally don't mind it at all. Knowing that people are out there are reading my opinions about random subjects ranging from the Jonas Brothers to political issues is really cool. My thoughts and feelings are available at anyone's fingertips. I am a journalist. Forget all those complex definitions my clever fellow Comms students came up with. A journalist can be anyone. That is my simple answer. Technically speaking, you need a college degree and a "high level of intellectual curiosity," but in the world of getting out information to the public, we all have the chance to be a journalist.

This blog post is dragging on, but I hope it was somewhat informative. I think it's really cool how BYU relates all their offered courses to the gospel, so I will end with a scripture, as we often do in our classes. This is D&C 134:3-

"We believe that all governments necessarily require civil officers and magistrates to enforce the laws of the same; and that such as will administer the law in equity and justice should be sought for and upheld by the voice of the people if a republic, or the will of the sovereign."

According to this scripture, journalists are the voice of the people. I find it so amazing that God's hand was involved in the formation of the Constituion which ensures the rights of freedom of the press. I am a part of a profession that has the approval of our loving Heavenly Father, and knowing that makes me all the more excited to......

Keep your eyes peeled for more musings about media and journalism on my blog.