News Literac

1. Select a news report of some topic of interest and of some substance and complexity: then analyze and evaluate it by using Detecting Bull'sSMELL test (see Chapter 8). You may limit the "test" to Sources and Evidence, using Blur's Chapters 5 and 6 as the basis for your analysis and evaluation of those two components (sources and evidence). I have (or will have) posted articles and video clips of TV news broadcasts that you may use rather than finding one yourself. 2. CBS, for many years, had retained its status as the journalistic standard for TV and radio reporting. Its news department was the crown jewel in the industry with people like Ed Murrow, Fred Friendly, Morley Safer, people of integrity and courage. Whatever the expense of maintaining this department was well worth the investment: it provided prestige and attention to their entertainment broadcasts. Ratings were not even measured. Ironically, it was the creation of a "news magazine"—"60 Minutes"—that changed all this, not because of its quality but because of its popularity. CBS found it had huge Nielsen ratings. The networks (CBS, ABC, and NBC), therefore, began to apply ratings much as they did their "shows." And, from that point on, TV News had to generate high ratings. Decisions were entertainment decisions: how much can we charge our advertisers for a spot on NBC News? "60 Minutes" has had some blemishes in its history of investigative reporting, including questions about its sourcing, as in the case of Lara Logan's interview of one of the people allegedly on the scene as the American embassy was attacked, killing the American ambassador and three others. Your task for choosing this project will be to review the broadcast and its aftermath and then answer these questions: Where did she go wrong? What were the effects of that report? How (and how well) did she explain her mistakes and apologize for them? Was her two year suspension justified? (I have placed clips of two broadcasts of this story in Related Materials for Unit Three.) 3. Movies: At least two of the movies about journalistic reporting that I included within the folder in Course Content dramatize the difficulties and ethical questions of gathering information and verifying it before publication or broadcast. All the President's Men is a textbook of skills needed for investigations, in that case the Watergate break-in that ultimately led to Richard Nixon's impeachment and resignation. Absence of Malice, a 1981 film is a drama of a young reporter reporting on an investigation, her mistakes and the tragic results. Truth, a film released late in 2015, is representative of seeking truth about a story involving the military service of a young George W. Bush. Again, questions of sources, verification and evidence make compelling drama (Robert Redford portraying Dan Rather, then the anchor of CBS nightly news) and provide the big question of the title itself. What is the truth? Finally, last year's Academy Award winner, Spotlight, portrays an investigative "spotlight" team of The Boston Globe attempting to publish the truth about Catholic priests' sexual abuse of children. Your task: select one and analyze questions of facts, sourcing, ethical questions about using sources, impediments to verifying facts, decisions, bias (or the potential of bias) fairness and the big question (Was it true? If so, what is the value of our knowing the truth?) Note: as you analyze, provide clear context of scene and situation that provides basis of your main point. 4. Impact of imagery: Leslie Stahl, CBS News, recalled during an interview about the successful presidential campaign of Ronal Reagan in 1980, that Reagan's campaign manager told her that her story—a negative or critical piece about Reagan—would best be remembered by the positive background images of balloons and flags the CBS producer had used a footage for the report. Therefore, it helped Reagan, contrary to the intent of the report. (Does this tell you anything about current campaign of Donald Trump?) Applying concepts and standards from Chapter 9 of Detecting Bull, evaluate the potential or real issues of bias in photographic images or footage used in a Web or TV news report or campaign ad. Such images are carefully calculated for impact on the intended audience but is it • o•a•anda? What tools might we use to discern the intended effects?