Meeting 9

So this week my meeting took place at the earlier of time of half past three with my editor Daniel Ionescu.

This week we decided in two ideas for me to work on this week.

1. RSPCA follow up- Since last weeks piece had been well recieved and the interviewee again contacted me to inform me she had an idea for a follow up piece in which we take a look at how animal are being adopted but are being returned within a few weeks because the owners has change their mind. This reason this is an appealing idea comes down to academic theory. Chris Frost writes on the subject of the importance of community and honourable groups, 'chartiable and voluntary groups are an important part of any local community..these are local people doing what interests them in the community.'

2. The rise of the vintage trend in Lincoln- As noticed by over media commentators like Bob Chipman (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/the-big-picture/4092-In-Defense-of-Nostalgia ) nostalgia has become a big thing in mainstream media. My job is to investigate and speak to the experts on the subject which would be shop keepers selling vintage products. It is important for this story to have interviews with a series of vintage shop keeps because as Christ Frost writes 'Being able to to get an authoritative quote on any subject from astrology or zoology quickly and without fuss is very useful', which means a quote from an expert backs up what you're saying. It's also as equally important to have some buyers involved because according to Chris Frost 'Ordinary people get to hear a good deal of whats going on in their field' which means they could add more detail to the story.

This week me and my editor discussed the nature of the my future career. Since I take shorthand as an extra subject thanks to encouragement from my tutors to help make me employable because I have an extra skill and it's also useful for court reporting. Which we agreed has it's benefits on paper though most journalists professionally don't require it because they usually have some kind of recording device or alternatively they have developed a quicker form of longhand note taking. Currently I'm thinking of dropping shorthand because the course structure is proving to conflict with other aspects of my degree however I've not fully decided.

Our discussion also turned to the subject of my options and I should continue taking print into my third year despite the huge decline in print based media and if it's beneficial and more logical for me to switch to taking online as this outlet has proven to be the future. Though I have some skill and take enjoyment out of print design I also thought their would be some transferable skills to taken from the course like photography and the what you see is what you get nature of Quark and Indesign as both has similar control system means that logically it would reflected in the construction of online page design software.

Though logically my editor pointed out online was a slightly less demanding subject for your third year could mean more time to focus on my dissertation. These are all points to consider but now I just need time to evaluate my next moves and how they could affect my career.

Critique-

Story link- http://thelincolnite.co.uk/2012/01/lincoln-busker-makes-his-own-quirky-instruments/

Though I didn't mention this in my brief I saw a busker this Saturday in town who appeared extremely unique. So I decided to interview him to see if fit the criteria of news.

The reason I thought it be a good idea to interview this busker is because he was using his own homemade instruments and had dressed up with a home made mask. To apply theory to this Chris Frost believes 'much of journalism is the routine of gathering information, most of it predictable', since the media news outlet has become over competitive and incidents of outlets repeating the same stories is a common thing for example the Matt Baker story is covered by the Lincolnite (http://thelincolnite.co.uk/2011/11/in-pictures-bbcs-matt-baker-brings-pudsey-to-lincoln/)  and the Lincolnshire Echo (http://www.thisislincolnshire.co.uk/Matt-geared-raise-pound-1-2m/story-14005784-detail/story.html ) so I decided to look for a story with a unique selling point.

On the coverage of the story I was happy with the photo I collected as it's suggested by Roger De Bank a photo with a person in doing something to catch the readers attention makes a good news photo. However the negative point of the stories coverage comes from the visual points. Though the photo suffices my editor did ask when he received the story if I had any video footage of the busker playing which would have made much more visually entertaining and to the point. According to Chris Frost 'television reporting means showing not telling', applying this to my story (since it's not technically on TV) showing could help to make the story more visually digestive.

Meeting 8

So here we are after Christmas and my first meeting back. This one took place on the 17th of January at 4pm in Sparkhouse studios with my editor Daniel Ionescu and Alex Coleman. This week we've decided in two stories for me to work on-

1. The footfall figures for the shops in the local area- Now the Christmas boom has finished local business concern Lincoln BIG will so be able to produce figures conveying how the shops performed in December and January. I have been asked to contact them and obtain these figures from this year and the previous two years to have some comparison. The treatment and the nature of this story is tricky. Former student and freelance journalist Tom Farmery mentioned that a top journalist at the Guardian struggled  data journalism which entails translating numeric data into something meaningful. However looking into ways people has transferred this in a meaning way I looked at Shane Crouchers work on translating figures (which can be found here http://thelincolnite.co.uk/2011/05/lincoln-mps-year-of-questions-cost-7-5k/) by using visual aids could help, going back to KISS (Keep It Short and Simple) could make it easier for the reader to digest.

2. Investigating how the RSPCA has copped with unwanted pets over the Christmas period- A lot of animal groups make it clear that a lot of animals which are given as presents for Christmas tend to get abandoned. I've been asked to make contact with the local charity shop and speak to someone about this. Currently their is no angle however I have complied a number of open questions on a range of subjects to help me develop an angle. Though I think doing the interview on a one on one basis in the shop may serve as good inspiration as Chris Frost says 'It is vital that the keen reporter keeps his or her eyes open at all time.' so hopefully something in the shop like a poster or small detail could lead me a strong angle.

So this week on my placement I've heard many remark how quiet it is in terms of news currently. Though this may seem like a negative take on a subject I feel it's in this kind of news environment that reporters have to be careful with the nature of their reporting. Looking at the theory behind news gathering the press play a huge part in creating a moral panic as they essentially create a 'folk devil' to get stigmatised.

So in a time when the news front is quiet it could be easy for news outlets to go overboard on the coverage of a story which could lead to it being perceived as a much bigger problem then it is. This could be traced back to fears over swine flu or the Hadron collider. Despite their being a very small chance of the experiment forming a black hole some news outlets choose to over empathise and panic causing distress in the public sector. So in times like this it could be more suitable to observe the smaller stories and try over turn the negative image that all news is depressing.

So from now on I'll posting a critique of my work afters it's published so check back here every so often.

The critique-

So since the footfall story has been delayed because the figures are not yet available that story has been put on a back burner, however my RSPCA story did go up (here's the link-  http://thelincolnite.co.uk/2012/01/fewer-gift-pets-abandoned-in-lincoln/ )

Looking back at my work I'd say the photo and is quite appealing and relevant, this is because I have a rabbit which the story revolves around partially. This also in a sense successfully coincides with the theory presented by lecturer Roger De Bank who believes the best kind of press photo is the one which includes something living. This idea is supported by Chris Frost who believes that 'pictures can add emotion and authenticity', which I believe the photo did since the rabbit could be considered 'cute'.  

Looking at the copy I was impressed with the detailed and quite memorable quotes Charlotte gave. On the other hand despite having one good interview it might have been suitable to have gotten a second one from an different source to help cement the story. Also on the other hand I have to remember every interviewee has their own bias. As Chris Frost writes on the subject of interviewees 'They may want to win public support', though the biased may be just it's my role as a journalist to produce a balanced and accurate report.