Comments on: Review: The Elements of Journalism http://www.sophisticateddorkiness.com/2008/10/review-the-elements-of-journalism/ A bookworm journalist blogs on literature and life Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:26:48 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2 By: Kim http://www.sophisticateddorkiness.com/2008/10/review-the-elements-of-journalism/comment-page-1/#comment-260 Kim Tue, 07 Oct 2008 22:00:46 +0000 http://grayskyeyes.wordpress.com/?p=647#comment-260 theexile: Yes, that one comes into play a lot too. I interned at two small papers (circulation less than 10,000), and could see how that would be an issue. Especially in small communities where people wear multiple hats, independence is a challenge. I think this also comes into play in a different way with advertising -- when you have a small ad base to begin with, it would be tempting to hold stories that might offend major advertisers to the paper. I haven't seen that happen, but my experience is limited and I have no doubt it has. And the switch to online media, that's a whole different can of worms. Journalism is anxious right now, no doubt. theexile: Yes, that one comes into play a lot too. I interned at two small papers (circulation less than 10,000), and could see how that would be an issue. Especially in small communities where people wear multiple hats, independence is a challenge.

I think this also comes into play in a different way with advertising — when you have a small ad base to begin with, it would be tempting to hold stories that might offend major advertisers to the paper. I haven’t seen that happen, but my experience is limited and I have no doubt it has.

And the switch to online media, that’s a whole different can of worms. Journalism is anxious right now, no doubt.

]]> By: theexile http://www.sophisticateddorkiness.com/2008/10/review-the-elements-of-journalism/comment-page-1/#comment-261 theexile Tue, 07 Oct 2008 16:55:16 +0000 http://grayskyeyes.wordpress.com/?p=647#comment-261 "Its practitioners must maintain an independence from those they cover." This particular principle seems the most important to me. In my experience at a small circulation daily there was some wobbly space between getting too close to those covered and staying independent, especially when those covered were close friends to the publisher, who freely mixed business with social status, often to the detriment of the paper's editorial content. I suspect my experience isn't uncommon. I think there is a lot of fear out there, especially as print journalism tries to figure out what to do with itself as it responds to online media. “Its practitioners must maintain an independence from those they cover.” This particular principle seems the most important to me. In my experience at a small circulation daily there was some wobbly space between getting too close to those covered and staying independent, especially when those covered were close friends to the publisher, who freely mixed business with social status, often to the detriment of the paper’s editorial content. I suspect my experience isn’t uncommon. I think there is a lot of fear out there, especially as print journalism tries to figure out what to do with itself as it responds to online media.

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