This semester I have learned more about journalism than I ever have before. Most significantly, I realized the importance of reporting. Journalism is not simply about how well a reporter writes. That’s only half of it. The other, more challenging half, in my opinion at least, is the reporting itself. Without sources or information, a journalist’s writing skills will give him or her little standing in a real, working newsroom. This semester I crafted a beat covering Miami University Associated Student Government (ASG). I covered issues such as faculty changes, local political elections, campus development, and even found time to write a personality profile on the student body president. Through my work on these articles, I found that writing was easy once I gathered the necessary information. Sure, creativity and colorful writing can make a good story great, but without a solid foundation of facts and information laid by good reporting, the story will never be good to begin with. Good journalism starts with reporting.
Some of the challenges I faced this semester gave me insight as to what to expect when working as a paid journalist. Talking to the right people is not always easy. Many public figures mistrust journalists; therefore, gathering the right information can prove difficult. Good journalism is not going to please everybody, especially those whose negative actions are exposed in the ink between the covers. Getting sources to trust you and give you inside information is not always easy, but I’ve realized that by developing professional, personable relationships with sources, a journalist can elicit the information that he or she needs and that the public deserves.
In some ways, my beat development class was more challenging than an internship. Sources can be very helpful when they find out that they might get published in a newspaper, but when a source find outs that the article is primarily for a class he or she isn’t always as eager to talk. Through my ASG beat, I’ve learned how to get interviews with key sources, even if it’s not his or her first priority to talk to me. Although the beat development class was not quite the same as an internship, it has provided me with the insight, experience, and knowledge to understand what it takes to be a good journalist. I feel more confident, more qualified and more excited to be a journalist than ever before.
Some of the challenges I faced this semester gave me insight as to what to expect when working as a paid journalist. Talking to the right people is not always easy. Many public figures mistrust journalists; therefore, gathering the right information can prove difficult. Good journalism is not going to please everybody, especially those whose negative actions are exposed in the ink between the covers. Getting sources to trust you and give you inside information is not always easy, but I’ve realized that by developing professional, personable relationships with sources, a journalist can elicit the information that he or she needs and that the public deserves.
In some ways, my beat development class was more challenging than an internship. Sources can be very helpful when they find out that they might get published in a newspaper, but when a source find outs that the article is primarily for a class he or she isn’t always as eager to talk. Through my ASG beat, I’ve learned how to get interviews with key sources, even if it’s not his or her first priority to talk to me. Although the beat development class was not quite the same as an internship, it has provided me with the insight, experience, and knowledge to understand what it takes to be a good journalist. I feel more confident, more qualified and more excited to be a journalist than ever before.
--Patrick Deignan
Dec. 6, 2007
Dec. 6, 2007
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