CHAPTER ESSENTIALS

• We define news as the process of gathering information and making reports that use a narrative framework. A key part of a journalist’s job is determining what information is newsworthy—that is, what merits transformation into news stories (pp. 386–387).
• A number of values underscore American journalism. These include neutrality (which leads to greater credibility), ethnocentrism (which involves judging other countries and cultures according to how they live up to or imitate American practices and ideals), responsible capitalism (which assumes that businesspeople compete with one another to increase prosperity for all), small-town pastoralism (which causes journalists to favor the small over the large and the rural over the urban), and individualism (which favors individual rights and responsibilities over group needs or institutional mandates) (pp. 387, 390–391).

• Journalists face a variety of ethical dilemmas. For example, they must decide whether or not to use deception to gain information or whether to invade someone’s privacy, all the while trying to avoid situations that present conflicts of interest or situations in which journalists may benefit personally (pp. 391–393).
• In an effort to resolve their dilemmas, journalists have developed policies and guidelines (pp. 395–396).

• In order to produce good stories that will attract readers, reporters have a set of rituals they follow. These include focusing on the present (which sometimes leads to pack journalism, where reporters stake out a house or follow a story in such large groups that the entire profession comes under attack for invading people’s privacy or exploiting their personal tragedies); relying on experts; creating and balancing story conflict; and developing an adversarial stance toward leaders and institutions (pp. 397–399).

• Television and the Internet have transformed journalism by introducing live coverage and visual imagery. As TV evolved, it developed its own conventions with its use of the sound bite (the part of a news report in which a person is interviewed about some aspect of an event or issue) and attractive, personable newscasters (pp. 400–401).
• The Internet has presented new opportunities for journalists and citizens, but it also raises questions about how to best interview sources, deal with the abundance of information on the Web, sort through opinion versus fact, and use the power of visual imagery (pp. 401–402, 404).

• Aside from the informational model of journalism, which advocates describing events from a neutral stance, other types have emerged. Public journalism is driven by citizen forums and goes beyond telling the news to embrace a broader mission of improving the quality of public life. In addition, fake news is a response to increasing cynicism about the political process and other issues covered by journalists (pp. 405–407).

• Journalism is essential to democracy in that it provides people with access to information, much of which comes from news media, needed to make important decisions (p. 407).
• Many believe public journalism is a way for reporters to fulfill their social responsibility to citizens (pp. 408–409).