Proof of the government’s lies about Vietnam can be found in many people, most notably a set of documents that government officials put together while the war was still being fought that we know as the Pentagon Pap
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Vietnam 1968: Walter Cronkite’s broadcast
At no time did Cronkite express opposition to the war. He merely described what he saw and what people on the ground had said to him.
Eyewitness to Vesuvius: Pliny the Younger and reporting the event of the century
The mountain exploded in August 79 AD. The ensuing lava flow engulfed two entire cities (Herculaneum and Pompeii) and smothered a third, Stabiae, with poisonous gas. The darkness that the clouds of dust and smoke created was, in the ones of an eyewitness, “. . . not the dark of a moonless or cloudy night, […]
Alabama vs. Georgia, 50+ years ago: The Saturday Evening Post-Wally Butts-Bear Bryant libel case
More than 50 years ago, the Alabama-Georgia matchup resulted, not in a national championship, but in a legal ruling that expanded the First Amendment protections we now enjoy.
Lillian Ross, reporter and precursor of the 1960s New Journalism movement
Was she the mother of the New Journalism movement of the 1960s — the movement that showcased the deep reporting of people like Truman Capote and Gay Talese? Many people thought so. Lillian Ross, who died Sept. 20, 2017, at the age of 99, was doing that kind of reporting and writing for the New […]
The Newspaperman: A poem from the 1880s
In doing some research in 19th century newspapers recently, I found this clever little poem: THE NEWSPAPER MAN Little they know. or even think, Of the work there is in shedding Ink By the busy wielders of pencil and pen, Generally known as newspaper men. “Jottings,” “In General,” “Spice of Life,” “Variations,” and rumors rife, […]
Digital Reader blogger tries to get at the real facts about ebook sales
A lot of buzzing and scoffing these days in the world of independent publishing about the “fact” that ebook sales are down. Blogger Nate Hoffelder tries to set the facts — the real facts — about ebook sales straight. Source: Damn the Facts: The “Ebook Sales Are Down” Narrative Must be Maintained at All Costs […]
A journalist writing a novel
What’s the biggest different between writing journalism and writing fiction? Since the publication of Kill the Quarterback, I have been asked that question more than once. For an old line journalist like me (when I started in the business, they still used typewriters and pastepots), writing a novel had one big advantage: You could make […]
50 years ago, Harrison Salisbury did not win the Pulitzer Prize
Fifty years ago when the Pulitzer Prizes were awarded, politics — not merit — kept Harrison Salisbury from winning the Pulitzer Prize for international reporting. This week’s announcement (see below) of the latest prizes brings this sad tale to mind. Salisbury was a reporter and editor for the New York Times who already had […]
A journalist needs something to write about: Richard Ben Cramer, Alex Rodriguez and the book that did not get written
In 2006 Cramer sold both his publisher and his subject on a book about Alex Rodriguez, the star of the New York Yankees who was recently banned for a year by Major League Baseball for taking banned substances. The book had the title, The Importance of Being Alex: A Life with the Yankees. He had […]
7 reasons why you should encourage your students to tweet your lectures
Some professors ban laptops, tablets and smart phones from their classrooms, seeing them as distractions for their students. Instead, they should welcome them as tools for engagement.
Going online: What I tell high school teachers and students
A news website gives scholastic journalists the opportunity to do something they’ve never done — practice “daily journalism.”
John F. Kennedy on the importance of open government (audio)
In April 1961, a few months after taking office as president of the United States, John F. Kennedy spoke to the American Newspaper Publishers Association about the importance of maintaining an open government. In the speech he said, “The very word ‘secrecy’ is repugnant in a free and open society; and we are as a […]
Tennessee Journalism Series: Media Reporting
Reporting is hard work. It is frustrating and difficult. Reporters are constantly called upon to use their wit and imagination, to think of where information is and who has it — and then to persuade those who have it to give it up. Reporters do not have subpoena power. They cannot compel sources to part […]
Do reporters have more fun?
Chapter 8 in Journalism: Who, What, When, Where, Why and How emphasizes how difficult it is to be a reporter. That’s certainly true. But it’s also fun.
Changing quotations
One of the continuing practical problems that arises often in the nation’s newsrooms is how to handle direct quotations.
Plagiarism
Students sometimes get mixed up about what constitutes plagiarism, but journalists should never let that happen. They should understand that plagiarism is one of the worst things they can do, and they should know how to avoid it.
Math help for journalists
Many journalists say (sometimes jokingly, sometimes not) that they got into the profession because they would not have to deal with a lot of math. For most working reporters, however, that turns out not to be the case.
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