Comments on: A good oops

By: fair and balanced to commies at CNN « the stories of our lives

fair and balanced to commies at CNN « the stories of our lives — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 16:03:06 +0000

[...] Filed under: Uncategorized — hepzeeba @ 4:31 pm While Jeff Jarvis and Nicholas Lemann think out loud about how to improve journalism going forward***, CNN makes a laughingstock out of such agonizing [...]

By: fair and balanced to commies at CNN « the infotainment follies

fair and balanced to commies at CNN « the infotainment follies — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 15:33:16 +0000

[...] Posted in Uncategorized by veronica on February 20th, 2008 While Jeff Jarvis and Nicholas Lemann think out loud about how to improve journalism going forward***, CNN makes a laughingstock out of such agonizing [...]

By: Audio Video Rental Services

Audio Video Rental Services — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 00:02:06 +0000

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By: Chris McVetta

Chris McVetta — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 05:31:26 +0000

The only thing I need in this “new” world of journalism is a Batman costume - and a sense of self-worth - to go along with my semi-worthless degree in Communications.

Take the advertisers out of the equation - and NOW you truly have something, to say the least!

Journalism schools teach you how to “network” - but do they truly teach you how to write what you know …or make a difference in the world today …when it truly matters the most?

“It’s not what you DO that defines you …it’s what lies underneath.”

By: fair and balanced to commies at CNN — infotainment rules

fair and balanced to commies at CNN — infotainment rules — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 22:31:31 +0000

[...] Jeff Jarvis and Nicholas Lemann think out loud about how to improve journalism going forward***, CNN makes a laughingstock out of such agonizing [...]

By: Mindy McAdams

Mindy McAdams — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 19:10:48 +0000

“What should specialized and continuing education look like in a period of more rapid change and broader opportunity?”

I love this question. The first thing that comes to me is “modular.” You ought to be able to mix and match short courses to update your tech skills or refresh or improve a foundation skill, such as interviewing. You should not have to enroll in a master’s degree program (and take the GRE) — but you should be able to accumulate points toward a certificate or somesuch (if that matters to you).

By: BuzzMachine » Blog Archive » Lemann links

BuzzMachine » Blog Archive » Lemann links — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 14:54:47 +0000

[...] followup links reacting to Nick Lemann’s j-school [...]

By: Teaching Online Journalism » The insider peek at Columbia’s j-school

Teaching Online Journalism » The insider peek at Columbia’s j-school — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 12:09:48 +0000

[...] dean Nick Lemann has been discussed by several people already (see for example Charlie Beckett and Jeff Jarvis) — but it’s so incredibly long, even more remains to be said. The most important change [...]

By: Rebecca Watts

Rebecca Watts — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 06:15:33 +0000

Wow, that came off wrong. I don’t think I’m “of the mind” of anything at this time in the morning. So, I’ll edit it to simply state, “It’s not possible…

By: Rebecca Watts

Rebecca Watts — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 06:08:39 +0000

I am of the mind that it is not possible to write about the world without understanding the ways in which it works. Knowledge comes partly from experience, partly from excellent mentors willing to dismiss hurt feelings in exchange for honesty, and partly from an education and each works in conjunction with the other. The skills learned as a journalist in the classroom are honed only through practice and experience outside the classroom. An intellectual education provides thorough practice and the ability to determine what’s important in the world and what’s not. But more importantly, an intellectual education gives the ability to form individual ideas and opinions. You can’t expect to make something better or dismiss something else if you don’t know what was there before.

By: Matt Neznanski

Matt Neznanski — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 01:06:58 +0000

For a long time, I’ve been struggling with the idea that journalism students should be trained in other disciplines as a way to better translate the world for readers.
I think I’ve finally settled the debate for myself: there’s no need to translate. Just point people to the horse’s mouth. Sure, some are better than others. Cream rises to the top.
“Expert journalists” lead to “celebrity journalists,” not actually leading their field of expertise and not doing often enough the legwork readers really benefit from.
The best thing I learned in j-school (as an undergrad and grad student) was the big picture of meta-information and how to find and verify things fast.
One prof whined about journalists becoming glorified librarians. So what? They are a vital part of managing vast stores of information. Journalists could be so lucky as to be trusted to sort out the moving waves of data bombarding people every day.

By: Duncan

Duncan — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 23:45:45 +0000

A “Medill F” to Jeff Jarvis for misspelling Nick Lemann’s last name. It’s wonderful that in a post on the technical merits of journalism education he could commit such a freshman blunder. That’s the trouble with bloggers — they need editors!

By: Brittany Mayne

Brittany Mayne — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 22:51:47 +0000

As an undergrad journalism major due to graduate in May, I agree in part with Mr. Lemman. It is scary for me to think that I will be joining a field where so much more is required of me than I have learned in j school. Sure, I know the skills that it takes to report, and I have been exposed to media ethics courses, but intellectually I do not feel like I yet can compare with most in the profession.

But at the same time, an intellectual and critical view of the world cannot be taught in a college curriculum. There is just too much to learn. Real world experience is the most sensible way to learn most skills in the journalism, I’m guessing.

Of course reporters of business shouldn’t be expected to be experts in business, because part of being a journalist is being able to take an issue and accurately analyze and portray a certain story, whether or not you went into the story an expert.

The expertise comes through writing, researching, and interviewing about a certain topic, not the other way around.

By: Design Idea » How authentic should you be when you blog?

Design Idea » How authentic should you be when you blog? — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 20:27:50 +0000

[...] subject of blogging vs. journalism has become topical: recently, interesting examples can be seen here, and [...]

By: J-School dean sends students his own self-evaluation | Student Journalism Blog | Press Gazette

Tue, 19 Feb 2008 16:24:09 +0000

[...] Jarvis adds his very in-depth thoughts here. He calls it a “good oops”. I have to [...]

By: SteveSgt

SteveSgt — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 15:30:13 +0000

My first thought is this: It’s probably easier to teach a expert in some other field to be a solid, front-lines journalist than it is to teach a journalist to be an expert in some other field.

That said, it’s probably harder to go the step further and make that expert-turned-journalist into a good, if not great, cinematographer, lighting designer, sound engineer, scoring composer, audio or video editor, or any other technician of the production qualities that mass audiences expect in any large-advertiser-supported media.

By: Matt Storin

Matt Storin — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 14:43:49 +0000

Perhaps this is an unfair comparison, because at Notre Dame we have no journalism major, but only a minor or “concentration.” It’s a small program. Many courses are open to students outside the program. In my current media ethics class, at least half have no interest in a professional journalism career. (Two probably dream of careers in the NBA and NFL.) In my fall course, a modern history of journalism, two thirds said they had no intention of pursuing a journalism career. I would think there must be other schools where this is true. I think you are right, given the media landscape today, there is reason to believe that these “non-journalist” students may actually find practical benefit from these courses not only as consumers (the default rationale) but as practitioners.

By: Charlie Beckett

Charlie Beckett — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 11:23:47 +0000

I agree with most of what Lemann says as I think you do too, Jeff. (Now there’s a first!). But what I think we have to be careful of is framing this problem as elite versus vocational.
Yes, we will need much more citizen-friendly, networked journalism in places that do media education (and all schools should be j-schools to an extent).
But we also need thought-leadership education for the editorial innovation, enterprise and strategic planning that will enable the grass-roots changes.
Here at Polis we are lucky to have both: a high-powered intellectual research capacity at the London School of Economics plus a state-of-the-art vocational department at the London College of Communications.
One answer is more interaction between us all.
cheers
Charlie Beckett
http://www.lse.ac.uk/polis

By: Anna

Anna — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 05:51:36 +0000

> “shouldnâ€™t it be the mission of journalism schools to devote N percent of their education to helping [amateurs] do what they want to do better?”

A low cost, distance-learning journalism class please. With assignments, with deadlines, with a community of fellow students taking it at the same time.

(and a pony)