News Gathering - Reporting from various Sources

Deadlines:

• Breaking news posted almost immediately.
• Online = a new challenge.
• Deadlines MUST be met. 
• Articles are submitted online before print. 

Online and offline: 

•  Newspapers less reliant on breaking news stories.
• Online reports breaking news. 
• Do newspapers have more analysis and comment?

News gathering

• Difficulty proportional to value. 
• No difficulty = something to sell. 
• People who offer incentives to publish, or not publish something do not have the public interest at heart.

Journalism and PR

• PR a news-gathering obstacle or a great assistance to journalists?
• In 1996 Australian employed 7000 PR practitioners and 4200 mainstream journalists. 

 The editorial pecking order:

1. Managing editor or editor-in-chief.
2. Editor.
3. Deputy Editor or associate editor.
4. News editor.
5. Chief-of-Staff.
6. Journalists.

Should a story be pursued? 

Will it be useable/is it worth the effort/what about other story ideas not yet assigned? Legal risks? Will other media run the same story/has a similar story be done recently.

The process of reporting and writing has six steps: 

News thinking: Getting ideas, Collecting information: Reporting the story, News thinking II Focus: Thinking of stories, Order: Mapping the story, Revise: Rewriting for readers and viewers.

One of the ways in which a reporter may develop ideas is by participating in a brainstorming session held by most news organisations.

Organized by the editor earl in the morning. Reporters maintain an up-to-date contact book / diary of contacts in various fields.

A few rules

Strive for balance - all sides of the story. Be fair and give people a right of reply. Always carry a notepad, pens and a tape recorder and extra batteries.