Gahana Thorat
Reporting and Editing for Print
Continuous Assessment Assignment
First year in college is soon going to pass. It has already been eight months in the journalism department of Lady Shri Ram College for Women.
In this eight month journey, we covered two semesters where we had Introduction to Journalism and Reporting and Editing for Print as our core papers. The syllabus for both these papers was comprehensive enough to instill in students the basic understanding of Journalism along with the fundamental principles of writing news stories.
Firstly, the course introduced us to the basics of journalism. This would include what journalism is, the different mediums of journalism.
Next, the syllabus covered the basics terminologies and concepts related to journalism as well as elements of news such as fairness, timeliness, brevity, etc. We also covered sideline, by-line and credit line. The syllabus gave us the understanding of yellow and tabloid journalism and introduced us to the concepts of on the record and off the record. One of the most important aspects of journalism is attribution. Students would learn how to properly attribute sources in their stories, which is crucial for maintaining credibility and avoiding plagiarism.
Students also learnt how to structure their stories in a way that is clear, concise, and engaging for their readers. Brevity and timeliness are also critical components of journalism. Students would learn how to write stories that are short, to-the-point, and easy for readers to understand. They would also learn how to write stories that are timely and relevant to their audience.
In the second semester we had Reporting and Editing for Print as our core paper.
The syllabus covered the topics such as role and qualities of a reporter, writing headlines and subheadings, maintaining neutrality in writing, interviewing skills, identifying and avoiding fake news, and the politics of an image.
One of the most important skills a journalist can have is the ability to write effective headlines and subheadings. Students would learn how to write headlines that accurately reflect the content of the story and grab the reader’s attention. They would also learn how to write subheadings that break the story down into digestible chunks for the reader.
Maintaining neutrality in writing is another critical component of journalism. Students learnt how to write news stories that are objective and free from bias. They also learnt how to avoid inserting their own opinions into their writing.
Interviewing skills are also essential for journalists. Students learnt how to conduct effective interviews, including how to prepare questions, how to approach interviewees, and how to get the information they need for their stories.
Identifying and avoiding fake news is becoming increasingly important in today’s media landscape. Students learnt how to identify fake news and how to fact-check their sources to ensure the accuracy of their stories.
The course would also cover the concept of “trial by media,” which refers to the phenomenon of the media influencing public opinion before a trial has taken place.
Finally, the syllabus covered the politics of an image. Students learnt how to choose images that accurately reflect the content of their stories and how to avoid using images that could be considered misleading or sensationalistic.
The syllabus for both the semesters had both the theory and practical aspect into it. As part of our practicals, we learnt how to make a newsletter, how to conduct interviews, how to design a newspaper by indulging ourselves into all these activities by practically doing them in the class.
Introduction to journalism and reporting and editing for print are the two papers that are a must to develop the basic understanding of journalism.
~Gahana Thorat
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