Unit 1: Chapter 2 [Print Journalism]

Journalism:

• Definition-

• “Knowledge of the current events is journalism. It involves obtaining the facts, their critical evaluation and appropriate representation of such events”- C.G Muller. Mainly concerned with newspaper. NEWS: North, East, West and South.
• Role of a Journalist-
• A journalist is the person who wants to give a definite direction to the public through his writings published at short intervals”- T.H.S Scott
• Ancient Indian Journalist: Narada: First Journalist on Earth and also known as ancient father of journalism.
• People have the desire to know things. This curiosity is satisfied by the journalists through their writings in newspapers and journals.
• Journalists are the reporters, writers, columnists who write for a newspaper or a magazine.
• Truth – Journalists should always pursue truth in a practical sense. They should also be credible.
• Loyalty – They should maintain public loyalty by working for the public good rather than manipulating people for any third party.
• Verification – Maintaining transparency and objectivity.
• Independent of Bias – Journalist should not be influenced by external forces of culture, religion, et cetera.
• Watchdog – They act as a watchdog to the government officials by exposing corruption and other malpractices.

• Journalists should also:

• Make people aware of the world around them.
• Inform and Educate the audience.
• Promote Art and Culture.
• Entertain the masses.
• Make people sensitive to burning issues.
• Instil good moral values.

• Journalism as a Fourth Estate-

• The Press is the unofficial Fourth institution in any democracy, apart from the Legislature, Executive and Judiciary.
• The Press includes all photographers, journalists, broadcasters, radio announcers, et cetera.
• The Press has immense political influence and power.
• Press protects the ordinary citizens against the tyranny of rulers.
• It is the upholder of rights and freedoms of citizens.
• It is the voice of the people and watchdog of the government.
• Press is the embodiment of Article 19 of Indian Constitution: Freedom of Speech and Expression.

• Citizen Journalism-

• The concept of citizen journalism is basically journalism in the hands of citizens other than professional journalists.

• It is based upon public citizens playing an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, analysing, and disseminating news and information.

• Social media has empowered the ordinary citizens to take on the role of news reporters. Users are able to express their views and opinions.

• Creating a blog or doing a report on a topic you are knowledgeable on, even though you are not a journalist.

• Commenting on things you find online makes you become a Citizen Journalist by sharing your opinions and others.

• Examples of Citizen Journalism:

• Kennedy Assassination, 1963,

• WTC, 2011,

• Columbia shuttle Disater, 2003.

• It allows citizens to feel more involved in the community by expressing their opinions, engaging with other social media users and contributing their thoughts and knowledge about a subject.

• Penny Press-

• The Penny Press was most famous for its low price, a penny per paper.

• It became popular with the American public because while other papers were priced around six cents, they were able to sell their paper for just a penny.

• The Penny Press is generally considered to have started in 1833, when Benjamin Day founded The Sun, a New York City newspaper.

• Focus on local events, scandals and crime. Ran serialized stories. Human interest stories. Celebrity news. Fashion notes and Jokes.

• The heavy dependence on ‘advertising’ as a major source of revenue was a main reason that the Penny Press was able to sell papers for a lower price than anyone else.

• The Sun was the first popular penny paper.

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pdf for the above notes: