Lecture 1

I will be using this blog to record some of the interesting and important teachings covered in the lecture throughout the semester, in the hope it will serve as a foundation of information to help me throughout my study of journalism at UQ and in the future.

The first journalism lecture of the semester provided some background information on the nature of journalism and the nature of studying journalism (which, I found out, are two different things!).

In the lecture Dr Redman compiled some quotes that were relative to journalism. Here are a few of the one the ones I found interesting:

'Journalism is the first rough draft of history.'

Philip Graham, Publisher of The Washington Post.

This quote reminded me that not only is journalism integral for providing modern society with information and commentary on the world's current state of affairs, but it will also serve as an anthology of information for future societies.

                'I became a journalist to come as close as possible to the heart of the world.'

                Henry R. Luce, American Publisher and Editor

I agree with Henry Luce, because I believe that journalism enables one to not only immerse themselves in the events that occur in and shape the world, but also the people and stories that come with the events.

                'People may expect too much of journalism. Not only do they expect it to be entertaining,          they expect it to be true.'

                Lewis H. Lapham, Editor of Harper's Magazine

This epitomises one of the challenges of journalism, in that journalism is completely based upon factual stories and information, yet it is a widely accepted that it is a journalist's role to make such facts interesting and engaging to readers.

                'Journalism is little more than scribbling on the back of advertisements.'

                Anonymous.

I found this quote quite amusing. To me it perfectly encapsulates the increasing commercialisation of journalism, and society overall. The profit driven nature of business can mean there is more emphasis placed on advertising revenue than the journalism that 'accompanies' the advertising.

The lecture also covered some of the challenges of journalism, which will be explored later in the course, but included:

-          technology, and the effect this will have upon print publications

-          public perception of journalists and the media

-          the increasing amount of user generated content

-          news as a form of entertainment

The lecture also gave some reasons as to why one would study journalism and communication. I identified completely with the reasons given, which were:

-          because it is there

o   journalism is an inherent part of everyday life; journalists report on the events that occur every day, and we are exposed to journalism every day

o   in this sense, we are part of the media

-          because it can tell us about ourselves

o   journalism reflects back to us our own values, the values of others and perceptions that we have of others

o   there is no better way to clearly see the dominant values of society, and the ideals that underpin the way the world operates

I also found learning the distinction between the study of journalism and practising journalism interesting, as I had previously not thought of them as separate disciplines. The study of journalism is far more intellectual and analytical, which provides a good foundation of information for actually doing journalism, which is comprised of practical skills and is essential for professional employment in the journalism industry.

JOUR1111: 'Telling Factual Stories'