Hofstra University, School of Communication

Spring 2009
Syllabus JRNL 10
(Journalism Tools)
Assistant Professor Mo Krochmal
Department of Journalism, Media Studies, and Public
Relations.

Instructor Information

Mo Krochmal, Assistant Professor of Journalism, Media Studies, and Public Relations

School of Communication, Hofstra University

Website: http://krochmal.posterous.com

Office Telephone: 516 463 4338

Hofstra E-mail: maurice.krochmal@hofstra.edu

Personal E-mail: mo.krochmal@gmail.com

Office: 147 Dempster Hall

Fall Semester Office Hours

Tuesday – 3-4:30
Thursday – 3:00-4:30
And, by appointment.
Every student enrolled in this course is responsible for understanding and complying
with the information, requirements and policies contained in this syllabus. Please read
this syllabus thoroughly so that you are familiar with the format, policies, requirements
and any deadlines. You should also have it for reference throughout the rest of the
semester.

Dear students,
Welcome to JRNL 10, which for many of you will be one of the first journalism
courses you take in your Journalism, Media Studies, and Public Relations majors in the
Hofstra University School of Communication.
This is a time of great upheaval in the field of journalism and of great concern is
about the place that tools and skills hold in the great mix of skills and abilities that a 21
st

Century multiplatform journalist must have.

 This course will give you basic training and experience in journalistic tools and skills
you will absolutely have to have to go along with your writing and reporting proficiency, and
your ethics.
You need to be aware that this course expects you to be knowledgeable about
standard grammar, spelling and punctuation. You will be expected to learn Associated Press
style by looking it up in the stylebook.
Let's nurture curiosity, and your desire to discover and to adopt professional
techniques.
You absolutely must be flexible and adapt well to change.
You should also fine-tune your critical thinking skills and apply them to your creativity
and you should always be thinking about the economics of the field and how you might be
able to create entrepreneurial opportunities as you learn these skills.
You should know that you will need to work faster and faster, and yet be accurate
and concise. You will learn how to present your reporting live in the classroom, or in front of a
camera in the field or in the studio. You will critique your work and that of your peers.
I look forward to working with you throughout the semester in this classroom and in
the NewsHub, where your classroom training will blend with the tremendously valuable
experience of working on a real-time deadline.
Sincerely,

Mo Krochmal
Assistant Professor of Journalism, Media Studies, and Public Relations

DISABILITIES
If you have any documented disability-related concerns that may have an impact upon
your performance in this course, please meet with me within the first two weeks of the
semester, so that we can work out the appropriate accommodations. Accommodations
are provided on an individualized, as-needed basis after the needs, circumstances and
documentation have been evaluated by the appropriate office on campus.
For more information on services provided by Hofstra, and for submission of
documentation of your disability, please contact:
Ann Marie Ferro in 101 Memorial Hall at 516 463-5341 (for physical and/or
psychological disabilities) or

Dr. Diane Herbert in 202 Roosevelt Hall at 516 463-5761 (for learning disabilities
and/or ADHD).
All disability-related information will be kept confidential.
COMMUNICATION
Please make sure that you forward your Hofstra e-mail address to your favored e-mail
address. The professor may send you class or individual information through your official
Hofstra e-mail address.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Journalists in the multimedia and Internet age need a variety of new skills and tools to
effectively tell their stories to the public and succeed in the profession. This course will
introduce students to a number of different tools journalists use to gather information, audio
and pictures/video as well as produce stories for a converged or multi-platform media
environment.
The course is required in the accredited journalism curriculum of the Department of
Journalism, Media Studies, and Public Relations.

GOALS
The journalism program aims to make sure students are exposed to the skills they will need in
multimedia journalism early in the journalism curriculum and then go on to master them in
later, more-specialized classes. This is an introductory skills class.
OBJECTIVES
Students become familiar with a variety of methods for gathering and disseminating
news. The class is not expected to provide students the opportunity to master any one tool,
but instead, expose them to the wide variety of tools available for use in modern journalism.
Students learn the basics of gathering information and media. They will also be introduced to
the use of digital still photography and videography and the use of these media in modern
news gathering. Students will learn: how to use computers and software for writing and
editing copy, how to use content management systems, how and where to gather and
organize data, how to record and edit audio, video and digital images, and how to weave
these together into articles for publication.
The students will learn the technical aspects of journalism tools and will be able to discuss the
ethical and communication consequences of their increasing usage.
Students are required to work at minimum 1 hour a week in the NewsHub, the department’s
multimedia newsroom, staffing the assignment desk.
Students will learn new skills in each class and these skills will accumulate. Students will
learn and expand their abilities with real-world projects and assignments as well as written
examinations and practical tests.
REQUIRED TEXTS/READINGS
Multimedia journalism is a new and growing field. We will use two textbooks to cover the
range of tools that this course addresses.
Available at the student bookstore, this is your official textbook for this course:

"Convergent Journalism, an Introduction." By Stephen Quinn, Vincent F. Filak. 2005,

Focal Press Title, ISBN: 978-0-240-80724-9.
Available for free download is the second required text at
http://www.kcnn.org/resources/journalism_20/, is
“Journalism 2.0: How to Survive and Thrive. A digital literacy guide for the information age”
Download, print out and put in a binder.
In addition to the required readings in the textbooks, you are required to be informed on the
news.
GRADING CRITERIA
No letter grades will be given for papers, tests, quizzes or projects during the semester. You
will receive points for each assignment. At the end of the semester I will add up the points
and weight them according to the percentages listed below. Your points then will determine
your grade based on this scale:
A = 95-100
A- = 90-94
B+ = 88-89
B = 84-87
B- = 80-83
C+ = 78-79
C = 74-77
C- = 70-73
D+ = 68-69
D = 64-67
F = 0-63
Final grades are determined by the following formula.
Assignments/events 15%
NewsHub participation 20%
Midterm Exam 5%
Final Exam 10%
Final Project 15%
Class attendance, participation, punctuality 20%
Learning Journal 15%
TOTAL 100%

The NewsHub
The Hofstra University NewsHub was opened in December 2007 and is designed as a converged
newsroom, open to all students working on journalism projects. The NewsHub is home to Nassau News
Live, a pioneering hyperlocal student-run online news organization providing coverage of the
communities surrounding the university – The Village of Hempstead, Garden City, Roosevelt and
Uniondale. Students produce multimedia reporting on community issues, going to board meetings,
interviewing locals, following breaking news events and applying state-of-the-art technologies and
techniques to the journalism fundamentals of the classroom.

Tim Robertson, a graduate student in journalism, is the managing editor of NNL and is available M-T in
the afternoons, leading a staff of volunteer editors and students reporters.

JRNL10 students are required to work an hour a week in the NewsHub’s assignment desk, a position
that allows the students to learn the community, develop news instincts in a real-world atmosphere.
JRNL10 students are in a constant search for information on Nassau County news events to enter into
the NewsHub’s online calendar for schedule and staff news coverage.

Students also get a chance to write articles and work closely with the student editors.

You will also have the opportunity to participate in the weekly live newscast streamed online, or cover
breaking news events.

ASSIGNMENTS

All assignments are turned in by mail to me as an attachment in Microsoft Word 97-2003 format
E-mail's subject lines are formatted by NAME, CLASS, DATE, and ASSIGNMENT NUMBER.
Example: Jane Doe, JRNL10, 9/9/09, Assignment No. 1

At the top of each assignment Word document you will complete a slug consisting of:

BYLINE: By Jane Doe (Jane.Doe@gmail.com)

CLASS: JRNL 10
DATE: Today's Date
ASSIGNMENT: No.1, etc.

You will have a 1-hour window (10 p.m.-11 p.m.) the night before we meet to turn in your work.
ATTENDANCE POLICY
Attending class and arriving on time are important to your grade. Please be punctual.
Attendance will be taken at the start of class. I rely on my attendance records as the official
attendance roster. Internship/job interviews, doctor’s appointments, late night at The
Chronicle, etc. are not excused absences. You must provide documentation for funerals and
sickness immediately upon your return to class.
If you miss class, I expect you to send me an e-mail that day you missed the class to explain
why. The professor is not responsible for re-teaching a class that you miss. You will need to
look at the syllabus and speak with your classmates to pick up what you miss. We will cover a
lot of information in each class.
ASSIGNMENTS/REQUIREMENTS
See course schedule for assignments. Assignments not e-mailed to me before the start of
class will not be counted.
You will have a 1-hour window, from 10 p.m. until 11 p.m. the night before the class, to file
your assignments.
Assignment Work will be assessed on a 4-point scale (0=Fail, 1=Poor, 2=Average,
3=Superior).
You must use Microsoft Word for your assignments and you have to save your file as a Word
93-2003 formatted Document -- without formatting such as paragraph indents and "curly"
quotes -- and attach it to an e-mail following convention for the subject and slug.
For success: Come to class on time, every time. Do your work on deadline, show your
work/cite your sources, participate in class, communicate with your professor and respect
your classmates. Ask questions, that's what journalists do. Get excited/inspired, and share
your learning.
Each week you will make an entry into your learners' journal, a website available only for the
class. You will reflect on the readings, or write a list of new words and their definitions, or ask
a question about something you want to learn.
You will also be required to contribute questions or comments to your classmates' posts.

COURSE SCHEDULE
Reading for Class 2:
Managing Personal Data: What We Have, What We Need Exposed, by Emily Gould
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/25/magazine/25internet-t.html?_r=1&ref=magazine&pagewanted=print
Online, your private life is searchable, LA Times, Aug. 18, 2009
http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-cover-privacy16-2009aug16,0,437056.story?page=2&track=rss

Writing for Class 2: Professional Profile

Create a professional written profile of yourself (50 words) that highlights your interests, and
links to any writing on the web and reflects your learning from the readings.
Class 1 -- Introduction, overview of the course.

The goal of this class is to quickly establish community and to get students prepared for the
semester and the operation of this classroom.
Class 2 – Writing, the keystone of any form of journalism.
Writing is the cornerstone of journalism, no matter the medium. In this class, we will establish
practices and disciplines for students to follow throughout the semester.
Textbook: Convergent Journalism
Chapter 3, "Words: The Foundation Stone of Journalism;"
Chapter 4, "Broadcast Writing and Speaking;"
Chapter 5, "Writing for the Web."
Web reading:
How, and where, to hyperlink within a news story, Robert Niles, via Knight Digital Media
Center.
http://www.ojr.org/ojr/stories/080215niles/
Active Voice and Passive Voice in Web Content
http://freelancewriting.suite101.com/article.cfm/active_voice_and_passive_voice_in_web_content

Writing Assignment for Class 3: Readings Reaction

Write a 200-word essay outlining the readings. Include links, page numbers.

Class 3 – Research, Information Skills

Review the reading and discuss the care and consequences of posting personal information
online. Students will expand their knowledge of search techniques and learn how to set up
RSS feeds and alerts for text and multimedia.
Reading for Class 4:
Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics
http://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp
Online Journalism Ethics New Media Trends by Kendyl Salcito
http://www.journalismethics.ca/online_journalism_ethics/new_media_trends.htm

Writing for Class 4: Personal Code of Ethics

Create your personal code of ethics for journalism in 50 words.

Class 4 -- Ethics
We will discuss journalistic values, how we articulate these values and how the public sees
how we do things and how we can help the public take on these ethics in citizen journalism.
Students will learn about credibility, attribution, copyright, corrections and other fundamental
considerations in using non-original information in journalism.

Reading for Class 5:

News Organizations Implement New Social Media Ethics Policies, Poynter
http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=31&aid=163631
Assignment for Class 5; Social Media Policies
Students will write a 200-word reaction to the reading and list 5 bullet points for the class to
discuss in creating social-media policies for student journalists.

Class 5 -- Social Networks, Community in Journalism

We will examine the growth of social networks in journalism; explore the ethics; and know the
benefits and limitations of these new tools.
Reading for Class 6:
-- Convergent Journalism, Chapter 2 "The Multimedia Assignment Editor and Producer."
-- Journalism 2.0, Chapter 4: "New Reporting Methods"
--Think like a Journalist, via NewsTrust
http://media.newstrust.net/guides/
Writing Assignment for Class 6: Readings, News Value
Write a 200-word reaction to the readings and news value.

Class 6 -- Reporting
Students will be introduced to best practices and expectations in reporting and the concept of
news value.
Reading for Class 7:
Convergent Journalism, Ch. 9, "Editing for Moving Pictures."
Microsoft MovieMaker Manual (PDF via Amherst College).
http://www.swlauriersb.qc.ca/schools/recit/mm2_res/manuals/moviemaker.pdf
MovieMaker Tutorial (video)
http://movies.atomiclearning.com/k12/moviemaker2/
Writing Assignment for Class 7: Flip Interview, Article

Check out a Flip camcorder and video interview people -- not your friends -- on a current
news event. Take notes. Identify the person with name, age, occupation and home town.
Write an article of 200 words with headline and lede from what they tell you, with quotes, and
provides proper attribution and includes links. Upload to Blip.tv. Include embed and URL
codes.

Class 7 – Video Production

Students will learn how to use the Microsoft MovieMaker software embedded in all PCs to edit
audio, video/images and create slideshows. This will be the backbone for video news article
production over the remainder of the semester. Students will be responsible for being able to
edit audio and levels, edit video frame-by-frame, combine audio and video and voiceover,
insert transitions, create slideshows with narration, create lower-third graphics and how to
post these for publication.
Students will check out FlipCams to conduct interviews and learn how to interact
professionally with the equipment room and how to care for equipment.

Read for Class 8:

Journalism 2.0, Ch. 7, "Digital Audio and Podcasting;"
Convergent Journalism: Chapter 10, "Multimedia Journalism: Putting it all Together."

Writing Assignment for Class 8: Natural Sound Article

Interview people about a current news event, collect natural sound and then produce a 1-
minute audio story using video from the FlipCam, VOTs, and NAT sound. File to Blip.tv.
Collect URL and embed codes. Write a 3-sentence caption, with photographer credit.
Class 8 – Convergence
Students will look at the news and journalism environment to get an understanding of the idea
of convergence and multimedia in journalism and ideas surrounding that in journalism higher
education.
Read for Class 9
J-School: The Right Tools Teach the Right Mindset, by Amy Gahran
http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=31&aid=136694
Journalism training must face up to rapid change, by Andrew Grant-Adamson
http://www.wordblog.co.uk/2007/01/17/journalism-training-must-face-up-to-rapid-change/
News Publishers Debate Journalism's Future Live at Aspen Summit, Huffington Post
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/groundreport/news-publishers-debate-jo_b_260639.html
Writing Assignment for Class 9: Learning Goal
Write a reaction and set a goal for your learning in this course.

Class 9 – Content management

Content management systems are the backbone of today's journalism enterprises and their
functionally is basically similar. Students will get experience in the concepts of CMS, and
learn how to enter stories, how to mark them up, and correct them in these systems.

Reading for Class 10:

Convergent Journalism, Ch. 7, "Digital Still Photography."
Journalism 2.0, Chapter 8 "Shooting and Managing Digital Photos
Writing Assignment for Class 10: Post Previous Articles
Access the class/individual websites. Post your previous writing in this reverse chronological
order (profile, personal ethics, class goal) by deadline. Make sure you have formatted it
correctly; print out your completed work and bring that to class.

Class 10 – Photography Basics

Going beyond Facebook pictures. Students will leave this session with knowledge that will
improve their skills in taking journalistically viable still photographs and how to write full and
complete captions to accompany them.
Read for Class 11: Journalism 2.0, Chapter 4: "New Reporting Methods."

Writing Assignment for Class 11: A Day in the Life

Take 60 pictures to tell of a day in the life of someone interesting. Post the photographs on Flickr or Picasa. Print
out your thumbnail photographs as a contact sheet; then select 6 pictures. Create a slideshow with Animoto or
VuVox and turn in the embed code, URLs, and a caption for each picture.

Class 11 – Computer Assisted Reporting

Students will learn how to access and evaluate web 2.0 tools that can enhance productivity
and efficiency in reporting.
Read for Class 12: Journalism 2.0, Ch. 6, How to Report News for the Web.
Writing Assignment for Class 12: Reliable Sources on Social Media
Find 5 different reliable sources for a news article using Facebook, Twitter, MySpace,
LinkedIn, or YouTube. List these sources with links, and in 50 words, defend your assertions.
Class 12 – Spreadsheets, Databases
Spreadsheets can be the backbone of many a reporters' repertoire. Students will learn how to
do simple mathematics and analysis using spreadsheets. Students will be expected to master
figuring percentage and percentage change.
Read for Class 13: Convergent Journalism , Ch. 6, ”Converged Graphics Across All Media."
--Charticle Fever, AJR
http://www.ajr.org/Article.asp?id=4608
Writing Assignment for Class 13: Reporting with Data
Find a database from a reliable public source and export a set of data to a Google
spreadsheet for analysis. Write an article based on what you found in your reporting and
analysis

Class 13 – Visual Journalism

Students will examine the visual aspect of journalism in broadcasting, print and online. They
will be responsible for understanding the value that visuals can add and appropriate and
value-adding use of graphics.
Writing Assignment for Class 14: Information Graphics
Create at least one graphic from your database exercise. Sketch, or print out.

Class 14 – Review for Midterm

Class 15 – Midterm Examination
Students will have a practical deadline exercise and a written examination.

Read for Class 16: Convergent Journalism, Ch. 8, "Digital Video Photography."

Class 16 – Live video on deadline

Students will explore live digital reporting techniques, ranging from streaming video to Twitter,
to CoveritLive.
Assignment for Class 17: Live Project
: Students will team up and collaborate on designing a live web news operation, describing
how it will be covered and particular tools to use.
Class 17 – Mobile Reporting
Students will learn about the new mobile tools that are available to journalists and will be
required to post from their cell phones.
Read for Class 18: Chapter 11: Writing Scripts, Doing Voice-overs, Journalism 2.0
Writing Assignment for Class 18: Mobile Reporting Project
Post your mobile reports to Tumblr/Posterous site.
Class 18 – Screen-based Production
In this class, students will learn how to produce multimedia content from their computer with
screen grabs and screencasts as well as finding copyright cleared video, photography and
music.

Assignment for Class 19: Sound Story

In MovieMaker create a 1-minute news package using text graphics, pictures and sound to
tell a story.
Class 19 – Selling Your Work
With the state of change that journalism finds itself in, one of the important skills any journalist
can have is finding places to publish your work. In this class, we will explore the world of
budgets, freelancing, per-hour charges, and entrepreneurship.

Reading for Class 20 -- Tips for surviving as a freelancer Adam Westbrook.

http://adamwestbrook.wordpress.com/2009/08/24/6x6-business/
Writing Assignment for Class 20: Submitting Projects
Find as many places as possible – get links, a person's name, website name of any places
where you might submit your final project for either pay or credit. No less than 5 outlets will be
acceptable.

Class 20 – Final Project

Students will prepare a pitch for a final package that will demonstrate their ability to report and
produce a converged article that has video and text elements as well as other multimedia.
The pitch should show evidence of research, preparation and news value and should be
simple enough to have a good chance to be executed successfully and potentially published
outside of the class.
Read for Next Class: Journalism 2.0 Chapter 5: How to Blog
Class 21 -- Blogging
In class assignment: We will conduct real-time coverage with a blog post on a news event
with links.
Read for Next Class: Chapter 3: Tools and Toys, Journalism 2.0
Class 22 – Final Product, Rough Draft
Writing Assignment for Class 22: Present Rough Drafts
Students should have rough drafts of a 1:30 video package and a 200- word article with
hyperlinks. Students will present their packages for critique and editing.

Class 23 -- Podcasting, vlogging, mobilecasting

Writing Assignment for Class 23
Students should have rough drafts of a 1:30 video package and a 200- word article with
hyperlinks. Students will present their packages in class for critique and editing.
Class 24 – Putting it all Together
How everything comes together in the world of new media. What’s expected of today’s
multimedia journalists.
Read for Next Class: Journalism 2.0 "Epilogue: Putting It All Together."
Class 26 – Students will present their final projects with edits for review and critique.
Final Examination

Students take a practical and a written exam covering the readings and lectures.

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