Chapter One Review and Interpretation by Tyler Grant and Trevor Robb

In 1982, the Kent Commission was set up to analyze the state of the media in Canada with regard to objectivity. The CRTC made recommendations based on this report stating media corporations were not allowed to own more than one radio or television station in a single market, and similar recommendations were made with regard to newspapers. The government overruled this and now we have examples like Canwest Media owning the two major newspapers in Vancouver (The Province and The Sun). Media is now so heavily consolidated that conglomerates control most of North Americas heavily circulating newspapers.

A good copy editor is hard to find. Must have a passion for language and interest in Journalistic principles: accuracy, fairness, ect. Most copy editors work in groups or news rooms. A good editor needs to be more objective than a reporter. He needs to be a better writer than a reporter. His grammar must be spot on. He needs to be well-travelled. He needs to be able to fix things without losing the original writer’s style. He needs to have experience as a writer and have experience in media first. Slot editors and rim editors have similar jobs, but the slot editor is running the show. With the emergence of online news sites along with the amount of people logging on to these sites copy editing has become a much larger job than before. In order to save on labor costs companies have merged a lot of the post editing process onto the laps of copy editors. But as the chapter states, “Good copy editors are a rare breed. Just ask any editor or publisher trying to hire one” (6).

This chapter focuses on the emerging importance of the copy editor in today’s digital world. With online news sites becoming increasingly popular and newsrooms looking to shave expenses the copy editor has become an integral piece of the puzzle. This has led copy editors to take on a larger workload while receiving little remuneration. It also details the difficulties in designing brochures. It briefly touches on the timetables most groups have to face in order to meet deadlines. It then goes to say that most of these timetables are actually compressed into smaller units making the need for those who can work under pressure a valuable asset.

Note: Image from CBC News.

Chapter One Review and Interpretation; Isaac & Kate.

Many of today’s conglomerate companies involved in news media take on vertical integration. This means that growing news media companies these days, such as Quebecor in Canada, own many different media outlets, ranging from print, television, radio and also

use online news pages. All of these different mediums can then cross over and share stories, making for a more unified ‘voice’. This saves the companies money since they can pay one writer to comprise a story on an issue which they then spread over their varying papers, television programs, or spill it out onto the internet for viewing. The largest problem with this system, is that this unified ‘voice’ means that there are fewer view points and less journalists.



In this day and age, where yesterday’s newest piece of technology is already replaced by today’s new development, (for example, the relatively new 3G technology already being bested by the new development of 4G technology) convergence of various media is an important concept. Print media was once the meat and potatoes of a journalist’s employment diet, and now with the emergence of the internet in the past ten years, along with the already present television and radio mediums, a journalist must be able to cross over from medium to medium, and back again to print, to be successful in today’s journalism field. Along with journalists needing to be tech-savvy and on the up and up with new technological advances, copy editors must also be privy to all these changing technologies. Editors need to be aware of their audience; changing technologies and they must also learn to utilize all the newly emerging technologies and techniques to stay on top of the media world. Creative Editing For Canadian Journalists states that “those who will thrive in the future will be those who can ‘cross over’ from print to television and back”, which is an important aspect of how both editors and journalists are directly involved with convergence.

People’s need for news and information, and the way they are sharing it evolves on a constant basis and those who produce news need to be up on the latest trends understanding the wants and needs of their audience leading to keeping their business afloat and the communities they serve in the know. Convergence and conglomeration creating media empires has been a growing trend in North America due to the need for efficiency and to find a cost effective way to keep up production. Feeding people pertinent, relevant, and impactful news still needs to be the main focus and concern of the news media, and critical thinking on the part of the audience must be something to which even more attention than ever must be paid in today’s major media world.

Chapter One Review and Interpretation, Nancy Gordy and Susan Eder

A copy editor's job includes but is not limited to: assisting in adding creativity to stories, correcting spelling and grammatical errors, editing and organizing photo's and articles as well as determining placement, writing headlines and cut lines, and assiting in the determination of what is newsworthy. To determine what is newsworthy one must consider certain aspects such as: timeliness, proximity, relevance, conflict, unusualness, and prominence. Characteristics of a good copy editor include: being very factual, being well travelled, being well read in both fiction and non-fiction, having a post-secondary education, having experience working for a newspaper, having a good understanding of what is newsworthy, beeing a good writer, as well as being a good journalist but with more focus on being a good writer.

There are many steps to getting an article distributed and a copy editor is involved in many of the steps throughout. A newspaper would produce evidently lower quality material without good copy editors. Mistakes lead to questioning of the facts presented. Copy editors play a large role in reducing the likeliness of this occuring. They help build a strong reputation.

"Brochures are based on a set of very distinct production considerations" (Bowles 13). Brochures can take up to 3-4 months to complete. A timeline should be followed in order to ensure the final product will be completed on time.

Chapter 1 Interpretation:
This chapter outlined the many skills that a copy editor has in order to be successful as well as the importance of good copy editing skills. There are many characteristics that build a good copy editor. A modern newsroom was traditionally shaped as a horseshoe but is changing to adapt to online news. The editing process involves many steps in both a news story and a brochure where a copy editor plays a large role. In Chapter 1 we believe the difference between proofreading and copy editing should have been defined. In our opinion this would help give us a better understanding of what is to come throughout the course.

Note: Image from mattwright on flickr.

Chapter One Review and Interpretation by Dale and Erik

Image from Starpulse.com

"Copy editors, the often unsung heroes of the print world, are nonetheless at the vanguard of any successful publication." They work behind the scenes to make sure that what the reader sees is correct, concise and creative. The position of copy editor has changed along with the entire journalism industry with advancements in technology and information sharing. Editors must have to be able to correct grammatical errors, factual errors, clean up writing to make it concise and more entertaining.

Technological advancements have changed the industry, and therefore, the editor's role. Almost all news publications have a website in this day and age, and information is being shared faster than ever before. With news that is being updated by the minute, editors have to be faster and more efficient. Editors must be ready to get the news online almost as soon as it happens. The fast pace of the industry has stretched out journalists and editors, which can have an adverse effect on the publication of news and it's obligation to be the "public watchdog."Media convergence has become an issue in the news industry especially America. Multiple news outlets owned by a single conglomerate or owner has been said to question the objectivity of news. Due to this, editors and journalists must be ever-vigilant in this fast paced industry.

Our perception of the first chapter of "Creative Editing," was that it layed out a good overview of the role of an editor in the news industry. It seemed to spotlight the editor and glorify their role over other positions in the industry; however, this is to be expected from a book about editing. The chapter delved into the history of print media as well and displayed an interesting concern relating to convergence of news media. This made the chapter a good introduction to the subject by providing some background on the position as well as the entire industry.

Lecture 2:

Outline:

Review Chapter 1

Writing Activity

Mark-Up Symbols

Blog Report 1

Homework



Review Chapter 1:

Individually:

Re-read Chapter 1

Focus on any key terms

Try to remember any examples or facts


Do not take notes


10 minutes


Review Activity:


Combine your free writes into a single blog post

Title: Chapter One Review and Interpretation, Student Names

Label: Lecture 2, Copy Editing, Review (please capitalise & use commas)

Include as many relevant details as possible

Include one paragraph interpretation of the content of Chapter 1 (were there any significant details, anything new to you, something that caught your attention?)

Embed one image in your blog post

Include one quotation about copy editing from Chapter 1 (you may use your books here)

Add a comment to one other blog post

Blog Report #1

Due Feb. 22nd
Title: Citizen Journalism and the Future of Journalism, Name Surname
Label: Blog Report 1
Length: 5 paragraphs
Respond, using examples and in an academic tone:
"The contributions of citizen journalists, bloggers, and others who aren't paid to cover the news are constantly mocked and derided by the critics of new media who clearly don't understand that technology has enabled millions of consumers to shift their focus from passive observation to active participation -- from couch potato to self-expression” - Arianna Huffington
Refer to “Best of Twitter: FTC Workshop Discusses Future of Journalism” by Jessica Clark (http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2009/12/best-of-twitter-ftc-workshop-discusses-future-of-journalism-337.html)



Homework:


Define “journalism 2.0”

Read “The Reconstruction of American Journalism” (http://www.cjr.org/reconstruction/the_reconstruction_of_american.php)

Come to class ready with a topic for your first e-portfolio entry (copy editing, journalism 2.0, citizen journalism, mark-up symbols)



Note: image from Reportr.net.