Don’t shoot (just) the messenger
in Williams’ fall from grace
By Megan Fromm, CJE
When Brian Williams apologized on air for misremembering his involvement in a direct-fire incident during the Iraq war, critics and media pundits alike were quick to toss him off his pedestal. We may never know whether Williams intentionally misled his audience or truly suffered from a lapse in memory (and judgment), but we would be remiss to blame only Williams for the gross journalistic error.
What happened behind the scenes? Where were the producers? The writers? The fact checkers? Where was the team of journalistic watchdogs looking out not only for the viewers but also for the reputation of one of their own? Williams’ fall from grace was as much their misstep as his own, and we must reconcile that or face repeating our mistakes in the future.
And while we’re making a list of those responsible for this mess, let’s be sure to leave a few blank spaces for us, the average news consumer. The media have been so quick to crucify Williams, but so far as I can tell, they are missing another crucial point: we, the audience, led him to this moment. We pushed him to the edge of his journalistic sensibilities, and we dared him to look over the abyss. As the Washington Post reports, Williams “wanted to both report and entertain,“ and we wouldn’t have had it any other way.
Today’s news audience demands this duplicity, and in fact, it is the only kind of “journalism” we reward with our attention, our money, and our clicks. We really just want our headline news from Jon Stewart, but we settle for Williams because in some ways it makes us feel better about our news consumption. So, we don’t mind when a journalist gets too personal, or when he or she becomes too much a part of the story. We keep moving the line in the sand about how close is too close. And in those moments, the audience becomes complicit in the choices news media make to vie for our attention.
Striving to meet the expectations of an increasingly fractured and disinterested news audience—while simultaneously aiming for unrealistic profit margins—has encouraged the largest news organizations to dangle precipitously close to the edge of their journalistic morality. It almost comes as no surprise, then, that some lose their footing.
So while it’s easy to criticize Williams for his mistakes (and yes, we should), let’s not forget the part we, as news consumers, have played in this debacle. Sometimes, news is boring. Sometimes, after countless RPGs have been fired on American troops, one more becomes “just another news day.” But that reality exists because too many citizens have abdicated their responsibility to know what’s happening in the world around them regardless of whether it’s inherently sexy, interesting, or tabloid-worthy.
In the case of Brian Williams, it turns out no one really shot the messenger, so perhaps we shouldn’t, either. At least not without looking in the mirror first.
Read MoreNew Hampshire bill may do more
than control surveys
by Stan Zoller
The First Amendment guarantees five freedoms: freedom of religion, speech, press, the right to assemble and the right to petition.
And while journalists – whether student journalists or professional journalists – wrap themselves in the security blanket afforded Americans by the First Amendment, it does not guarantee good journalism.
What does help, and this is not breaking news, is for news organizations, student or otherwise, to check the pulse of their news consumers; in other words, localize national news stories trend stories.
It’s not rocket science and it just makes sense.
Unless you’re in New Hampshire.
Read MorePicture Freedom scholarship available
Students 13 and older can win a $1,ooo scholarship by sharing photos and artwork that illustrate freedom of expression in competition announced Feb. 3 by 1 for All and its partners. 
Obtain information about the contest here.
Click here to download the official rules. A guest column by Ken Paulson, president of the Newseum Institute’s First Amendment Center, and the contest’s media ads are available for publishing in print and online.
Picture Freedom is supported by the American Society of News Editors, the Journalism Education Association, the John Seigenthaler Chair of Excellence in First Amendment Studies at Middle Tennessee State University, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Newseum Institute’s First Amendment Center, and hundreds of teachers and journalists.
Contestant entries must be submitted via a public posting to the social networking sites Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or between the hours of 12:00:00 AM EST on Feb. 22, 2015 and 11:59:59 PM PST on Feb. 28, 2015.
The entry must contain the hashtag #PictureFreedom (not case sensitive) and must be accessible to the general public (remove all privacy settings relating to this post or tweet).
Our best dream: start from the beginning
An article in the Washington Times titled “Liberals’ worst nightmare: South Carolina schools move toward pro-gun curriculum,” caught our attention tonight.
SC Rep. Alan Clemmons’ proposal would allow, according to the Washington Times, “reasonable pro-gun expression by students.” The proposal would require instruction on the right to bare arms for at least three consecutive weeks in the school year.
We applaud a legislator farsighted enough to want students to be aware of the Constitution and to apply its tenets.
We just think he started the process one too late.
He should start with the First Amendment not the Second.
We can see the model now:
• From his proposal: essay contests and Second Amendment Day allowing “reasonable” Second Amendment expression in school without fear of punishment, The Washington Times reported.
• Our addition: essay contests and a First Amendment Day allowing “reasonable” free expression emphasizing student freedom of expression in and out of school for each school year.
• From his proposal: According to the Washington Times, Clemmons said, “I believe that all students in American should be taught civics and the importance of our constitutional freedoms.”
• Our addition: What he said. But start with the First.
The freedom to speak:
the John Wall Voices Act
by Faith Harron, sophomore
Century High School
Century Star newsmagazine
The Constitution of the United States guarantees all are created free and equal and endowed with the same rights.
When it comes to journalism, though, many high school and college students are not equal to their adult counterparts.
Some a few in North Dakota are trying to change that. With the backing of representatives Jessica Haak and Corey Mock, a bill was written by college students at the University of Jamestown and introduced it in the House this month.
The current bill, the John Wall New Voices Act, is something different. It would grant student journalists in high school (like me) as well as college limited First Amendment rights to publish school newspapers.
“The John Wall New Voices Act is a wonderful tool to ensure student journalists are provided the same freedoms that professional journalists are awarded thanks to our First Amendment,” said Corey Mock, assistant minority leader in the North Dakota House of Representatives. “Since I had been working on the bill with Rep. Haak since April of 2013, sponsoring the bill was the easiest decision I have made all session long.”
Censorship is akin to blunting a pen, or even writing in invisible ink. What purpose does the story serve if it never sees the light of day? This is sometimes the case when prior review is allowed.
This allows the censorship of “questionable content.”
But who is the judge of “questionable content?” Is it the authorities in the school? The journalism advisers? The students, who have been taught to judge between right and wrong?
Jeremy Murphy was a West Fargo teacher who was fired because there “was a difference in philosophy when it came to student journalism and how students decided content for the publications,” he said.
He was later rehired by the school district and continues to teach journalism with no prior review, and adds “there is probably a fear factor when it comes to a bill on student expression…some people might think it allows students free reign on what they can do.”
However, there are guidelines written into the bill for appropriate student speech. But there are other concerns about the bill.
[pullquote]Censorship and the chilling effect are hard to prove. We can show how…widespread this issue is nationally, and we hope that our legislators will know that we North Dakotans are not immune. – Steven Listopad, University of Jamestown[/pullquote]
“[A] threat to a bill like this is the ‘ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ principle,” said Steven Listopad, the teacher who helped his Jamestown students draft the bill. “Censorship and the chilling effect are hard to prove. We can show how…widespread this issue is nationally, and we hope that our legislators will know that we North Dakotans are not immune. We North Dakotans, just like any other human being, will choose more control over less in any given situation even though when it comes to your right to speak less control is exactly what we need.”
What started as a class project in COMM 412: Civics and Citizen Journalism at the University of Jamestown has become a bill…and possibly a law.
“The John Wall New Voices Act will be heard by the House Education committee this month and hopefully given a ‘do pass’ recommendation before it comes to a final vote on the House floor,” Mock said.
I’m just one high school journalist, and I can’t say I speak for all undergraduate nonfiction writers out there. But I would never consider writing something libelous or obscene. Knowing my peers, I don’t believe they would, either.
It’s a bill. It won’t solve the world’s hunger problems, and it won’t make everyone equal. It probably doesn’t matter to everyone in the world.
But it matters to me, and my peers, and maybe it can help someone share their story. At the very least, it’s a start.
Read More
Documenting biodiversity in Chicagoland
Third in a 10 part series of student journalists Making a Difference
In Carolyn Fritts journalistic writing course, at Glenbard West High School, in Glen Ellyn, Ill., she requires students to a research local topic and produce a comprehensive film documentary as their final exam.
Students set out to discover what happens to Chicago when the ecosystem collapses and what can happen when individuals take measures to protect and promote biodiversity. “The Loss of Biodiversity in the Chicagoland Area” captures the ravages of urban sprawl.
Biodiversity in urban settings decreases with urban sprawl. Urban amphibians are the first victims. Students looked at how scientists are trying to return flora and fauna back to its most natural state.
This 15-minute documentary shows the devastation to the wild life in the 370,000-acre area in the Chicagoland area and how ecologists work to reverse the devastation. Featuring interviews with naturalists and ecologists, these student journalists tell the story of ways professionals even use fire to restore habitats to clear out the invasive species to help the habitat heal itself.
According to Fritts, the students had to “interview two experts concerning their topic, conduct extensive background research, film footage to supplement the documentary’s narrative, and provide voice overs to incorporate research.”
Making a difference is not just about reporting the intensely controversial topics that surround schools, but searching out stories that impact the environment around the schools. The students at Glenbard High School have done this.
Read More