Just the facts, ma’am
Twenty-nine days and counting.
Some will look toward the culmination of that period positively. Others do so with dread.
April 1. April Fools.
JEA listservians carried out a lively discussion today on the merits and demerits of publishing an April Fools edition. SPLC executive director Frank LoMonte even said to keep his center’s phone number and e-mail address handy if students published such an issue.
Tough decision.
But, I think there are two core reasons for not publishing an April Fools issue:
• The information is known to be false. We spend the rest of the school year developing our credibility over controversy and defending students’ rights and obligation to print the truth. Then in one day we throw caution to the wind and go with information that is not only untrue but even could be taken to be misleading.
• We give others the right to know what is coming. Prior review. Prior approval. We do this, in some cases, with the best of intentions, so sources will not be caught unaware, and to make sure information is not too far out of line. We might even mix the untrue with the true, hoping our audiences can tell the difference. This scares me. We, including those of us carrying out JEA’s official position, argue and rant daily about the educational dangers of prior review. So in this case we want to say, here, check it out ahead of time? What will we say to those, now used to prior review, when they ask for it on something of substance?
Twenty-nine days.
A long period of time to think about the plusses and minuses.
No joke.
Read MoreEthical scenarios
Scenario 1:
Several in the sophomore class have asked the photo editors to remove their braces in their yearbook photo. The photo editor has asked the editor for advice.
What are some of the consideration points to consider as journalists? What should the editor’s advice be? Is this a legal or ethical consideration?
Directions for next step for each scenario: (Please note, under each of the next scenarios, the links to post are after the scenario description.)
After a discussion, the teacher could post the following link and ask students to now look at one of these and then repost to their original points to figure out if they were correct in their reasoning and idea.
Scenario 2:
As the sports editor, you want to include a screenshot of your local professional women’s basketball team from the local newspaper’s website to accompany a story on the stoppage of sports. Is this legal use of a photo? If it’s not, what might be a better option?
SPRC link for teachers to post.
Scenario 3:
A student who used to be on staff wrote a letter to the editor questioning the purpose of student media. Should you include the letter? Would it be different if it were an online comment only?
SPRC links for teachers to post:
Scenario 4:
Two students passed when the car was hit by a drunken driver. Should you cover the fatality? How might you do this?
SPRC link for teachers to post.
Next year, you have plans to make some changes to increase readership. The editorial board is deciding whether to add senior quotes, senior superlatives and senior wills. What are the pros and cons to these? Should they be included in student media?
SPRC links for teachers to post:
Scenario 6:
The students would like to publish an April Fool’s edition of the news media. Given what you know about the role of the student press, should this be done?
SPRC link for teachers to post.
Scenario 7:
You receive the following request:
“I was a student two years ago, and I was interviewed/wrote a story/was in a photo/made a comment that I regret now. I don’t want this showing up in Google searches. Please remove this story from your site.”
SPRC link for teachers to post.
Read MoreSatire in your publications:
Who is the joke really on?
by Jeff Kocur
Title
Satire in your publications: Who is the joke really on?
Description
Students think of themselves as smart and funny, but does that mean they can handle satire? Satire opens students up to many legal risks including libel and invasion of privacy. Use this activity to explore some of the pitfalls of using satire in your publications.
Objectives
- Students will explore the legal and ethical risks of using satire.
- Students will identify potential ethical issues in using satire.
- Students will become familiar with mistakes other school publications have made in publishing satire.
Common Core State Standards
| CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.2 | Determine two or more central ideas of a text and analyze their development over the course of the text, including how they interact and build on one another to provide a complex analysis; provide an objective summary of the text. |
| CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.1 | Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 11-12 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively. |
| CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.1.B | Work with peers to promote civil, democratic discussions and decision-making, set clear goals and deadlines, and establish individual roles as needed. |
| CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.4 | Present information, findings, and supporting evidence, conveying a clear and distinct perspective, such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning, alternative or opposing perspectives are addressed, and the organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and a range of formal and informal tasks. |
Length
50 minutes
Materials / resources
‘Advisory board’ formed after Ga. student paper runs ‘Modest Proposal’-style satire
Student satire publication lost funding, put on probation after article on sexual harassment
SPLC search results for “high school satire”
From experts:
Digiday highlights why many newspapers don’t do it.
Lesson step-by-step
Step 1 — Introduction (5 minutes)
Share a hypothetical satirical headline on your most high profile sport’s losing record.
Ask the students to identify the potential problems that might come with publishing a story like this.
Step 2 — Group assignment and work (40 minutes)
Separate the students into six groups and assign each of them a reading from the list above.
Students will read and complete the attached worksheet for the appropriate reading and report out to the class.
You could also turn this into a slideshow shared on Google docs with your students to fill out and present.
Step 3 — Exit ticket (5 minutes)
Students should answer the following:
What are the legal risks of running a satirical piece in student media?
Extension
Students could take this lesson a step further and develop a position of the use of satire. If they decided to use satire, they could also create an ethical statement outlining the ethical position of the students plus how they could handle satire ethical. See model for ethical guidelines, process.
Read More