Readings & Schedule

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Schedule and readings are subject to change. Some readings will be assigned to a sub-set of students to read and lead discussion.

The reading reflection is not a summary or abstract of the readings. Rather, it is a reflection on the ideas and concepts raised in the pieces. Use this post to explore the materials for the week and think about how they might contribute to your future work or outlook. Length: 300-450 words + two open-ended questions at the end of the post. Reading posts are due at 9 pm Monday.

week 1 – social and technological context (th 3 apr)

- Who are we and why are we in this class?

- What does the world of journalism and politics look like in an digital age?

- What are social media? What’s the impact on journalism and politics?

- Technologies: WordPress, blog categories

• Read before Thursday: Dispatches From Blogistan (D.F.B), Forward, Ch 1
• Other Resources:
  • WordPress Tips

week 2 – social and technological context (tu 8 apr, th 10 apr)

- From Thomas Paine to Blogs (and points in-between)

- A brief history of the Internet and blogging.

- Blogging: definition, features and forms.

- Technologies: RSS, Bloglines

• Everyone: Dispatches From Blogistan (D.F.B), Ch 9
• Everyone: Introduction to Online Journalism [eReserve]
• Everyone: We The Media (W.T.M), Intro, Ch 1 http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/wemedia/book/ch00.pdf

  http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/wemedia/book/ch01.pdf

• Pick one for 3 points extra-credit:(a) Agre, P. (1999, July 30). “Find Your Voice.” Paper (draft) presented at Webzine ‘99.

  (b) Bernstein, M. (2002, August 16). “10 Tips On Writing the Living Web.” A List Apart.

• Other Resources:
  • The BBC’s 15 Web Principles (2007)
  • The Elements of Digital Storytelling (2005)
  • Poynter Online
  • The Washington Post’s 10 Web “Principles” (2007)

week 3 – journalism in a digital world (tu 15 apr, th 17 apr)

- Why are newspapers and broadcast outlets on the Web?

- Why are politicians and governments on the Web?

- How are digital public different from traditional media publics?

- Technologies: Twitter, GoogleMaps

• Everyone: D.F.B, Ch 2, Ch 4
• Everyone: W.T.M, Ch 2
• Pick one for 3 points extra-credit:(a) From Blog to Narrative (Poynter, 2008 )

  (b) How Breaking News Is Broken (O’Reilly, 2007)

• Other Resources:
  • (2007, Aug 26). Here’s How Reporters Use Twitter. NowPublic.
  • Bradshaw, P. (2008, Mar 28 ). UK Government Now On Twitter. PoynterOnline.
  • Cooper, C. (2005, Nov. 11). All the news that’s fit to blog. cNet.
  • Jarvis, J. (2006, Jan. 18 ). Deconstructing the Newspaper. BuzzMachine.
  • Mernit, S. (2003, April 3). Kevin Sites and the Blogging Controversy. Online Journalism Review.
  • Stovall, J. (2006, Mar 31). Writing Summaries. JPROF – The Web Site For Teaching Journalism.

week 4 – journalism and social media (tu 22 apr, th 24 apr)

- What are social media? How have they changed the relationship between media outlet and audience?

- How might journalists use or create networks to support their work? How does crowd-sourcing work?

- Technologies: “tags” (folksonomy), del.icio.us, wikis

• Everyone: Here Comes Everybody, Ch 3 [eReserve]
• Three individual readings
  • (1 – Whitney T Jessica) Dube, J. (2008, Mar 27). Creating A Primary Place For Citizens Online. Poynter Online: Web Tips.
  • (2 – Samantha) Glaser, M. (2005, Sept. 13). NOLA.com blogs and forums help save lives after Katrina. Online Journalism Review.
  • (3 – Lorin) Rosen, J. (2004, Mar 25). What Is Journalism? And What Can Weblogs Do About It? PressThink. [substitute article]
• Other Resources:
  • Flickr’ing The News
  • Participation Online: The 4 C’s
  • Rhetoric, Community & Culture of Weblogs (Miller, C.R. and Shepherd, D. Blogging as Social Action: A Genre Analysis of the Weblog. In Into The Blogosphere.
  • Social Networking Will Become Ubiquitous … That Doesn’t Mean It’s A Business (The Economist, Mar 2008 )

week 5 – blogs as citizen journalism (tu 29 apr, th 1 may)

- What’s the difference between”personal” journalism and “news”? What’s an “act of journalism”?

- Newspapers go hyper-local (what’s that?)

- Technologies: Newsvine

• Everyone: D.F.B., Ch 6
• Everyone: W.T.M., Ch 7
• Three individual readings
  • (1 – Kendra) Carroll, B. (2004). Culture Clash: Journalism and the Communal Ethos of the Blogosphere. In L.J. Gurak, S. Antonijevic, L. Johnson, C. Ratliff, & J. Reyman (Eds.), Into the blogosphere: Rhetoric, community, and culture of weblogs.
  • (2 – Faith) Outing, S. (2005, June 13). The 11 layers of citizen journalism. PoynterOnline.
  • (3 – Whitney B) Yeon-Jung, Y. (2003, Sept. 17). OhMyNews Makes Every Citizen A Reporter. Japan Media Review.

week 6 – social media and politics (tu 6 may, th 8 may)

- What has been the traditional role of journalism in relation to US politics? How have journalists carried out that role?

- What is the impact of social media on politics, especially political campaigns?

- What is the “proper” role of the political blogger and online pundit?

- What are the dangers of disintermediation?

- Technologies: Facebook, MySpace

• Everyone: W.T.M, Ch 9
• Everyone: Coolican, J.P. (2008, March 26). The Perils of Political Narrative. Poynter Online.
• Three individual readings
  • (1 – Nicole C) Howard, P. N. ( 2003). Digitizing the Social Contract: Producing American Political Culture in the Age of New Media. The Communication Review (6). 213-245. (pdf)
  • (2 – Kristine) Johnson, E. (2006). Polibloggers and the Politics Press In America. Reconstruction 6.4.
  • (3 – Jessica WhitneyT) Rosen, J. (2007, Nov. 14). These Beat Reporters Will Try The Social Network Way. PressThink.
• Other Resources
  • Baoill, A. (2004). Weblogs and the Public Sphere. In L.J. Gurak, S. Antonijevic, L. Johnson, C. Ratliff, & J. Reyman (Eds.), Into the blogosphere: Rhetoric, community, and culture of weblogs.
  • Boeder, P. (Sept 2005). Habermas’ Heritage: The Future of the Public Sphere In The Network Society. FirstMonday (10)5.
  • Cone, E. (2003, Nov. 17). The Marketing of a President. Baseline Magazine.
  • Newmark, C. (2006). Community Building On The Web: Implications for Journalism.
  • Poster, M. (Nov. 1995). The Net As Public Sphere? Wired.

week 7 – moving beyond the blog: podcasting, Flickr and YouTube (tu 13 may, th 15 may)

- What is the impact of NetVideo on politics and mainstream newspapers?

- What is the role and future of the multi-media journalist?

- Technologies: YouTube, Blip.tv, Current.tv, Flickr

• Everyone: D.F.B., Ch 7
• Two individual readings
  • (1 – Jason) Thompson, M. (2006, March 22). Why On Demand Changes Everything. Speech.
  • (2 – Sara) Yung, J. (2008, Jan 24). Newspapers Use YouTube Video Previews To Attract Readers. Online Journalism Review.
• Other Resources:
  • (2005, July 22). Tagging and Participative Journalism. You’re It: A Blog on Tagging.
  • Calore, M. (2007, Apr 26). Web Mashups Turn Citizens Into Washington’s Newest Watchdogs. Wired.
  • Niles, R. (2008, Mar 25). Passion fuels entrepreneurial journalism. Online Journalism Review.

week 8 – the legal environment (tu 20 may, th 22 may)

- Ethics, copyright and other laws

- Should political/news bloggers have a code of ethics?

- Technologies: Creative Commons License

• Everyone: D.F.B, Ch 12
• Everyone: W.T.M, Ch 11, 12
• Two individual readings
  • (1 – Nicole B) Blood, R. (2002). Weblog Ethics. In The Weblog Handbook. Perseus Books Group.
  • (2 – Khairun) Lessig, L. 1999. Chapter 1 and 5. Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace. New York: Basic Books [eReserve]
• Other Resources:
  • Newkirk, C., Forker, T. (2007, January). Does YouTube’s Bright Past Mean a Cloudy Future? Intellectual Property & Technology Law Journal; 19, 1. Retrieved 25 April 2007 from ABI/INFORM Global. [eReserve]
  • Templeton, B. (2004, October). “10 big myths about copyright explained.” Personal website.

week 9 – how technology shapes the world (tu 27 may, th 29 may)

- Why networks matter

- What is the role of computer code in shaping social processes? How is this related to politics and what are the implications for journalism and those who practice it?

- How do financial pressures shape news and public service?

• Everyone: D.F.B, Ch 13
• Everyone: Castells, M. (2004). Why Networks Matter (pdf). In Network Logic: Who Governs in an Interconnected World?, McCarthy, H., Miller, P., and Skidmore, P. eds. London: Demos. 221-224.
• Everyone: Thompson, C. (2006, April 9). “How Google News Is Changing The Way Newspaper Headlines Are Written.”

week 10 – convergence and the future of journalism (tu 3 june, th 5 june)