FYS 20 Good News, Bad News

Fall 2011

Jill Van Wyke

Drake University
First-Year Seminar
Good News, Bad News FYS 020  CRN 1833 Fall 2011 Tuesday/Thursday 3:30-4:45 p.m. Meredith Hall 206
Instructor: Office: Hours: Phone: Email: Class blog: Jill Van Wyke Meredith 114 Monday, Wednesday 1-4 p.m. and by appointment 271-3867 jill.vanwyke@drake.edu (preferred) twitter.com/jillvanwyke diigo.com/user/jvanwyke www.fys20.wordpress.com

Democracy stakes everything on a continuing dialogue of informed citizens. And that dialogue rises or falls on whether the discussion is based on propaganda and deceit or on facts and verification pursued with a mind willing to learn. If the public and the press are not up to the task, then the whole question of whether democracy works falls into doubt. Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel, Blur The embarrassment is that Im given credibility in this world because of the disappointment that the public has in what the news media does. Jon Stewart to Chris Wallace, Fox News Sunday host Once students learn to seek truth instead of accept truth, they are well on their way to the kind of power the Founders abundantly reserved for American citizens. Dean Miller, director, Center for News Literacy

Introduction Its been said that information is the oxygen of democracy. In other words, if democracy is to survive, much less thrive, citizens must base their decisions, votes and actions on fact and verification pursued with a mind willing to learn (Kovach, Rosenstiel). But all information is not equal. How do you judge the trustworthiness of what you read, watch and hear in the news? That has always been a challenge, far back into history. Even Europeans who held power in the 1400s wrung their hands over how the printing press upended traditional society. But in todays era of excessive media consolidation, the financial collapse of traditional news media and the blurring of the once-distinct role of media in society, the challenge is even greater.

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FYS 20 Good News, Bad News

Fall 2011

Jill Van Wyke

Yet as citizens in a democracy, we have a responsibility and an obligation to base our decisions on the closest approximation of truth that is possible. In this class, well learn to critically analyze the news media so we become more discriminating consumers of the information we need to self-govern. Together we will explore these and other questions: 1. What is journalism? 2. What is the purpose of journalism? 3. Who is a journalist, and who is not? 4. Whom do journalists work for? 5. What is news, and who decides? 6. If information is power, who controls the information? 7. How do you judge the reliability and credibility of news reports and news sources? 8. Are the media biased? Is the audience biased? 9. Can journalists be objective? 10. Who is watching the watchdogs? 11. How is the digital revolution reshaping the relationship between the press and the powerful, including government? 12. How are citizen journalism and social media influencing what news we get and how we get it? Finally, and most important, we will explore how being an active, informed and critical consumer of news equips us to make good life and citizenship decisions and how our communities (both of geography and of interests) can benefit from what we know.

At its core, this class is about preparing for full citizenship in a nation that desperately needs engaged, intelligent, discerning citizens.
Please note that this course will focus specifically on news literacy rather than media literacy. That is, we will not be examining advertising, film, literature, television entertainment or other forms of mass communication (unless they relate in some way to news). Although news literacy is our topic, the crux of this course is critical thinking and writing. As we pursue these questions about news together, well gather information and evaluate it knowledgeably and critically. Well wade through complex and competing claims. Well challenge how we know what we think we know. Well write in many forms and styles: research papers, analytical and argumentative essays, reflections, oral presentations, blog posts, even tweets. Well investigate reading and writing strategies that will prepare you for the academic rigor expected at the college level. None of you will be doing this work alone or in isolation. We are a community of learners. Our classroom is one of rich collaboration in which all of us not just the teacher contribute to our learning.

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FYS 20 Good News, Bad News

Fall 2011

Jill Van Wyke

The success of this community of learners will depend on our commitment to intellectual integrity. We must be willing to keep an open mind, challenge long-held beliefs and assumptions, support our arguments with evidence, and thoughtfully weigh alternative ideas and opinions. At times we will disagree (I love those moments). At all times we will maintain civility and respect for each other. Class Format and Blog Officially, our classroom is Mer. 206. Unofficially, our classroom is the world. News doesnt happen only on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 3:30 and 4:45. Thus, you can expect that we will be communicating frequently outside of class via email, Twitter, blogs and Facebook, particularly when a news story is breaking or developing. You will be expected to come to class having paid attention to and participated in those out-of-class exchanges. The time we do spend together in class will be a mix of a little lecture, a lot of discussion and collaboration, and plenty of hands-on research and writing. In pursuit of answers to the questions listed on the previous page, we will:       read, watch and listen to a vast variety of local, national and international news coverage. contrast the news coverage ofevents by various news outlets, including those outside of the U.S. meet with journalists. read books and articles that critique the media. tackle a series of writing assignments to reflect on our consumption of news and to critique news coverage. use some of the same tools and skills that journalists themselves use, including Twitter, blogging, Google Docs, Google Reader, Facebook, Diigo, Paper.Li and Storify participate in social media, as both consumers and creators of content become active participants in media demanding good journalism. or mediactivists by advocating for and

 

Our main undertaking this semester will be the creation and upkeep of a blog on the news media to which we will all contribute, beginning in late September. Our blog will be a way to directly apply what we learn about meaningful, ethical and responsible journalism by critiquing its practice in the professional world. The URL is www.fys20.wordpress.com. The blog is also an essential communication tool for this class. On it you will find the syllabus, assignments, discussions and so on. Bookmark it, and get in the habit of checking it daily. The blog is public. I will do my best to always be prepared for class and to be organized and clear. However, the path this class follows will be determined by whatever happens in the news between now and mid-December. Although I have a broad schedule outlined, you will notice that I do not provide a week-by-week or day-by-day calendar. If a big

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FYS 20 Good News, Bad News

Fall 2011

Jill Van Wyke

story breaks or a media scandal erupts, we will drop our plans and pursue it. Be flexible, and enjoy the ride. Course Objectives First-year seminars are designed to help students work intensively on both reading and writing through sustained critical inquiry. According to the University, a first-year seminar: y y y y y y y Aims to establish a sense of community among members Encourages active participation by students in the class Helps integrate first-year students into an academic culture Sharpens students writing and verbal communication skills Focuses on a topic, approach or theme Focuses on critical thinking and ways of knowing as well as content Invites connections among several areas of study or disciplines

Lets examine those goals more specifically, by defining the objectives for our topic, for critical thinking, and for reading and writing: News literacy objectives y evaluate news coverage with a critical and analytical eye so as to judge its reliability y discern credible information from opinion, spin, rumor, advertising and propaganda y differentiate between news and opinion, bias and fairness, assertion and verification, and evidence and inference y identify news media bias and audience bias y be an active, responsible participant in the news ecosystem, not just a passive consumer y identify how we, as informed and critical news consumers, can make good life and citizenship decisions, and how we might influence and benefit our communities Critical thinking objectives y clearly define a question or problem y gather information that is relevant to that problem y rigorously identify assumptions and preconceptions, including our own, that influence analysis of that problem y organize and prioritize the information to develop a rational argument that states a clear claim or thesis, provides reasons for holding that claim, provides relevant evidence to support each reason, and considers alternative explanations in reaching a conclusion y communicate that reasoned argument effectively in speech, writing, or other medium as appropriated y realize that results are tentative and open to revision Reading and writing objectives y improve your reading and writing skills so you can succeed in an academic culture

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FYS 20 Good News, Bad News

Fall 2011

Jill Van Wyke

y y y y

y y

y y

identify and access information on the web, in databases and at the library evaluate sources of information knowledgeably and critically analyze complex and competing claims review some of the basics of writing, such as developing a thesis statement, supporting that statement with evidence, organizing an argumentative essay, and revising that essay produce writing in various forms (research papers, reflections, analytical and argumentative essays, oral presentations, blogs, etc.) blend personal scholarship and course materials to write forcefully about news media standards and practices, as well as First Amendment issues and issues of fairness and bias. apply research and writing strategies improve our writing through a succession of revisions and peer mentoring

Requirements
You are required to be an avid consumer of a wide variety of news media: TV; print and online newspapers and magazines; blogs; and radio. You will also be required to participate in social media, including Twitter, Facebook, blogging and Diigo. You must also read The Des Moines Register daily. It is your hometown newspaper while you are here at Drake and is available free to students in many classroom buildings, including Meredith Halls south lobby. Texts y Kovach, Bill, and Rosenstiel, Tom. The Elements of Journalism: What Newspeople Should Know and the Public Should Expect. Three Rivers Press, revised/updated 2007. Gillmor, Dan. Mediactive. 2010. Published under Creative Commons license. Strunk, William Jr., and White, E.B. The Elements of Style, Longman, 4th edition.

y y

All three books are widely available in paperback. You shouldnt need to pay more than $40 total for all three books. Please do purchase your own copy, however, rather than borrowing from a friend or library. One of the skills well learn this semester is annotation of our reading, and youll want books in which you can write freely. Used copies are fine, if they arent heavily marked up. Just make sure you buy the correct edition.

Assignments
The assignments in this class will depend largely on what news occurs between August and December. That makes it impossible to plot out a week-to-week schedule of assignments. Be prepared for numerous writing assignmentsdetermined by news that unfolds. At a minimum, you can count on the following: y three submissions to our class blog on media criticism. (These will be done collaboratively, with one or two of your classmates.) y a letter to the editor on an issue of media responsibility

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FYS 20 Good News, Bad News

Fall 2011

Jill Van Wyke

y y y y y y

a lengthy paper (7-10 pages) on a research topic of your choosing (with instructor approval) an oral presentation summarizing the highlights of your research project a case study analyzing coverage of a news event a case study analyzing the use of social media by a journalist or a news outlet regular brief papers to reflect on news coverage, assigned readings and our learning numerous in-class writing assignments, intended to generate thinking and discussion

Much of our writing will be public. As we become empowered and responsible consumers and creators in this media-saturated age, we will be putting our work out there for others to read, respond to, and build from. I reserve the right, in consultation and collaboration with you, to adjust assignments.

Grading
My evaluation of your performance in this course will be based primarily onyour engagement with the classand the plentiful writing assignments youll complete. Engagement = 25%. I do not grade on participation in my other classes. But your success in this class and at Drake is rooted in active engagement in and out of class, with each other and with me, and with many others within and without Drakes community. Thus, a significant portion of your grade will be participation. I prefer to call it engagement. Engagement is assessed in and out of class and includes attendance, tweeting, commenting online on blogs and articles, bookmarking, collaborating, adequately preparing for class, contributing thoughtfully to discussions, and attending campus lectures and events. There will be plentiful opportunities to earn credit for engagement. Writing and Other Assignments = 75%. This portion of your grade will primarily be your numerous writing assignments and your final presentation, although it may also include quizzes and other work. I may not give letter grades to all your writing. This is in recognition that writing is a process, that papers are always in revision and that this course is developmental. It also recognizes that you should have the opportunity to experiment and take risks in your writing without penalty. We learn more from our failures and missteps than we do from our successes. I will attempt to keep current with grading and will enter grades on Blackboard. You will receive more detailed expectations for grading early in the semester. I reserve the right, in consultation and collaboration with you, to adjust the weighting of grades. Drake University uses a lettered grading policy, A-F, and does not permit the issuance of + or grades. In other words, if you receive a final percentage grade of 80-89, you will receive a grade of B. A final note: Grades are earned, not given. I will evaluate you fairly, openly and honestly to arrive at a final grade that reflects your learning and mastery of the course content. I will not take into consideration other factors such as your wish to

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FYS 20 Good News, Bad News

Fall 2011

Jill Van Wyke

keep a scholarship, hold a leadership position in a campus group, retain athletic eligibility, attend graduate school, please your family, or impress your friends. If you want a certain grade, you will have to earn it.

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FYS 20 Good News, Bad News

Fall 2011

Jill Van Wyke

Course Policies
Academic dishonesty I will not tolerate plagiarism, fabrication, cheating or any other kind of academic dishonesty. Nor will I tolerate a student who helps somebody else plagiarize, fabricate or cheat. Such acts are a betrayal of this community of scholars, which is committed to the highest professional and personal standards. If you are academically dishonest in this class, you will fail the class. If you are a Drake SJMC student, I will recommend you be expelled from the school. If you are not an SJMC student, I will refer you to the dean of your school to be adjudicated through its formal channels. Deadlines, Late Work: Your work must be turned in on time, no exceptions. Extra credit: Nope, not a possibility. Youll have enough demands on your time. The grade you earn will be based only on the stated course requirements. Too often, extra credit rewards students who have learned too little with a grade that is undeservedly high. That is unfair to those students who legitimately earn the higher grades by mastering the course content. I do not assign grades. You earn them. Incompletes: Incomplete final grades are available only for emergencies and only if a student is averaging at least a C grade. Incompletes are not given simply because you have fallen behind, missed too much class, are doing poorly, or are overwhelmed by the usual stress of college life. Attendance: Unexcused absences will lower your grade. Absences may be excused if you are sick or have a family emergency, but I dont expect that to be necessary more than twice a semester. If you are too sick to learn, stay home. Absences are not excused unless you have emailed me in advance of the class youll miss. In-class work missed during unexcused absences receives an F and may not be made up. Inclass work missed during an excused absence must be made up within one week of the absence. Athletes, musicians and others who plan official travel must finish assigned work before they leave. Late class arrival and early departure times are noted. Every 50 minutes of missed class counts as an absence. Absences:Students who miss class are responsible for getting notes from a classmate. I will not re-teach a class session to an audience of one. It is not my responsibility to provide notes for missed classes or to review missed material. And please, if you miss class, do not ever ask if you missed anything important. You did. Professionalism: Now is the time to establish good professional habits (or break bad habits). y Technology: I am a strong proponent and advocate of using the latest technology to enhance teaching and learning. I frequently use my laptop and smartphone in meetings and in class to access or share information. You are welcome to do so, too, if their use is for legitimate educational purposes and is not distracting to others. We will frequently use our laptops and tablets for writing and research during class. They will be essential tools. That said, a few ground rules:

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FYS 20 Good News, Bad News

Fall 2011

Jill Van Wyke

Unless you are taking notes, your attention and eyes should be focused on whoever is speaking, not on a screen. Certainly in one-on-one conversations, your laptop and phone should be set aside and your full attention turned to whoever is speaking to you. Phones: Silence or turn off your cell phones during class. Dont text during class unless it is for a related purpose. Laptops, phones and tablets: You are welcome to use them to take notes in class or access the Web for class-related purposes. Using them to check Facebook, play games or idly surf will result in the loss of this privilege. Devices should be set aside during discussions. If you visit me in the office or we stop to chat in the hallway or on campus, I promise that I will give you my full attention, and I expect the same from you. We shouldnt have to compete with phones, tablets and iPods for each others attention.

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Chitchat: Please finish any extended personal conversations before we start class and resume them after class. If you simply cant avoid chatting with a friend during class, then sit elsewhere. Sleeping: If youre sleeping in class, you may as well be absent. Learning is more than just being a body in a seat. Please take care of your physical and mental health so that you can be in class in both body and mind, not just body. In addition to hampering your learning, sleeping is rude to me and to your classmates. Class begins at 3:30 p.m. You are expected to be ready to start learning then, not arriving and unpacking then. Class is scheduled to end at 4:45 p.m., and we will always meet until then. Discussion and debate: I love a lively debate, and we will discuss controversial topics. Please remember in these divisive times that good people can and will disagree. Keep an open mind, and maintain civility and respect for differing opinions at all time.

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Accommodations: If you have a disability and will require academic accommodations in this course, I would be happy to discuss your needs. Accommodations are coordinated through Student Disability Services. Please contact Michelle Laughlin, Student Disability Services coordinator, at 281-1835 or michelle.laughlin@drake.edu Food and drink: I recognizethat students can have frantic schedules and that class may be the only time you have to squeeze in a meal, snack or caffeine fix. Please dont bring messy or smelly food. Mind your manners. Drinks must have lids. Clean up your mess. Always keep all drinks safely away from anybodys laptop, tablet or other electronic gear.

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FYS 20 Good News, Bad News

Fall 2011

Jill Van Wyke

Important Dates
Aug. 26 Sept. 2 Sept. 6 Sept. 8 Sept. 11-17 Sept. 22 Oct. 13 Oct. 14 Oct. 17-18 Nov. 1 Nov. 17 Nov. 22 Nov. 27-Dec. 3 Dec. 1 Dec. 8 Dec. 9 Dec. 12 Last day to add a class Last day to drop a class without a W Library immersion Attend forum with Robert Reich, former U.S. secretary of labor Case study 1 Case study 1 due First iteration of research paper due Midpoint of semester Fall break Second iteration of research paper due Final research paper due Thanksgiving break begins after night classes Case study 2 Last day to turn in letter to the editor Case study 2 due Dead day Final exam period. Presentations of research findings. 4-5:50 p.m.

Tentative schedule
Weeks 1-3 Aug. 23-Sept. 8 What is news literacy, and why doesit matter Current state of news media Examining our news habits and consumption The fourth estate What is journalism How is journalism different from other information Who is a journalist Journalism ethics What is news, and who decides Journalism as a business Corporatization and conglomeration What is journalistic truth and how is it verified How journalists do their jobs Judging the reliability and credibility of news Media and audience bias Neutrality, objectivity, balance Manipulation of news The democratization of news What the future holds Presentations of research findings.

Weeks 4-5 Sept. 13-22

Weeks 6-7 Sept. 27-Oct. 6

Weeks 8-10 Oct. 11-27 Weeks 11-14 Nov. 1-22

Weeks 15-16 Nov. 29-Dec. 8 Dec. 12, 4-5:50 p.m.

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