chapter contains a short feature article based on an interview with a journalism professional who has expertise on the chapter topic. Interviewees spotlighted in these features were drawn from the ranks of today’s most innovative editors and reporters working in TV, radio or print/online publications. The text also relies on the eminent advice of book authors and specialists from journalism think tanks and advocacy organizations, such as Poynter, the Solutions Journalism Network and the Ethical Journalism Network. You will learn best practices in journalism directly from the seasoned experts who are on the ground doing the work.
Helpful Hints
“Helpful Hints” features contain valuable information in easy-to-digest boxes. Topics range from how to increase your own media literacy skills to writing and production dos and don’ts to suggestions for ways to report with greater depth and meaning. Reporters can use these as checklists for their writing, reporting and production or as guides for practicing different storytelling techniques.
From the Field
A journalism text can be helpful only if it includes real stories and examples from the field. These selected features include short articles about journalism educators, reporters and media companies such as the Lenfest Institute for Journalism and Hearken. These field notes also provide explanations of journalism practices and guidelines used by media organizations. Each of these boxes is filled with real-world advice and instruction from people and organizations who have dedicated their lives to studying journalism strategies and applying them in the field.
The Whole Story
Chapters focused on writing also lay out full-length articles that reflect the section’s topic. Each article is annotated with commentary to help you break down each feature story and understand its organization and the writing techniques used therein. Above all, the articles are intended to inspire you to create your own dynamic news features.
Acknowledgments
This book would not have been possible without the time, expertise and support of my journalist husband, Jeremy Cox. His tireless work editing every chapter, making suggestions based on his years of experience in the field and tightening my writing throughout was invaluable. I cannot thank him enough.
Thanks go out to my colleagues in Salisbury University’s Department of Communication, who picked up the slack while I buried myself in this project during my sabbatical and beyond. Special thanks to my dean, Maarten Pereboom, and department chair, Lori DeWitt, for their assistance with my travels in researching this book and support in completing it. I would also like to thank my 2016 Participatory Journalism class, whose work helped inspire and inform several chapters of this text. In particular, I would like to thank my students, many of whom are out in the field committing amazing acts of journalism. I am proud to feature some of their excellent work in these chapters.
So many wonderful journalists and educators were kind enough to donate their time to give interviews and answer questions, including Michael Kilian, Burt Herman, Lane DeGregory, Terry DeMio, Jacqui Banaszynski, Amy Kovac-Ashley, Katherine Ellis, Abeer Saady, Ted Conover, Nancy Mullane, Steve Hartman, Jesse Hardman, Carolyn Powers, Jennifer Brandel, Sara Catania, Nicole Dahmen, Ben Lowy, Sandra Stevenson, Hannah Gaber, Katie Davis, Al Tompkins and my former student Brooke Reese. This book would not have been possible without their valuable insight and genuine passion for journalism.
The team at SAGE took all the fear and uncertainty out of writing my first book. Special thanks go to my editorial partners, Sarah Wilson and Lily Norton, who answered my copious emails at all hours of the day and night and provided constant wisdom and guidance throughout the writing process. Special thanks to Rachel Keith, who learned a whole new style of writing on my behalf and whose tireless work editing vastly improved the book. My work is better for having all of you on my side. I would also like to thank our SAGE representative, Jerry Higgins, who put me in contact with editors and was the first to help me get this idea off the ground.
I owe everything to my family and friends, who served as my inspiration, my cheerleaders and my support system. Thanks to my parents, who made me the person I am today: Barbara Albury, who will make this text the crown jewel of her signed-books collection; James Brannock, who will carry it with him wherever he goes to use as a conversation starter; Mindy Brannock, who probably already has a spot picked out for it on the mantel; and Richard Albury, who will notice any errors but will love it anyway. Thanks to my siblings, James and Joshua Brannock, Nathaniel and Julianne Albury and Valerie Gauthier, for always having my back and making my life better. Thank you to my Cox family in-laws for their encouragement. Thanks also to my amazing Salisbury family for their constant love, support and willingness to help in so many ways. I am most grateful to God, who makes all things possible.
Finally, thanks to my daughter, Charlie Cox, who always believed in me, tolerated my hectic schedule and pushed me to be the best I can be. You make me proud every day.
SAGE would like to thank the following instructors for their constructive feedback during the development of this book:
Stuart C. Babington, Spring Hill College
Sharon Bloyd-Peshkin, Columbia College Chicago
Lisa Byerley Gary, University of Tennessee
Judith G. Curtis, University of North Carolina at Pembroke
Sarah Duerden, Arizona State University
Sean C. Flannery, Immaculata University
Andrea Greenbaum, Barry University
Donna Harrington-Lueker, Salve Regina University
Mary Haupt, Binghamton University
Karima A. Hayes, Bowie State University
Farooq A. Kperogi, Kennesaw State University
Kevin M. Moist, Penn State Altoona
Dante Mozie, South Carolina State University
Robert Nanney, The University of Tennessee at Martin
Emmanuel K. Ngwainmbi, University of North Carolina
Kathy Petitte Novak, University of Illinois at Springfield
Robert Rabe, Marshall University
Jonna Reule Ziniel, Valley City State University
Melody Sands, Shawnee State University
Daniel Sipocz, Berry College
Christina C. Smith, Georgia College and State University
Jennifer Brannock Cox, Ph.D., is an award-winning professor, scholar and adviser at Salisbury University in Maryland, where she primarily teaches courses on print and multimedia journalism. She has created several new courses addressing this evolving field, including Mobile Journalism, Advanced Feature Storytelling, Immersion Journalism and Seeking Solutions Through Journalism. Cox spent several years working as a journalist at newspapers throughout Florida, and she maintains her skills as a multimedia freelancer on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.
Cox
