Jour277 Public Affairs Reporting 

"Good writers abound - be a good reporter" - Mel Mencher

Instructor: Tony Rogers

Office: Penn 129/Phone: 968-8165/E-mail: journalism@bucks.edu

ADJUNCT INSTRUCTOR LANNY MORGNANESI

LANNY'S BLOG

Course objective: To learn how to cover the basic beats of daily journalism.
 

BOOKS AND MATERIALS:

NewsReporting and Writing, by Melvin Mencher

Newswriting on Deadline, by Tony Rogers

The Associated Press Stylebook and Libel Manual

A flash drive formatted for IBM PCs

Bring your disk to EVERY class and carry a reporter's notepad with you at all times. You never know when you'll come across an armed robbery in progress.

ABSENCES: Every UNEXCUSED absence drops you a letter grade. If you have to miss class and have a legit excuse, let me know. And if you miss class, it's up to YOU to find out what assignments you missed.

LATE WORK: Deadlines are crucial. Unexcused late work will be dropped a letter grade.

COLLEGE PLAGIARISM POLICY

QUIZZES: There will be regular quizzes on the assigned readings and a weekly news quiz, so read at least one newspaper daily - if possible The Philadelphia Inquirer or New York Times - or scan the AP wire. Check the Virtual Newsroom for tons of news websites.

EXTRA CREDIT: You earn extra credit by writing as much as possible for the Centurion or some other local publication.

MENTORING: You earn extra credit by spending a shift with a reporter or editor at the Bucks County Courier Times. See me if you want to do this.

GRADES: Your final grade will be based on writing assignments, quizzes, class participation and extra credit work. Writing assignments count the most.

WRITING: You're required to write roughly a half-dozen articles this semester, both in and outside of class. Make two copies of all articles - one for me and one for the Centurion. All stories must follow AP style. Assignments will come from the main news beats, and include the following:

OTHER LINKS

JOUR277 LINKS FOR VARIOUS BEATS

COP LECTURE

COURT LECTURE

LIBEL LAW

INTERACTIVE CITY COUNCIL EXERCISE

NEWSWRITING ON DEADLINE

NEWSWRITING EXERCISES

AP STYLE QUIZ 1

AP STYLE QUIZ 2

AP STYLE QUIZ 3

AP STYLE QUIZ 4

FRONTLINE: REAL JUSTICE

REAL JUSTICE STATS