Over the past few days, I've spent a lot of time watching TV news and analyzing how each network and news station has used their footage. Each news package is developed in a way that "snaps" and draws the reader in, keeping the tempo of the story. 

I spent significant time watching ABC 2 Baltimore. I can easily notice much less quality of video, computer graphics and editing as other national network stations. Even so, they still broadcast a great news channel. Their edits are fast and informative. 

Each shot seen obviously corresponds to the voice over of the package. There is also a great variation between tight shots and wide shots. I was able to clearly notice the movement in video as opposed to still visuals. I remember watching a short piece on journalism and the way the industry is going and the package contained many shots of moving newspapers and company signs amongst the public.  

In this season of "The Wire," there are a number of specific issues the show focuses on in concern to the newsroom and journalism across the board. There is a strong focus on the corporate ownership of newspapers well as recent trends in print journalism.

One aspect that stood out to me is the shows portrayal of newspapers in society and how the Internet relates to its success, or failure. In the show, one of the characters involved with The Baltimore Sun, envisioned a paper that did not have a focus on the Internet and did not want to see newspapers fade out and Internet sources fade in. The show explained that even the corporate owners of the Sun agreed with this vision for a long time and had a means to keep the paper the way it was, without the assistance from a Web site.

This however, could not last, which brings the show to illustrate what is changing about news and the newsroom. The paper was forced to make significant job cuts because the paper was receiving a significant less amount of readership. More people, especially younger readers were choosing not the read the print newspaper due to the Internet being available to them.

This focus on the show actually brings about a number of topics including job cuts, corporate ownership and the era of print journalism fading away. I think the show portrayed an accurate message of what is going on in the newsroom today.

This issue, in a way scares me because I fear that going into the journalism industry; it may be tough to keep a job. Print journalism is, I believe, dying out and only the journalists with great multimedia skills are left. Even so, this only makes me aware that, while in school, it is my duty to become as prepared as I possibly can be by learning so many new aspects of reporting that have become very popular in today's society.

"The Wire: Season 5" has done a great job at illustrating what is going on in the world of news and sort of helps open the eyes up to aspiring journalists, letting them know what they are getting in to. The characters in the episodes say that this trend was coming along and for the most part did not want to see it be present. THey, as well as the corporate owners saw a desire to have the paper maintain it's print aspects but society would not allow this to continue without there being significant changes.

Photo Taken from Google Images
Article Title (9/14/08): Code Red Heat Alert Issued for Today

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/baltimore_city/bal-md.briefs141sep14,0,3140283.story

Short Report:

With high humidity and temperatures forecast in the mid-90s today, the city has issued a Code Red heat alert and plans to open emergency cooling centers. Six centers, operated by the city Housing Department, will open at 10:30 a.m. They include: Northern Community Action Center, 5225 York Road; Southern Community Action Center, 606 Cherry Hill Road (inside the shopping center on the second floor); Northwest Community Action Center, 3314 Ayrdale Ave.; Western Community Action Center, 1133 Pennsylvania Ave.; Southeastern Community Action Center, 3411 Bank St.; and Eastern Community Action Center, 1400 E. Federal St. Residents can also go to Recreation and Parks centers throughout the city for relief from the heat, officials said. The Baltimore City Health Department recommends that residents check on older, sick, or frail people in the community who may need help.

Story taken from The Baltimore Sun (baltimoresun.com)

Article Title (9/14/08): China faults dairy for delayed notice of tainted milk

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/world/bal-te.china14sep14,0,3045693.story

Story Lead:

BEIJING - China's health minister blamed a dairy yesterday for the delay in warning the public about tainted milk powder linked to kidney stones in infants and at least one death, as authorities increased the number of known sick babies to 432.

What is a Lead??? What is a short report???

Illustration and explanation by: Daniel Gross

• A lead or lede in journalism is generally the beginning sentences to a news story. This is where the journalist attempts to write the most newsworthy portion of the story, usually including a number of the five W's (who, what, where, where and why.) The lead to a story is found at the very top of the story and is read before anything else.

Now, what you'll find is that in many stories, the writer does not always fit each of the five W's into the lead but saves some of them for later down the story. This is where the most prevalent information and story relevant sentences are found.

In my example, The Associated Press explains a situation in China where the health minister has blamed a dairy for not making proper warning to the public about certain milk causing kidney stones. The lead gives the reader a general idea of what the story will entail and what it is concerning. This lead chooses to cover the who, what, where and when of the story but does not explain the why until later. Still, it gives enough information to segway into further details.

• A short report can mean a number of specific things relating to a news story. Much of this is depending upon the source of media you are reading the news story from as well as the level of interest the story has. The short report is usually only a few sentences. It usually gives some interesting lines that will draw the reader in to let them know the basis of what has happened. It doesn't necessarily give a full outline of the story but it gives out something interesting to make the story appealing.

These shorts can also be used to get small pieces of information out before having the actual full story completed. This could be the case for some breaking news or news alert where there is something happening but the story is still being developed. The shorts can also be used for stories that don't necessarily deem full coverage. In the example, The Sun posted a weather alert to explain the heat advisory. There was no interviewing or investigating involved with this story. It was simply posted to alert the public and provide useful general information.