Bloomberg Journalism for News: Session 3

1. What is the angle of the story? Don't just talk about the theme! Theme's don't make stories. Pitch the idea with a particular angle. You may need to do preliminary basic reporting to find out information and validate that there is a story. The angle may change but have an angle. The are many judgement calls to make in journalism. Use your nouse... ask yourself 'What is the news?' When you wake up in the morning have a look at a broad spread of the news. You are up to date until you sleep.

2. Sourcing Picking the source is essential to getting the right information and not wasting time. Some sources will be more relevant to the main story and others to fill in the details. If you pick the correct source then the story will come out easily. This is a crucial stage for accuracy and credibility. Make NO ASSUMPTIONS. Do not want to be accused of defamation. Do not say without proof. This is the second and essential part of a TIP. If it is not confirmed then it is just a rumour and must not be published. Only write provable truth. Understate rather than overstate. Get the evidence through investigation.

3. There are 3 different news streams in a story meeting: 1.Scheduled, expected events that you can prepare for (Meetings, press conferences). 2.Enterprise stories - produced on your own effort, using your initiative, story about a trend, analysis. Confirmation of something you know and break the news. 3.Unexpected event - News comes in. Go from dormant to pressed for time. Have to ask yourself... what is news/not news? What am I missing. Get something other reporters don't have. You can be prepared even for unexpected events. Cultivate relationships with police, ambulances, government. Do you have these peoples phone numbers? Have you met these people? You can prepare for unexpected events in this way. All of these 3 can be linked. Even though you will get invitations to events, don't stop there. React to things that happen suddenly.

4. 3 Step process for a tip: 1. Identify - What is the news? 2. Confirm - Get attribution from authority, who is authentic to talk about it? Who has the knowledge, skills, competency? 3.Disseminate - Accurately! This is the single most important thing in journalism. This builds credibility. What if you publish the wrong news and somebody makes a decision on that? Accuracy is good business practice (ethical). The wrong news is not worth publishing at all.