Is The Alleged One-Night Stand a Story?

LAST WEEK, GAWKER.com ran an anonymous, first-person story from a Philadelphia man who had a one-night stand with Christine O'Donnell, the Republican candidate for Senate in Delaware.

"We'd probably knocked back five Heinekens when Christine leaned over and whispered in my ear that she wanted to go back to my place," the author writes.

There are lurid details in the story. They, for the record, did not have sex, according to the story.

The O'Donnell team responded by saying that "such attacks are truly shameful." Her opponent's team responded by saying, “It’s cowardly and despicable that they would publish this garbage.”

Is this newsworthy?

(the image is via Gawker.com)

Can Journalists Attend Political Rallies?

SEVERAL NEWS ORGANIZATIONS have banned their journalists from "participating" in political events, including the upcoming event in Washington DC with Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert.

"NPR journalists may not participate in marches and rallies involving causes or issues that NPR covers," reads a memo sent to NPR staffers. "This restriction applies to the upcoming Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert rallies."

The news organizations argue that journalists could lose credibility if seen at those events.

Should journalists be able to attend political rallies? Are they allowed to have their own political opinions?

Should they be registered to vote within a specific party? Or should they remain undecided or independent?

Do You Fire the Analyst For Speaking His Mind?

NPR NEWS ANALYST Juan Williams was fired last week after making an appearance on the O'Reilly Factor and saying, "When I get on a plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they're identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous."

Is that cause for termination? Wasn't he hired as an analyst, a person who is paid to offer his opinions?

Or, was his termination justified as it revealed him to be something of a bigot?

NPR released a statement that included this justification: "His remarks on The O'Reilly Factor this past Monday were inconsistent with our editorial standards and practices, and undermined his credibility as a news analyst with NPR."

Many conservatives are saying that NPR caved in to the far left. Many liberals have called Williams a bigot.

How would you have handled this situation?

Don't Agree With Your Guest? Can You Leave?

FOX NEWS HOST Bill O'Reilly appeared on the morning talk show The View last week and a shouting match ensued.

O'Reilly said that 70 percent of Americans don't want a mosque near Ground Zero because Muslims attacked America on 9/11. Joy Behar, one of show's hosts, walked off the set, followed by co-host Whoopi Goldberg.

"That is such bullshit!" Goldberg said. "Extremists did that!"

After the two walked off, Barbara Walters, another co-host, said, "You have just seen what should not happen. We should be able to have discussions without washing our hands, and screaming, and walking offstage."

Was it wrong for the two hosts to walk off the set? Were they obligated to listen to the views of an invited guest? Or are they allowed to follow their convictions and leave when they feel offended?

What would you have done?

What's Love Got to Do With it?

A CHICAGO BROADCAST sports reporter was recently fired and the reasons remain something of a mystery.

However, there were recent published reports saying that the reporter was dating Nick Boynton, a defenseman for the Chicago Blackhawks.

Is a romantic relationship grounds for dismissal? Is it wrong for reporters to date/ marry people they may have to cover professionally?

(Photo via Bleacher Report)

Are Free Newspapers Devaluing News?

NOW THAT WE are all used to free information readily available online, there is a great debate happening about establishing paywalls on news websites. The rational is that news is expensive to produce and the audience should pay for the information.

The problem that began online is also seen in print, where free newspapers have become popular around the world. The Metro, which has a Philadelphia edition, boasts the 5th largest newspaper circulation and is the most read free daily newspaper in the country.

“Free newspapers are, in many cases, devaluing the currency," Phillip Crawley, publisher and CEO of Toronto's Globe and Mail, said last week. "It’s the equivalent of elevator music.”

The criticism of free newspapers is that they generally lack depth in their stories, they rely upon salacious content and they are too broad in their coverage (so as to appeal to the largest common denominator). Oh, and they're stealing readers from newspapers that still charge for print editions.

Are free newspapers the ultimate form of democracy or the murderers of serious journalism?

Annette John-Hall: "This is Just My Truth. I Welcome Conversation About it."

JOURNALISM IS ON the job training, Inquirer metro columnist Annette John-Hall said in class today.

While on the job, Annette was verbally assaulted by a baseball player and hit on by a basketball player. She sampled a marijuana brownie. She's received thousands of emails and comments on her stories, not all of which have been pleasant. She's met celebrities (Denzel!) and befriended famous athletes. And she's traveled the world reporting and telling stories.

Here are a few things that stood out to me:

- She started covering sports while attending San Francisco State University.
- She then went to work for the Oakland Tribune, followed by the Rocky Mountain News and the San Jose Mercury News.
- She was one of the first black women reporters covering the NBA.
- As a sports reporter and columnist, she worked with athletes to make the locker room environment more friendly to women.
- "As a woman, the job is so much more difficult," she said, referring to being a sports journalist. "I had to be beyond reproach. It's a very fine line between being friendly enough to get info but not too friendly."
- In reference to the Mexican TV reporter Ines Sainz, Annette said, "When you go into a locker room, cover yourself up."
- Half of the athletes don't read the newspapers and those who do don't look at the bylines, she said.

- She left the sports department because she was tired of working nights and weekends (and holidays). She wanted more regular time with her family.
- Sports reporters are expected to be critical, whereas news reporters are supposed to be objective.
- As a metro columnist, her job is to reveal her point of view. "This is just my truth," she said. "I welcome conversation about it."
- Even though she lives in New Jersey, she tries to give voice to the thousands of people who get ignored everyday.
- She does not just sit at a desk and rant. She is a columnist, not a pundit.
- She is confident and argumentative and she goes into stories with an idea of what she will find. But if the story turns out to be different, she'll report what she learns.

- She suggests you learn multimedia skills. "The more moves you have," she said, "the more in demand you'll be."
- She said that a lot of your success will come from who you know. But it is really about what you're willing to do (i.e. go the extra mile).

What stood out for you?

Thinking of Studying in London? Do It.

JOURNALISM IS AN excuse to do some really cool stuff. Sure, the industry is changing and some people are super negative about the future of the industry.

But if you have to work for a living, journalism is about as rewarding and as fun a career as you will find. For real.

The Temple London students this past summer spent six weeks documenting the music scene. We hung out with musicians, producers, magazine publishers, broadcast producers, venue operators and lots of other cool folks. Then we made the magazine above.

If you are considering journalism or studying abroad, do it (both of them).

Dude, Where's my Column? Or, Should the Journalist Sample the Chronic?

PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER METRO columnist Annette John-Hall, who will visit J1111 on Tuesday, wrote an article today about the legalization of marijuana.

While visiting her native California recently, she witnessed the debate about proposition 19 (the Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010) which is on the ballot for November. It would essentially regulate the use of recreational marijuana.

John-Hall attended the International Cannabis and Hemp Expo in San Francisco and she visited the a vendor who offered marijuana samples. Here is some of her story:

"More than a few vendors offered some of their choice herbs for me to try. I just said no. After all, I was working.

But then I happened upon the Edibles section, a tantalizing array of brownies, cookies, parfaits, and caramels. I'm a sucker for sweets. What the heck. I popped a piece of a brownie, as tiny as a gum drop, into my mouth.

I was suckered all right. It didn't take long before I realized that, wow, this isn't your mama's pot. It's much more potent."

Was it wrong for her to sample the goods? Or, is it fine to experiment with illegal substances in the name of journalism?

(the photo comes from John-Hall's facebook page).

Do You Show the Alleged Bad Guy Just Because Police Think He/ She is a Criminal?

A VILLANOVA UNIVERSITY student was killed on Wednesday when his car was struck by a stolen vehicle doing more than 100 mph. The stolen vehicle fled the scene but was later found by police.

On Thursday, police arrested a 21-year old West Philadelphia man whose fingerprint was found on the stolen vehicle. Police paraded the handcuffed man in front of the media, and the alleged perpetrator's image was run all over television, online and in newspapers.

"He entered the courtroom as wide-eyed as a preschooler and dressed like one, in a blue Cookie Monster hoodie," read the lead of the Daily News' story on Friday morning. "But Kenneth Woods is more monstrous than any Muppet, Delaware County authorities said yesterday."

But by Friday afternoon, police had another suspect in custody and they revealed that their original suspect was innocent. That left the media scrambling to clear Kenneth Woods' name. Both the Inquirer and Daily News put the corrective story on their front pages on Saturday.

And that raises the question: should the media should images and reveal the names of people SUSPECTED to be guilty of committing crimes? Or should the media wait until there is a conviction before they publish information?

Perp walks have been in existence for a long time but in the age of the Internet and 24/7 news, are the media rushing to publish and/ or air the story before all the facts are known?

Or should the media continue this practice? After all, they didn't claim the guy was guilty. The police are the ones who made the mistake.

Thoughts?