Exercise: Objectivity and bias
Say you have five quotes you want to use in the story, how do they break down among the people involved?
Each perspective should be covered, each with varying
degrees of depth. Each side deserves to be covered but for that the real impact
the group has. The spokesman wields a lot of power and should be represented
accordingly, as well as the large organized group. The small band of people
should not be represented as fully due to being extreme and not impactful.
Who do you focus on in your story? That is, at what point in the story do you introduce each of the various perspectives?
John Randdis would receive 2 quotes, the large group also
getting two sound bites with the yelling group getting one from an extreme quote.
The quote from the small group can be an ending quote as to leave the reader
with a lasting word/image.
Who do you focus on in your story? That is, at what point in the story do you introduce each of the various perspectives?
Using the spokesperson to introduce the article gives it a
strong foundation and then introducing the extreme group to give it some
sensational aspect with the more grounded group addressing the concerns of
spokesperson Randdis.
What types of document or report sources might you look for?
Marijuana crime statistics would be a good thing to point
to, identifying how big of a problem the drug use actually is.
3 Local Stories
1.
Taco Bell – A new store rises up from an ugly
past
2.
Stadium way speed limits – Have the changes made
it safer?
3.
Hotel Construction – How will it impact weekends
and hospitality students?
