REPORTING & WRITING (RWI)           J6001X
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Columbia University, August 2005

Sig Gissler, professor
At Columbia: 212-854-7327
E-mail: sg138@columbia.edu
Fax: 212-854-3342
At home: 212-595-2938
Cell: 917-519-1142
Web site: www.columbia.edu/~sg138

Pam Frederick, adjunct professor
E-mail: ppf5@columbia.edu
At home: 212-566-6068
Cell: 917-902-9233

Ruth Padawer, adjunct professor
At The (N.J.) Record: 201-646-4442
E-mail: r.padawer@verizon.net
At Home: 201-227-8627

Gissler's office: Room 709.

Office hours: Monday (3 to 6 p.m.) and Tuesday (3 to 6 p.m.). Sign-up sheets are posted on my door. Or call for appointment.

* * *

OBJECTIVES AND PHILOSOPHY
Under deadline conditions in the crucible of New York City, you will learn by doing. You will develop and hone reporting and writing skills over a range of news and feature stories. As you improve your craft, you will delve into substance, such as race, crime, politics. You will sharpen critical thinking, news judgment, street smarts, ethical sensitivity. You will learn teamwork. Your teachers are committed to helping you succeed. However, ultimately, your education is your responsibility. In fact, a good journalist embraces a lifetime of self-directed learning.

ORGANIZATION
You will practice deadline writing in the lab but spend most of your time on the street -- in neighborhoods, on news runs. Think shoe leather and MetroCard. Each of you will cover an ethnically diverse neighborhood, cultivate a neighborhood beat, do enterprise stories off your beat. Think story idea. Other assignments, sometimes off the AP daybook, will take you elsewhere in New York, such as City Hall or Police Plaza. As the course evolves, longer, more complex stories will be assigned, taking several days of work or longer. Those stories will include a substantial profile and an "enterprise project" (which may be linked to your master's project).

CLASS DETAILS
" Your classroom is your newsroom. Tardiness is not tolerated. Always be on time.

" Here's how your week will unfold:

Monday, four-and-a-half hour class day.

9 - 11:30 a.m. Seminar in Room 709C. On occasion, we have guest speakers or field trips.
11:30 - Noon Break
Noon - 2 p.m. Deadline writing in Room 511C. Be sure to bring a computer disk.

Tuesday, street-reporting preparation.
Wednesday, street reporting.

" On Wednesday, while on the street, you will stay in contact with me as if I were your city editor. I will work from my Pulitzer office at Columbia where I have two phone lines. You must call me before noon.

" Stories usually are due at 6 p.m. Wednesday or 9 a.m. Thursday. Be clear about your deadline and be sure to give yourself enough time to pull your story together.

" All assignments must be completed and every deadline must be met. Late stories will NOT be edited. So always turn in something. If time runs out, go with what you've got. Give us your best shot. Only stories can be published, not excuses.

" Your stories will be critiqued in detail by your instructors and, at times, by fellow class members. We call it the "CAT-scan." You will sharpen your editing skills and develop a keener sense of newsroom life and of writing for an audience.

" From time to time, we spot check stories for accuracy - names, facts, quotes. Accuracy is at the heart of credibility.

" In seminars, we share experiences and explore techniques, tactics, ideas, problems. Sometimes we'll have guest speakers. Your participation is essential and will be evaluated.

" Laptop computers shall not be used during the seminar. They distract. And you should practice note-taking.

" This syllabus is our flexible road map. Read it. Use it to plan your work. We'll follow the schedule but everything is subject to change because of news developments, shifted assignments and other factors.

" Check your e-mail daily. I send frequent messages. We also use e-mail to send reading assignments, share reporting experiences and swap comments.

POLICE RIDES
Students will have a chance to ride in a NYPD patrol car on its tour of duty. Stories cannot be published, but you will do an assignment for class. Official sign-up forms must be filled out early this month so rides can be scheduled promptly. Our ride is tentatively targeted for Saturday, Oct. 8. Let me know immediately if that date is a problem. Sign-up details to come.

FIELD TRIPS
We will tour the Manhattan criminal courts. Details to come.

REQUIRED READING
Newspapers:
Reading newspapers daily is crucial. You must read The New York Times and New York Daily News. You should at least scan the New York Post.

Books (at Columbia bookstore):
Melvin Mencher: News Reporting and Writing (McGraw Hill, 10th edition). A copy of Mencher is also on reserve in the Journalism Library.
The Green Book, a New York government reference book; 2005-2006 edition on order.

Check on availability with the textbook desk at the Columbia bookstore.

Two other important books are provided by Columbia (you should have your own grammar book):
The Associated Press Stylebook and Libel Manual.
William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White: The Elements of Style.

RECOMMENDED READING
Newspapers and magazines:
You should be familiar with the Wall Street Journal, New York Observer, Newsday, New York magazine, the Village Voice, and community weeklies on your beat.

Maps:
Get a free subway map and borough bus maps. Hagstrom's pocket atlas for the five boroughs also is very helpful in a pinch.

GRADING
It's pass/fail. From day one, your work will be measured against the professional standards of major media, with emphasis on accuracy, clarity, focus and flow. If at first you falter, don't despair. A prime goal is steady improvement toward consistent, skillful performance. How well you do in the final weeks is more important than how well you start. There will be no tests, but we'll have a regular quiz on significant news events and AP style (remember: read the papers).

ABSENCES
Attendance is mandatory for all class sessions. Any absence requires notification and a valid explanation -- just like a real job.

INTEGRITY
Honesty is crucial. Anyone faking quotes, falsifying a story or plagiarizing will risk summary dismissal from the school.

MIDTERM
Sign up for periodic office appointments. However, I also will schedule a one-on-one evaluation at midterm. At that time, file all your written work chronologically in a folder. Bring it to our midterm meeting.

FILING STORIES
Send your stories to your instructors via e-mail as Word attachments. However, hard copies should also be submitted to Professor Gissler in the blue tray outside his office within three hours of the deadline.

BEWARE: LATE E-MAIL STORIES
DO NOT e-mail your story only a few minutes before the deadline. It can arrive very late. What counts is when we receive the story not when you send it. So file your story early and avoid the e-mail trap.

FORMAT FOR STORIES:
When filing by e-mail, single-space your stories. When submitting a hard copy, double-space your stories. All stories must follow our format. Remember to include a word count and to list significant sources (including phone numbers). At the end of your story, always list three additional story ideas. Otherwise, your assignment is incomplete.

LENGTH OF STORIES
Length will vary with assignment. Clarity, focus and graceful expression are more important than bulk. Most stories will be 500 to 1,000 words. Major pieces will run from 1,500 to 2,500 words. You must honor the assigned length. When a story is too long, the excess portion - zap! - will not be edited. This is an important part of your training.

AP STYLE
Mastery of AP style is very important (and a sign of professionalism).

REWRITING
Stories should be polished and carefully edited before they are turned in. However, don't be surprised if you are asked to rewrite your story (with a new deadline). Be sure to attach the original story to the rewritten one.

READINGS
Assigned reading is linked to the upcoming week's theme. Be prepared to discuss key points in the Monday seminar. All handouts must be read.

* * *

COURSE SCHEDULE
We begin in August with an important preparatory program. It is designed to increase your understanding of journalism history, deepen your knowledge of New York City and sharpen some basic skills. You also will begin to explore your assigned neighborhood, cultivate sources and zero in on issues. You will get the feel of being a street reporter.

In the last week of August, we quicken the pace and move into our regular RW1 schedule. We usually have a weekly theme. However, we're also flexible, especially in the final third of the course. Much depends on the pace of our progress.

AUGUST: SOME KEY DATES

Mon., Aug. 8
First class meeting at 11:00 a.m., Room 709C
Introductions, review syllabus, assign neighborhood beats
Reading: Mencher, Chapters 2 through 7
Beatnote assignment: due 9 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 1

Thurs. Aug. 11
Diagnostic test, 9 a.m. - Noon, Room 709C
Research skills, 1:30 - 3 p.m., Room 607C
Professor Porter's lecture on news writing, 3:30-5:30 p.m.

Fri., Aug. 12
Drill, 11 a.m. - 12:45 p.m, Room 607C. Seminar, 1 - 2:45 p.m., Room 601B

Mon., Aug. 15
Bus trip (Bronx), departs 116th and Amsterdam. Be there at 8:30 a.m. sharp.
Led by Bob Kappstatter, New York Daily News, Bronx bureau chief

Tues., Aug. 16
Professor Padwe's lecture on street reporting, 9 - 10:30 a.m.
Professor Gissler's lecture on covering a beat and doing the "person-on-the- street" assignment, 10:45 a.m. - noon
Person-on-street story due via e-mail at 9 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 20

Wed., Aug. 17
Drill, 11 a.m. - 12:45 p.m., Room 607C. Seminar, 1 - 2:45 p.m., Room 709C
Breakout seminar with Professor Padwe on interviewing, 4 - 6 p.m., Room 601B

Mon., Aug. 22
Drill, 11 a.m. - 12:45 p.m., Room 607C. Seminar, 1 - 2:45 p.m., Room 709C
Professor Hancock's lecture on covering education, 3:30 - 5 p.m.

Thurs., Aug. 25
Drill, 11 a.m. - 12:45 p.m., Room 607C. Seminar, 1 - 2:45 p.m., Room 709C
Education story due via e-mail at 9 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 27

REGULAR WEEKLY RW1

Week 1: The Reporter's Craft
Mon., Aug. 29 Beatnote due 9 a.m. Thursday
Seminar: Covering New York City and beyond
Speaker: David Gonzalez, reporter, The New York Times (class of '83)
Lydia Polgreen, reporter, The New York Times (class of '00)

Assignment: Complete beatnote, due 9 a.m. Thursday
Primary election story idea, due on or before 9 a.m. Thursday
Reading: Mencher, Chapters 11 through 16

Week 2: Covering Local Politics
Tues. Sept. 6: Note seminar meets on Tuesday
Seminar: New York City primary election coverage
Discuss "beatnote" experience
Speaker: TBA
Lab: Deadline writing

Assignment: Primary election story, due 9 a.m. Friday
Reading: Mencher, Chapters 17, 18, 20

Week 3: Covering Police
Mon., Sept. 12:
Seminar: The cops and their culture
Speaker: TBA
Lab: Deadline writing

Assignment: Police/crime story, due Wednesday, 6 p.m.
Three enterprise project ideas, due 9 a.m. Monday, Sept. 26
Reading: Mencher, Chapter 24 (especially "covering schools")

Week 4: Covering Education
Mon., Sept. 19 Joint seminar with Professor Sam Freedman's class
Seminar: Covering the schools
Speaker: Professor Freedman and others (TBA)
Lab: Deadline writing

Assignment: Neighborhood school story, due 9 a.m. Thursday
Reading: Mencher, Chapter 21

Week 5: Covering Courts
Mon., Sept. 26: Three enterprise project ideas, due 9 a.m.
Seminar: Covering courts
Field trip: Manhattan criminal courts (No lab drill)

Assignment: Courts story, deadlines to be assigned
Reading: Mencher, Chapter 8

Week 6: Enterprise Reporting        Rosh Hashanah, Oct. 3
Mon., Oct. 3: Police ride Saturday, Oct. 8 (tentative)
Seminar: Discuss "telling detail" and long-form writing
Guest: Bruce DeSilva, news features editor, Associated Press
Lab: Deadline writing

Assignment: All-city story (deadlines assigned)
Police ride assignment due Monday, Oct. 10
Note: Progress report on enterprise project due 9 a.m., Thursday, Oct. 20
Enterprise project due 9 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 7
Reading: Mencher, Chapter 19 (for obit drill next week)

Week 7: Covering Welfare and Poverty     Columbus Day, Oct. 10; Yom Kippur, Oct. 12
Monday, Oct. 10: Joint seminar with Professor LynNell Hancock's class
Seminar: The welfare reform controversy and poverty issues
Speaker: Professor Hancock, former education editor, Newsweek
Lab: Deadline writing

Assignment: Human impact of poverty, due 6 p.m. Wednesday
Reading: Mencher, Chapter 17 (review section on race) Chapter 27 (especially "racial issues")

Week 8: Covering Immigrant Communities
Mon., Oct. 17:
Seminar: Creating a Muslim beat in the New York region
Speaker: Andrea Elliott, reporter, The New York Times (class of '99)
Lab: Deadline writing

Assignment: Progress report on enterprise project, due 9 a.m. Thursday
Reading: Mencher, Chapter 26

NOTE: Schedule midterm one-on-one session

Week 9: Covering Race and Ethnicity
Mon., Oct. 24: Joint seminar with Professor Sam Freedman's class
Seminar: Candid coverage of race and ethnicity
Speaker: Elizabeth Llorente, senior writer, The (Bergen) Record, and Professor Gissler
Lab: Deadline writing

Assignment: Race in the neighborhood, due 9 a.m. Thursday

Week 10: Profile and Feature Writing
Mon., Oct. 31:
Seminar: Profile and feature writing techniques
Speaker: TBA
Lab: Deadline writing

Assignment: Work on neighborhood personality profile, due 9 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 10
Reading: Mencher, Chapter 24 (review politics section),

Week 11: Election Coverage
Mon., Nov. 7
Seminar: Mayoral election and other races
Lab: Deadline writing

Assignment: Same-day election story or all-city story (deadlines to be assigned)
Personality profile, due 9 a.m. Thursday

Week 12: Investigative Journalism
Mon., Nov. 14:
Seminar: The watchdog role and how to dig out the tough story
Spaker: David Barstow, Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter, The New York Times
Lab: Deadline writing

Assignment: Work on enterprise project, 800-word draft due 9 a.m. Monday, Nov. 21
Reading: Mencher, Chapter 23

Week 13: Covering Gender Issues
Mon., Nov. 21: Enterprise draft due, 9 a.m.     (Deadline for approval of master's project)
Seminar: How to create and cover a new beat
Speaker: Ruth Padawer, gender/relationships reporter, The (Bergen) Record
Lab: Deadline writing

Assignment: Work on enterprise project, due 9 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 7
Reading: Mencher, Chapter 26 (review), Chapter 27

Thanksgiving recess 11/24-11/27

Week 14: The Ethical Challenges Ahead
Mon., Nov. 28:
Seminar: An Editor's Dilemmas: The Jeffrey Dahmer case
Speaker: Professor Gissler
Lab: Deadline writing

Assignment: Work on enterprise project, due 9 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 7

Week 15: Jobs Panel
Mon., Dec. 5 Final class     (Deadline for master's "billboard," Dec. 2)
Seminar: How to get a job in today's world
Speaker: Bill Grueskin, managing editor of Wall Street Journal Online, and former RW1 reporters

Assignment: Enterprise project due 9 a.m. Wednesday
End of class but enterprise project subject to further revision if necessary.