Public affairs reporting now : news of, by and for the people / G. Michael Killenberg.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Table of Contents

Preface xv
The Roles and Realities of Reporting 1 (26)
A Reporter's Role 2 (1)
A Reporter's Orientation 3 (3)
A Reporter's Reality 6 (6)
The Competent Reporter 12 (6)
Communication Literacy 12 (2)
Cultural Literacy 14 (2)
Technological Literacy 16 (2)
Models for Journalism and Journalists 18 (9)
Humanistic Reporting 18 (1)
Anticipatory Reporting 19 (2)
Explanatory Reporting 21 (6)
The Ways and Means of Reporting 27 (34)
The Beat System 28 (4)
Methods of Reporting 32 (4)
Observation 33 (3)
Interviewing 36 (8)
Documents and Data 44 (9)
Social-Science Research 53 (8)
Striving for Accuracy 61 (32)
Warning: Potential Errors Ahead 63 (21)
Recognizing Interviewing Errors 63 (3)
Seeing and Believing 66 (4)
Counting on Numbers 70 (2)
Out of Context 72 (2)
Not Getting Fooled 74 (3)
Exaggeration 77 (1)
Misshaping the News? 78 (1)
Haste and Waste 79 (2)
Failure to Admit Ignorance 81 (1)
Evaluating and Selecting Information 82 (2)
Telling the Whole Story 84 (9)
Closed Meetings, Sealed Records and 93 (36)
``Off-Limits'' Signs
Access and the Right to Gather News 96 (1)
Access to Governmental Meetings 97 (6)
Access to Government Records 103(7)
Loopholes and Exemptions 104(1)
Strategies for Obtaining Information 105(3)
Online Access to Records 108(1)
Access to Federal Records and Meetings 108(2)
Access to the Judicial System 110(7)
Grand Juries 111(1)
Juvenile Cases 111(1)
Pretrial Proceedings 112(1)
Trials 113(1)
Restrictive Orders 114(1)
Court Records and Documents 115(1)
Civil Law and Access 116(1)
Contempt Power 116(1)
Dealing with ``Off-Limits'' Signs 117(2)
New Battlegrounds over Access 119(5)
Military Operations 119(2)
Access to Electronic Records 121(1)
Access to Visual Records 122(1)
Access to Medical Information 123(1)
Fear of Talking 124(5)
The Neighborhood Approach 129(26)
The Fall and Rise of Neighborhoods 131(3)
Neighborhood Perspectives 132(1)
Neighborhoods and News Organizations 133(1)
Local News as Community Connector 134(14)
Goals for Neighborhood News 137(6)
Strategies for Neighborhood-Based 143(5)
Stories
Stories from the Neighborhood 148(7)
Government News for the People 155(40)
Covering the City and the Hall 157(7)
Functions and Role of City Government 158(2)
The Structure of City Government 160(2)
Who's Who in City Hall 162(2)
How to Cover Council Meetings 164(7)
Preparation 164(1)
What to Expect 165(1)
Legislative Process 166(1)
Writing Meeting Stories 167(4)
Financing City Government 171(8)
Revenue and Expenditures 171(4)
Borrowing 175(1)
The Budget-Making Process 176(3)
Cities and Land Use 179(2)
Local Government 181(3)
County Government 181(2)
Township Government 183(1)
Regional Government 183(1)
Special Districts 184(1)
Covering State and Federal Government 184(11)
State Government 185(4)
Federal Government 189(6)
Public Safety: Crimes to Corrections 195(40)
Crime and the Mass Media 196(2)
Behind the Badge 198(2)
Inside the Police Department 200(7)
Organization 200(3)
Facilities and Equipment 203(1)
Communications 204(1)
Operating Policies 205(2)
Working with Police 207(8)
The Blotter 207(1)
Stories from the Police Beat 208(4)
Press-Police Relationships 212(3)
Danger Zones 215(6)
Arrests, Warrants and Rights 215(1)
Crime Data 216(1)
Bias and Labels 217(2)
Handle with Care 219(2)
Public-Safety Agencies 221(14)
State Police 222(1)
Sheriffs Department 222(1)
Federal Law Agencies 223(1)
Crime Laboratories 224(1)
Medical Examiners 225(1)
Fire Departments and Emergency Services 226(3)
Jails and Prisons 229(6)
Into the Legal Maze 235(34)
The Judicial System: Structure and Process 236(7)
The Long and Winding Road 238(1)
Roots and Branches of Law 239(2)
Principles, Characteristics and 241(2)
Qualities
Civil Cases 243(8)
Commencing a Civil Action 244(3)
Covering the Civil Courts 247(4)
Criminal Cases 251(18)
The Genesis of a Criminal Case 253(5)
Covering the Criminal Courts 258(11)
The Trial and Thereafter 269(28)
The Big Show 270(7)
Stage Directions 270(1)
The Jury 271(2)
Opening Statements 273(1)
Evidence and Witnesses 273(2)
Closing Arguments 275(1)
The Decision 276(1)
Reporting Trials 277(4)
Verdicts, Judgments, Sentences and Appeals 281(10)
Sentencing 282(1)
Probation 283(2)
Parole and Pardons 285(1)
Civic Verdicts and Judgments 286(1)
Appeals 287(2)
Finding, Reading and Explaining Court 289(2)
Decisions
Special Courts, Special Problems 291(6)
Probate Courts 291(1)
Juvenile Courts 292(1)
Bankruptcy 293(4)
Special Beats, New Challenges 297(40)
Medicine and Science 299(6)
Medicine 299(3)
Science 302(1)
Health 303(1)
Environment 304(1)
Education 305(7)
Education on the Local Level 305(3)
State and Federal Involvement 308(1)
Higher Education 309(1)
What's Wrong with Education---or What's 310(2)
Right?
Religion, Values and Ethics 312(2)
Campaigns and Elections 314(5)
Politicians and the Press 314(1)
The Character of Campaigns 315(1)
Campaign Financing 316(1)
Election Coverage 317(2)
Business and Economic News 319(6)
Into the Business World 321(2)
Economic Indicators 323(1)
Labor and the Workplace 324(1)
Diversity in Life and Perspective 325(12)
The Homeless and Disadvantaged 327(1)
African-Americans 328(1)
Gender 329(1)
People with Disabilities 330(1)
Older Citizens 331(1)
Children 332(5)
Lessons in Law and Ethics 337(32)
Libel 339(8)
Elements of Libel 340(2)
Determining Fault: A Tough Call 342(3)
Defenses 345(2)
Private Lives vs. the Public's Business 347(9)
Intrusion 348(3)
Embarrassing Facts 351(3)
False Light 354(2)
Privacy and Libel Danger Zones 356(2)
Journalists and Their Sources 358(11)
Granting Anonymity: Risks and Rewards 358(4)
Reporting Rumors 362(1)
Dealing with Sources 363(1)
Quoting Sources 364(5)
Index 369

Everyday life, no whether the issues or events arise next-door or a continent away, raises questions and concerns that the public counts on journalists to answer and, more important, confront. More than ever before, we all rely on the news media for warnings, explanations and insights. The profession and society cannot afford lazy, inept, uncommitted journalists.Todays reporters must learn how to cover public affairs intelligently and thoroughly. First you must learn about the institutions and people who influence the news; understanding how a legislative conference committee functions or how a trial is conducted remain important pre-requisites. But it is not enough merely to know how to report. Journalists must also understand how they see, define and influence the news. Don't be fooled by the daily dose of fluffy stories about fads, fashions or fetishes. People love to revel in celebrity gossip or fantasize about extreme makeovers. But Donald Trumps love life or the South Beach Diet don't satisfy when people worry about a home invasion in their neighborhood or a rezoning proposal to bring a Wal-Mart super center to town or a Department of Education report that their child's school scored bottom-most in reading achievement."Public Affairs Reporting Now" is intended to teach you the best practices and give you the best advice for covering what's generically known as public affairs reporting. It's a term that's neither inspiring nor precise, but its long been a convenient way of describing the kind of news coverage that keeps people informed as citizens and keeps our institutions, public and private, focused on the public good. It includes glossary of terms, sidebars and illustrations. End-of-chapter provides exercises. It teaches how to deliver high-quality local news professionally.