JOUR 3325: TECHNOLOGY REPORTINGFall 2015 syllabus (subject to change)Class sessions: TTH 2-3:20 p.m., Umphrey Lee 278Course blog: j3325.tumblr.com Course hashtag: #j3325

Jake Batsell, M.A.Assistant Professor214-768-1915 (office); 214-529-2978 (cell)Email: jbatsell@smu.edu | Twitter: @jbatsell | LinkedIn profile Office: Umphrey Lee 282COffice hours: 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Monday through Thursday, or by appointment

Welcome to Technology Reporting – a journey into the future of journalism. In this class, we will explore how social media, mobile technology, virtual reality, data-driven journalism, audience engagement, online metrics and the many-to-many pattern of communication are changing the landscape of news and information around the world. 

As a topical studies course, this class will focus on both practical and analytical skills. The Division of Journalism’s curriculum is designed to equip you with the versatile newsgathering skills you’ll need to thrive in today’s media world, while also grounding you in the timeless ethical canons of news judgment, accuracy, fairness and truth. In this class, you’ll build on those skills by scrutinizing the changing news business through a critical lens. You’ll also do plenty of reporting by producing a multi-platform profile of a tech-savvy journalist, by tracking the work of an innovative news outlet throughout the course of the semester, and by contributing to a class data journalism project in collaboration with The Texas Tribune. Still, the goal of this class is not so much to report about technology as to examine and discuss how technology is changing the way modern journalists do their jobs – and how you can harness technology to become a more effective journalist. You should walk away from this class thinking of yourself not only as a journalist, but also as a discriminating news consumer and critical thinker.

Ready to get started? Here are a few quotes that encapsulate some of the ground we’ll cover:

“Tools and services come and go; what is constant is our human urge to share.”

- Alfred Hermida, Tell Everyone

“It’s not just, ‘Hey, here’s what I found.’It’s, ‘Here’s what I found, and here’s all of it

for you to look through, and let me know what you find.’”- Ryan Murphy, Texas Tribune news apps developer, in Engaged Journalism

“I’m looking to hire ‘digital disruptors’ who bring fresh eyes to the newsroomand challenge the way we’ve always done things.”

- Patti Dennis, vice president of news, KUSA-TV, Denver

“Astonishing things can happen when a news organization invites its audience to participate.”

- Jake Batsell, Engaged Journalism

Learning outcomes are expected in four main areas. You will:

Understand the changing media landscape● Define concepts including data-driven journalism, crowdsourcing and

engagement. ● Articulate how news has become a two-way conversation, not a one-way

lecture.● Describe how technological tools and social media have accelerated the

news cycle.

Synthesize old-school reporting with new tools● Gather information through traditional methods (interviews and research) as

well as newer techniques (data mapping, mobile apps).● Experience the power of journalism delivered through mobile devices and

virtual reality.

Demonstrate new media literacy and critical thinking skills● Discriminate between facts, rumors, opinion, analysis and outright lies.● Debate how news organizations should handle modern dilemmas in two case

studies.● Understand the audience metrics and analytics that are reshaping the media

business.

Maintain an engaged social media presence● Harness social media tools (such as Twitter) to track the news, cultivate your

personal brand, distribute your work and contribute to the 21st century news ecosystem.

Required texts and class materials Tell Everyone: Why We Share and Why It Matters by Alfred Hermida

(2014, Doubleday) Engaged Journalism: Connecting with Digitally Empowered News

Audiences by Jake Batsell (2015, Columbia University Press) The Data Journalism Handbook (free Web version) Multimedia Case Studies from Columbia University Journalism School:

o #1: Friend or Foe? WikiLeaks and the Guardiano #2: Rating Teachers: A Job for Journalists? The Los Angeles Times and

“Value-Added” Analysis You also must obtain a Google Cardboard viewer for your mobile/virtual

reality project.

Additional readings will be posted on the course blog. Stay up to date on the future of news by following Nieman Journalism Lab, Poynter, CJR.org, Mashable, MediaShift and others.

Attendance: Treat this class as if it is a job. You are expected to be in every class, show up on time and turn in work on time. If you must miss class or lab, contact the instructor in advance, just as you would your editor or boss at work. Roll will be taken every day. Any student who misses the first day of class may be dropped. With three or more unexcused absences, you could be dropped or receive an “F.” Absences also will factor into your class participation grade. You get one “free pass” for an unexcused absence. After that, each unexcused absence will result in an automatic deduction of at least one percentage point from your class participation grade. An absence will be considered unexcused unless you are able to provide a doctor's note or some other good reason within 24 hours of an absence. Acceptable reasons for missing class include a verifiable illness, family emergency, religious holiday or approved school trip. Again, contacting me ahead of time will always help your case. Those with an unexcused absence will receive a zero on that day’s class activity and will not be able to make it up.The SMU Health Center’s policy on giving forms for excused absences is found at http://www.smu.edu/StudentAffairs/HealthCenter. Please note that there is a PDF file in this information that you can download and submit to me for consideration of an excused absence. This form must be filled out fully for me to consider your absence as excused. If you consult a physician for an illness and receive specific certification for a recovery time, absences will be excused if I am given a form from the physician's office.

Assignments: The following ethical guidelines apply to all written and multimedia work for this course:

● Don’t cover a story on any activity in which you are involved or to which you have a close personal connection. Don’t use family members or significant others (boyfriend, sibling, parent, roommate, etc.) or friends as primary sources.

● Rely primarily on YOUR OWN reporting and research. When citing material other than your own, ALWAYS LINK to the original source.

● Don’t quote journalism faculty or j-students as sources unless approved in advance.

● Primary interviews should generally be conducted in person or by phone. E-mail interviews are for follow-up or to fill holes, check facts, or to set up interviews. Main interviews should be conducted by e-mail on an emergency basis only and should be specifically indicated as such in the story or blog item.

● Inform all sources that you are working on a story for Web publication. You must always tell all of your sources that the story you are reporting could be published or aired on multiple platforms. Your work could appear on news sites both on and off campus. Your stories, in other words, are for public consumption and your sources must know that.

● Do not use anonymous sources unless approved by the instructor.● Missing deadline will be penalized harshly. Even with advance notice, my

general policy is to deduct one letter grade for each day the assignment is late, unless your absence is excused (as defined below).

Guest speakers and field trips: Professional journalists and other relevant speakers will be invited to class during the semester, and we also may take several field trips.

You will be asked to tweet a question using the #j3325 hashtag, and a summary of the speaker’s presentation and/or field trip will be due at the start of the next class.

Laptops and cell phones in the classroom: Please follow common courtesy. Yes, this is a Technology Reporting class. But that doesn’t mean it’s acceptable to play games during class, or to catch up on e-mail. Laptops should be used for taking notes or in-class assignments only. Out of courtesy to your classmates and to the instructor, texting, e-mailing, Web browsing, and social media should be avoided during class, unless they are germane to our class activities and discussions. Turn your phone off during class. If a cell phone rings during class, I get to answer it. Failure to adhere to these policies will result in deductions from your class participation grade.

Speed Team shifts: Three times this semester (once per month), you must report for a two-hour Speed Team shift in the Convergence Newsroom as part of our Division’s efforts to foster a digital-first culture across all SMU student media platforms. These shifts will count toward your class participation grade. For more information, see http://j.mp/speedteamchecklist. Shifts are not considered complete until you fill out a shift report at http://j.mp/speedteamreport.

Grading: Specific criteria on each of the below items will be discussed later, but here is the overall structure for how your grade will be determined in this course:

Class participation, exercises, and assignments 30 percent(Attendance, in-class exercises, discussion, casestudies, pre-class assignments, speakers, fieldtrips, Speed Team shifts)

Mobile/virtual reality project 10 percent(With a partner)

Journalist profile 20 percent

Class data journalism project 20 percent

News innovation project and final presentation 20 percent(You will follow and assess the work of aninnovative news organization over the course ofthe semester, summarizing your findings in the formof a final paper and oral presentation to be deliveredduring our scheduled final exam period onWednesday, Dec. 16, from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m.)__________________________________________________________________

Semester grades: 94-100 A90-93 A-87-89 B+83-86 B80-82 B-77-79 C+73-76 C70-72 C-67-69 D+

63-66 D60-62 D-59 and below F

“A”s are rare and are awarded only for truly excellent work. Very good work receives a “B”; average work a “C”; below average a “D.” This is in accordance with SMU regulations. I am happy to discuss your grade for any project. If you wish to protest a grade, a formal process is available.

Academic dishonesty: Plagiarism, fabrication and resubmission or double submission of work performed for another class all are considered to be acts of academic dishonesty and a violation of the SMU Honor Code. Any of the above violations will result in an automatic failing grade on the assignment and a written referral to the SMU Honor Council and Dean of Student Life.

The Division of Journalism has adopted the following policies. By enrolling in this class you are agreeing to the following terms and conditions:

Reporting standards for all media projectsYour story will be graded on content: is it fair, is it newsworthy, is it well sourced? Is the story organized, are all questions answered, and is all information properly attributed? Are direct quotes preceded by strong transitions in print stories? At least 5 points may be taken off for problems like these. For errors of fact, expect 10 or more points off. How to earn an "F" on any media projectMiss a deadline. Misquote or misrepresent someone. Rewrite or submit a story or package that was produced for another class. Fabricate or plagiarize. Plagiarism and FabricationPlagiarism is stealing someone's words or ideas and passing them off as your own. Fabrication is making stuff up. Both strike at the heart of the journalistic process, where proper attribution and fact checking are paramount. As mentioned above, plagiarism and fabrication in this course will be addressed in the harshest manner possible, including referral to the honors council.

Reporting and SourcingYou are required in all cases to fully disclose your identity and purpose to sources, and any promises of anonymity or other special arrangements with sources must be discussed with your instructor before such agreements are made. Under no circumstances should you grant a source the right to review or approve your story (though you may agree to check quotes for accuracy). You must always tell all of your sources that the story you are reporting could be published or aired on multiple platforms. Your work could appear on news sites both on and off campus. Your stories, in other words, are for public consumption and your sources must know that. Friends, colleagues, and family members are not acceptable sources. Unless you have cleared the source with your instructor, expect at least 5 points to be taken off for each unacceptable source.

 A special note:  This policy provides academic guidance to students regarding work in Journalism classes and is not in any way intended to impose a legal standard of care for student journalists. Grants of Anonymity*Students should avoid using unidentified sources whenever possible. There are times, however, when the only way to get a story is to offer anonymity; such offers should be a last resort after repeated attempts to go on the record have failed and the student has received permission from the instructor. Information may be on the record, on background, not for attribution or off the record. These are prearranged agreements between a reporter and a source, which govern how specific information can be used. These deals must be agreed to beforehand, never after. A source can't say something then claim it was "off the record." That's too late. Most sources—and even many journalists—do not understand what these terms mean. If a source requests some degree of anonymity, the journalist should make sure the terms are clear, as follows.

* with thanks to the NYU Journalism Handbook for Students 

On the RecordAnything the source says can be reported, published, or aired. All conversations are assumed to be on the record unless the source expressly requests -- and the reporter explicitly agrees -- to go off the record beforehand. The reporter should be sure to mark notes clearly so that it's possible to see what's on the record and what is not at a later date. Never rely on memory and always try to get back "on the record" as quickly as possible. On BackgroundThis means you may use what the source gives you without using the source's name. In effect it confers anonymity on your source, but allows you to work with the information the source has provided. Not for AttributionThis means that a reporter agrees not to identify a source by name. Identification is provided only by reference to the source's job or position. That identification must be agreed upon by the reporter and the source, and is almost always given in a way that prevents readers from discovering the source's specific identity. The reporter should make sure the attribution is accurate and should press the source to allow the attribution to be as specific as possible. For example, a reporter would want to attribute information to "a high-ranking official in the Justice Department," rather than "a high-ranking law enforcement official," if the source agrees beforehand. Off the RecordYou may not use the information unless you can confirm it with another source who doesn't insist on speaking off the record. The information is offered to explain or further a reporter's understanding of a particular issue or event. In general, it is best to avoid off the record conversations; another option might be to converse off the record and then try to convince the source to agree to waive the agreement.

 Excused absences for extracurricular activities

If you are participating in an officially sanctioned, scheduled university extracurricular activity, you will be given the opportunity to make up class assignments. It is your responsibility to make arrangements with your teacher prior to any missed assignment. (See University Undergraduate Catalogue.)

Religious observanceReligiously observant students wishing to be absent on holidays that require missing class should notify their professors in writing at the beginning of the semester, and should discuss with them, in advance, acceptable ways of making up any work missed because of the absence. (See University Policy No. 1.9.)

Disability accommodationsStudents needing academic accommodations for a disability must first be registered with Disability Accommodations & Success Strategies (DASS) to verify the disability and to establish eligibility for accommodations. Students may call 214-768-1470 or visit http://www.smu.edu/ALEC/DASS to begin the process. Once registered, students should then schedule an appointment with the professor to make appropriate arrangements.

KEY DATES / MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS

This course examines a continually changing subject and includes a variety of guest speakers and field trips, which requires flexibility in the course schedule. Weekly readings – both from the required texts, and more timely online readings – will be listed on the course blog. Use the blog as the most up-to-date guide, as it will include the most current information as the semester unfolds.

That said, here are some key dates to factor into your semester planning:

Tuesday, Sept. 15: Semester-long news innovation projects assigned.

Tuesday, Sept. 29: Mobile/virtual reality presentations and papers due in class.

Tuesday, Oct. 13: No class. (Fall Break)

Tuesday, Oct. 20: Midterm class participation grades returned to students.

Tuesday, Oct. 27: Journalist profiles due.

Tuesday, Nov. 24: No class. (Batsell speaking engagement)

Thursday, Dec. 3: Final class, and target date for completion of class data project.

Wednesday, Dec. 16: News innovation presentations will be delivered during our scheduled final exam period, from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m.