Many of us self-styled journalists and bloggers lack formal training in what news reporting is really all about. Fortunately Charlie Brooker at BBC4 has this helpful report that can make even the novice journalist a professional reporter in no time. While this is primarily intended for TV journalists, I think there are some effective strategies that can still be gleaned from knowing just what professionalism is really all about.
H/T David Wescott
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Having worked as a TV news reporter I found Charlie's piece very amusing - some of us have long believed reporting like this is a rubbish way to do things!
But even if a journalist wants to tell stories in a more authentic and engaging way, the constraints of the so-called "house style" in many news organisations make it difficult to achieve.
What's needed is a massive culture shift and a complete re-think of what we understand quality broadcast news reporting is.
And guess what? That's exactly what's happening, though you'd never believe it from what we're still mostly seeing on TV.
Anyway, the new digital technologies, and shake up of "old school/old mainstream" journalism means new platforms and styles of "news" storytelling can now emerge.
Let's hope fresh and appropriate ways of funding appear too, so we can kill off this dreadful formulaic reporting and delivery, and clear the way for more natural and interesting ways to treat stories and content.
Much love,
Ian Aspin. www.twitter.com/ianaspin