Interviewing : a guide for journalists and writers

A practical guide to all aspects of interviewing for print and broadcast journalists and writers. The authors explain how to prepare, and what to do when you don't have time to prepare; outline the difference between "soft" and "hard" interviews; and show how to make the most of any interview.

Conversations with the public : the role of journalists and public relations practitioners in creating civil discourses in non-metropolitan settings

This research deconstructs the relationship between journalists and public relations practitioners operating in non-metropolitan contexts. In identifying the specific differences in the way this relationship is defined within these contexts the research highlights the impact of these differences on the conversations  these media professionals have with their publics. Ultimately this relationship is see to be a key definer of the nature of the civil discourses within these non-metropolitan communities.

Straight to the source : an exploratory study of Australia's regional newspaper journalists' checks on validity and accuracy of sources

This paper reports on an exploratory study that examined whether journalists
undertake the vital role of checking the validity and accuracy of information
supplied to them in media releases. It also monitored how much information
journalists used from press releases in their published work. The study followed Gandy's information subsidy theory by surveying 10 local government media relations officers who regularly issued media releases via
electronic mail or facsimile to a sample of 14 rural/regional newspapers. The data analysed found that rural/regional journalists were not adequately verifying information supplied in media releases and using a significant amount of this information verbatim.

Play it again, Sam : How journalists cashed in on Youtube's favourite koala

The world was captivated when footage of a badly burnt koala drinking water from a Victorian firefighter's bottle was uploaded to You Tube in February 2009. When the story of "Sam the Koala" was adopted by the mainstream media, recombinant themes were used to construct her story - from heroism and patriotism to villain vs victim and romance. While scholars have examined the changing role of the journalist in a converged world and the rise of "soft" news, this paper focuses on the way journalists create disjointed narratives around You Tube footage to extend a story s lifespan. We call these new narrative forms "fractured fairy tale news" to describe this emerging phenomenon of convergence culture. Further, we suggest that news media exploit the YouTube community for their own commercial gain and conclude that the fractured fairy tale style is a poor vehicle for the future of news.

The Carey 'king hit' : journalists and the coverage of domestic violence

In recent years Australia’s football codes have been rocked by allegations that star players, both past and present, have acted inappropriately off-field. In some instances these allegations have involved violence towards partners. This paper explores one such case, involving former AFL great Wayne Carey. In so doing, it explores the so-called ‘cult of celebrity’ and the impact this has both on the players and the media who cover such stories. People caught up in traumatic situations labelled as domestic violence have been vulnerable to media misunderstanding and misinterpretation. Coverage of these events and issues surrounding such violence has undergone change in line with social change. Work by community groups has produced calls for further shifts in thinking and suggestions for a name change to family violence. The so‑called ‘Wayne Carey Affair’ has demonstrated that journalists have their own vulnerabilities to the cult of celebrity, with extended interviews and coverage often centred on possible explanations/ “excuses” for the behaviour patterns of this one individual avoiding the wider social policy implications. By examining coverage surrounding Wayne Carey, this paper will explore the issues surrounding this major social problem and will question the role of journalists vis a vis the particularly vulnerable individuals caught up in family violence.

In the tracks of Blinky Bill : How Sam the koala led news journalists into an Australian literary tradition

The world was captivated when footage of a badly burnt koala taking water from a Victorian Country Fire Authority volunteer was taken with a mobile phone and broadcast to the world on YouTube in February 2009. When the story of ‘Sam the Koala’ was subsequently adopted by traditional broadcast and print media, recombinant themes were used to construct her story – from heroism, patriotism, villain v victim - even romance was incorporated to entertain and create audience appeal. This paper explores how ‘Sam the Koala’ became a defining news story in the coverage of Victoria’s Black Saturday bushfires and examines the power of narrative when cross pollination occurs between new and traditional media in the production of news. It is argued that Sam’s story is evidence of journalists adopting new approaches to storytelling in a bid to retain their legitimacy as the authoritative voice of news and information in an increasingly technologically driven society.

Was there much blood kid? : cadet journalists in Australian media

This thesis established the ways in which novice journalists formulate their own professional ideologies and identified the key influences in this process. The research focused on the dominant oral traditions operating within newsrooms and established the fundamental strengths and weaknesses of the current systems of training young journalists.

Journalists, remote Indigenous sources and cultural competence

This is the report of the Australian news media and Indigenous policymaking 1988-2008 Australian Research Council Discovery Project.

Academics,think tanks and journalists : the trouble with expert opinion, empirical evidence and bilingual education

This book reports the findings of the Australian News media and Indigenous policymaking 1988-2008 ARC Discovery Project

Changing newsrooms : a survey of journalists in Victoria, Australia

Anecdotal evidence suggests Australian journalism is changing. This study borrows from earlier studies carried out in the United States and Australia to gain a picture ofthe contemporQ/Y Australian journalist. This paper is based on a study carried out in the Australian state of Victoria in late 2007 and early 2008.

Journalists and the stirring of Australian public diplomacy: the Colombo Plan towards the 1960s

 Australia was an active member of the Colombo Plan for aid to South and Southeast Asia, beginning in 1951 as a loosely organized umbrella of multiple bilateral aid agreements between Commonwealth countries and quickly expanding in geographical reach and membership. Towards the end of the 1950s, as members of this ‘plan’ geared up for a new wave of aid projects, they also attached new importance to information activities associated with aid. In this Australian case study, journalists were thrust to the fore of story-generation relating to Australia’s involvement in the Colombo Plan. These written stories, and also still and moving images, were aimed at both domestic Australian audiences and also overseas audiences. Thus began some of the first important steps in what today is called ‘public diplomacy’, and what, at the time, was a new experiment in foreign policy and reputation-making.