For Monday, Feb. 1

Here's the agenda:

1) News quiz

2) Discussion about Sunday Star Tribune articles

3) First graded AP Style quiz (10 points)

Ask an editor ...

Here are some insights from editors:

Hi Megan,

I emailed an old friend of mine in NYC who's pretty plugged into the magazine world there. Here's what she told me: "The publications world in New York—magazines, newspapers, tabloids, you name it—is pretty traumatized economically and essentially in free-fall right now. The big houses like Condé Nast are ejecting employees and closing pubs right and left. Even “Mother Times” has gone the way of all flesh and done a mass lay-off. So my advice to your intern would be to think long and hard about how he or she is going to make money if he or she moves here. It’s incredibly expensive. What is still possible, is to do what my colleague is doing—work some kind of non-editorial job that pays a decent salary and has benefits, and then do freelance writing on the side and hope for a break. I think things are going to start turning around by next year, but the overall retrenchment has cut down a lot of experienced, big-name folks who now are also out there trying to complete for the few jobs that exist. Someone just out of school is going to have a tough time getting to the front of the line. Sorry to be so pessimistic, but it ain’t good times for journalists in The City. That said, I would be happy to meet with your intern if and when he or she comes to New York. I can’t promise to have any magic solutions in hand, but I can be a friendly face."

Sorry to pass on such a pessimistic forecast, but I guess that's the reality right now. I'll keep my ears open and let you know if I come across anything that looks promising here and there.

Craig Cox (Experience Life)

From Phillip Pina, Pioneer Press, interviewed by Alex Ebert

What are the biggest challenges you face?

1. the drain of experience. Buyouts have meant some of the more experienced reporters with institutional knowledge have left the field. We have to find ways to capture the excitement and technological abilities of the younger reporters that are left.

2. fewer bodies in the newsroom. Cutbacks mean reporters are juggling more.

As an editor, how do you prioritize the needs of the readers with the realities of the newsroom?

3. an uninterested audience. It's not just tv news you are competing with for their undivided attention. Its the gossip on facebook. that silly texting string on my phone. the giggling approach to news like gawker and tmz.com. After the headline, after the photo, after realizing I heard something about this on the radio at noon; what do we write that will get someone to read the next graph?

What things make a great editor?

I've had editors who would assign a story, and then walk away. That is unacceptable. One must be more vested in the story, in the reporter's career, in the protection of the newspaper's reputation as an institution in the community, and in the truth - than to just walk away. A great editor understands the impact his or her decisions has. They check on your progress, offer any suggestions, offer any experience you have, clear the decks and bring in reinforcements if necessary. And once done, they check it again. And they inspire you to new ideas, better stories and a desire to share them with the world.

What features make a great editor?

An ability to listen and an ability to inspire. One of my favorite editors I turned to when I first started this gig, said my job wasn't to spell check and worry about grammar. It was to push writers to be fair, accurate and to challenge their sources. And to push them to pursue new stories and ways of telling them. Now that editor is working at a newspaper that just got rid of almost all its copy editors, so she may have a change of heart now.

Macro edit for sidewalk inspections story

— Questions/more reporting?

(need stronger nut graph; disorganized on top; more information about danger associated with unclear sidewalks; more info on warning process; rule on foreclosed properties? more details on the actual workload in a day; more on the logistics? more from other properties owners; more critical voice; budget cut impact.

— Headline ideas?

Shovel or pay the price

Pedestrians troubled by poor walkway upkeep

Walking on broken ice

Sidewalk complaints accumulating

Clear the ice

— Photos?

— Before and after

— inspectors on the job

— Photo of the complaint

— Photo of foreclosed house

— Multimedia possibilities?

— interactive map

— audio slideshow of inspectors showing what warrants fines

— video shadowing one of the inspectors

A note about our Jan. 25 class

We will have our first news quiz at the start of class so be sure to be reading the local papers.

Also, please select an editor at any publication of your choosing — could be local, or someone outside of Minnesota. I want you to ask the editor the main challenges and opportunities they see in their work this year. I'd like for you to share thoughts from the editor of your choosing in class.

Have a good weekend.

MN Daily critique: Ideas for 2010

Brainstorming for the MN Daily ...

New ideas for 2010:

— More community oriented

— More diversity in sports coverage

— More thoughtful special sections

— More projects

— More national news in the wire digest

— Take a look at how to package "overheard"

— Be more strategic about house ads

— Be more thoughtful about wire stories

— More provocative editorials/op-eds

Qualities of a dream editor

Thoughts from students ....

— Upfront, brutally honest

— Experienced and confident

— Strategically confrontational

— Adaptability

— High standards

— Sense of purpose, mission driven

— Walking the walk

— Deliberate

— Focused on readers

— Passionate

— Copy surgeon

— Good at critical feedback

— Creative

— Brave and ethical

— Long-term vision, imaginative

Note on the textbook

Our textbook Modern News Editing is out of stock at the bookstore, but should be available by early February. You can also find the book on reserve at Wilson Library.

Greetings students

Welcome to Jour 3155 for the spring 2010 semester! I'm honored to be your teacher. 

For starters, I'd love to learn more about all of you. Please comment on this post with the following information: your name, year in school, hopes for this course and your dream job after graduation. 

Thanks so much!