Jounalism appreciation

After taking this course I have a new found appreciation for professional journalists. I think that before I took this course I clumped journalists and the media together as the same entity. I have no respect for the media and so I felt that root cause of this was the journalists,who I thought at the time were just writers of propaganda. However, after taking this class I am able to determine the difference between not only good and bad journalists, but also their ethical and moral values as a journalist. Now when I read the paper or watch the news I critique the AP writing styles, and how well the author attributes their information. This has helped me appreciate the good journalists, and ignore the bad. Another thing I have learned from this class is how much work and stress is involved in producing breaking news stories. I can now appreciate how well features are written because I know that good features are only written because the reporter knows how to conduct good reviews. Basically, I see journalism in a much better light now, and I realize that these professionals are actually really smart and hardworking.

News Summary

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/05/us/05flood.html?ref=us

The Cumberland River’s water level has receded a foot by Tuesday morning, expected to lower by an additional 11 feet by Wednesday. Nashville it’ four surrounding counties faced a flash flood over the weekend that killed 24 people, and left many houses and business damaged by the storm.