Many people often wonder what journalism really is and what it entails.This blog is aimed at tackling what journalism deals with.
Journalism is the gathering, processing and dissemination of information to the public with an aim. Journalism can be put into three main forms which is broadcast( tv,radio), print(newspapers,journals) and new media(online). Individuals who write journalism are called journalists and can be found in media houses or institutions such as radio or tv stations.
Journalism may come in different forms such as news and opinion forms. In news form, it may come as breaking news that is telling about an event as it happens. For example the death of the late musician Ebony was at some point breaking news to the citizens of Ghana. It may also come in a feature story form which is a detailed look at something interesting but is not breaking news or in investigative stories( stories that uncover information few people knew). An example is Anas’ number 12 exposé which focused on corruption in the Ghana Football Association(GFA). A characteristic of a good journalist is curiosity. Journalists read more and always want to know more concerning the world they’re in thus revealing secrets of people and creating exposure.
Journalism aims at improving the quality of life of people, questioning what is going on in society in order to shape lives. Truthfulness, accuracy, actuality and authorship are some key principles to writing good journalism. In as much as news has to be catchy for people to read or be interested in, you don’t want to give false news as a good journalist that is to say report news as it is to the public but also play the role of gatekeeping as some news may be sensitive to the public. News must be fresh and accurate to catch the attention of the individual or public. As a journalist, make sure that your news is coming from a credible source and that you have made your own investigations regarding the information you have because you do not want your credibility or reputation to be at stake. In cases whereby you report fake news, be sure to issue an apology to the public and report on the news as it really is. Also, report on real issues. Your news should be about real events and people not something based off of your imagination.
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