In focusing on the epistemology of journalism, this paper seeks to determine how reporters, particularly investigative reporters, know what they know. It begins by distinguishing between the validity of knowledge claims and their everyday justification, assuming the latter to be the proper focus for a phenomenological study of what passes as…

Provides pointers for news writers in such areas as approaching a story, conducting an interview, using quotations, and protecting sources. (GW)

Advises beginning reporters how to obtain the three major ingredients of the news story: relevant factual material from direct observation; information from authoritative, knowledgeable, and reliable sources; and significant background material. (Author/GW)

A Rapid City newspaper supports a question-answer column on science-related questions from local readers. Discusses development of the column, mechanics of setting it up, and why starting similar columns in other papers may help in getting science to the public. Sample questions with answers as they appeared in the newspaper are included. (JN)

An experiment conducted with students in news reporting classes revealed that information sources said to represent groups received more emphasis and more complete coverage in news stories than did sources said to be unaffiliated with groups. (GT)

Finds that student journalists reacted differently to--and wrote different stories about--a woman news source who spoke about a rape crisis center, depending on whether they had been told that the woman was herself a rape victim. (GW)

Shows that several sources are important for an accurate news story. Offers guidelines for getting student journalists to select several news sources and obtain information from them. (RL)

Claims that the long list of traditionally accepted news values can be replaced with a single concept, vividness, and that vivid information may not be the best information. Blames much of the alleged deficiencies associated with journalistic practice such as sensationalism and preoccupation with conflict on the journalistic practice of writing to…

Reports on a study indicating that veiled attribution occurs in approximately three-fourths of news stories in both "Time" and Newsweek," and that the attribution phrases used emphasize partisan ties, suggest expertise, and tend to personalize, to add apparent scope to a story, and to be especially vague in international stories.…

Indicates that, across three circulation categories, there are differences in the research process, availability and use of resources, and how writers rate usefulness of sources. Finds that most editorial writers make use of various sources for ideas and background material. Shows that some writers disagree about how much research is needed to…

An analysis of issue-oriented and event-oriented social issues stories in eight major daily newspapers revealed that 61.3 percent of all sentences analyzed were not attributed to a source. (GT)

Explains the technique "editorial step-asides," which is designed to help students learn the difference between fact and opinion in a teacher's lecture. (FL)

Describes three projects (a public records directory, an Iowa state reference file, and a reporter's reference guide) that help student journalists to develop respect for public records and to identify the most important and accessible records. (RL)

A study was conducted to determine how people react to unnamed or veiled news sources in newspaper articles. A group of 283 persons, chosen at random from three contrasting communities, was asked to read two articles dealing with different topics, one with sources quoted by name and one with euphemisms ("a White House spokesman,""a…

Discusses how the Janet Cooke scandal stimulated journalists to reflect on changes that had occurred in the field since the 1960s and to consider the increasingly visible contradictions of their own authority. Describes how Cooke symbolized both the increased presence of minorities in journalism and changes in reporting conventions. (JD)