Archive for the ‘Assignments’ Category
Revisions
Posted by: cynmc on: February 11, 2009
I’ve asked some of you to revise some assignments. But even if I don’t request it, you can revise any assignment where you received a less-than-stellar grade. Revising makes most sense for assignments where you get a B- or less.
With a good revision, you can earn back up to half the points you lost the [...]
Your ‘Real News’ assignment
Posted by: cynmc on: February 10, 2009
For your “Real News Reporting” assignment — the culminating project of the news writing segment of this class — you’ll need to find and write your own news story or news feature. This assignment is due March 14, so you’ve got a month or so to figure it out, but it’s not too early to [...]
Election blog post
Posted by: cynmccune on: November 3, 2008
Yes, we’re finally down to election day. So, in addition to the two assignments listed on the class schedule for this week, I’d like you to write a blog post about your election experience. For example:
Was this your first time voting in a presidential election?
How/where did you vote? (i.e., Did you vote at a polling [...]
Writing in chunks
Posted by: cynmccune on: May 7, 2008
This week’s exercises have you looking at examples of online news writing. In one of the exercises, you’re asked, among other things, whether the stories are broken into “chunks.”
What’s a “chunk” you ask? Chunking is an approach to organizing and writing information online to make it more accessible and readable. This approach recognizes that online [...]
The long and short of it
Posted by: cynmccune on: May 5, 2008
Check out the latest project, 100 Percent SJSU, by Kyle Hansen, the Spartan Daily’s online editor, and friends. It’s a graphic look at diversity and ethnicity at SJSU…and it’s also a good example of a short-form story alternative (see p. 128-129 in Harrower text) that condenses and graphically displays data to make it more reader [...]
Broadcast assignment update
Posted by: cynmccune on: April 3, 2008
I’ve had a few questions about the format of this week’s broadcast assignment, so I just clarified a few things in the broadcast section on the Assignments page. You’ll find the new information highlighted in red.
Redefining the news
Posted by: cynmccune on: February 24, 2008
JMC grad student and blogger Ryan Sholin spends a lot of time thinking about the future of journalism and online news. In a recent blog post, Links that redefine news, he gives several examples of “online news sites and projects that stray from the traditional definition of news” and offer intriguing ideas about the future [...]
Get me rewrite!
Posted by: cynmccune on: February 17, 2008
A couple of you have asked me about doing rewrites. If your assignment has significant problems, I usually tell you to rewrite it. But even if I don’t ask you to do a rewrite, you may want to consider it.
In fact, I can think of two really good reasons for you to rewrite an assignment [...]
Stalking the elusive AP style exercise
Posted by: cynmccune on: February 15, 2008
It’s become clear that my emails are not getting through to everyone. Some of you have contacted me, noting that you never received the first AP style exercise that I emailed a week ago…which explains why so few of you have posted that assignment on your blogs.
After a bit of noodling around, it’s become clear [...]
It’s time to Copy Edit the World!
Posted by: cynmccune on: February 15, 2008
What’s “Copy Edit the World” you ask? It’s an assignment designed to help you sharpen your proofreading and editing skills. Your task: To find and correct errors in published materials distributed to the public, including typos and errors in spelling, word use, grammar and AP style. Everything is fair game… from green sheets , brochures [...]
Some Rights Reserved
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution, Share Alike, Noncommercial 3.0 U.S. License.
