Journalism Students: Don't Do This

Sports reporter confesses his sins:

http://www.monroenews.com/news/2012/jun/26/journalism-students-dont-do/

 

also: don't go into journalism.

honestly, asking the beauty queen out is probably understandable (assuming she was of age at the time).

 

Two of those (the first one and asking the pageant queen on a date) are forgivable. The other two should have him either severely disciplined or fired on the spot.

I'll forgive the first one because we've done something slightly similar at my shop. Years ago, during a football blowout, our photographer was having a hard time getting any good pictures. All the plays were either dives into the middle or on the other side of the field, that sort of thing. We were on very good terms with the coach of the winning team, so my SE asked him if he'd call a sweep toward their sideline so the photog could get something usable. He did, and we got our picture.

 

I think the first one may have been the worst. The second was bad.

I could forgive going with memory on quotes after losing the notes if you were confident of what was said and didn't go overboard on the quotes.

Did this guy quit or something?

 

Is he serious?

 

Don't do this if you think potential employers will google your name.

 

What was the point of this?

 

Dating Miss Belding is fine (again if she is legal). Nothing a beauty queen says or does is "news" unless it turns up in the police blotter. In the meantime, hubba hubba.

Making up quotes is not fine, and the excuse you needed to do it to get to a party is REALLY not fine.

Quoting from memory is OK -- I know some people who do it all the time and have never been accused of misquoting. Although, if the subject says anything that is going to be even the least bit controversial to anybody, you better have some record of it somewhere.

Asking coaches to play certain players is not really unethical, unless you use your status as Sports Writer at the Daily Grunt to do it. However, it is extremely lame-ass. And it's even more lame-ass if the coach goes along with it. If the coach has some team rule for whatever reason seems good to him that a certain player should not play in a given match, and then throws the rule out the window for some schmoe sports writer in the stands, the rule isn't worth a shit anyway.

 

The final episode is a no-brainer.

The source never gets to decide if something is on or off the record.

Everything is on the record unless the reporter expressly agrees otherwise, in advance.

 

I'm sure the feature on community college volleyball players must have been riveting stuff, and totally worth asking the coach to throw you a solid.

 

Guys such as this only further diminish the reputation of journalists ... and at a time when the industry needs it least.

How this guy is still employed baffles me. Where the hell were his editors to save him from himself? Oh, never mind. If the editors had any brains whatsoever, they would have fired this idiot's ass long ago. Or certainly after this column was published.

I'm rarely someone who takes up torches and pitchforks, but this outrages me quite a bit.

 

Why would this guy put that out there?
When I was in college, I was in a basic reporting class, and I did a story on some subject that I don't recall as a class assignment. Problem was, I was working full-time and was having trouble making the contacts I needed in my spare time. I am ashamed to admit I made up the quotes, but I figured, hey it's just for a class. Then ... my professor really liked the story and wanted to publish it in the school paper. I was mortified. Somehow I talked him into not submitting it. Have no idea what I said to change his mind, but I learned my lesson quickly on that one.