Journalism 3555

Syllabus

 

Note on Assignments and Work Schedules

You will be required to do a significant number of your assignments for this class during normal business hours. Please do not take this class if this will be a significant burden. There is no way to pass this class if you cannot do assignments during the hours when government agencies are open.

 

Required Readings

Brant Houston, The Investigative Reporter’s Handbook (2002).
Frank Bass, The Associated Press Guide to Internet Research and Reporting (2001).

Grading

Data Practices Act Assignment – 5%
Group Research Project – 40%
Class Participation – 10%
Assignments – 35%
Final Exam – 10%

The final exam for this class is scheduled for Tuesday, May 11, 10-11:55 a.m.

Data Practices Act Assignment

Students will participate in an audit of local governments’ adherence to the Minnesota Data Practices Act. Each student will be given a simple question that a government agency is required to answer. You will visit that agency during business hours and then write up a short report on what happened when you visited the agency.

Group Research Project

All students will participate in a group research project done in conjunction with the Duluth News Tribune. The exact details of this project are still under discussion, but it will be the most important out-of-class activity for this course. Please note that it will probably require a certain amount of boring, repetitive tasks. Students will be divided up into small groups of three to four students.

Assignments

You will have a variety of in-class and homework assignments. These assignments might include obtaining information from a trial or finding books on a particular subject at the library. Some assignments will be done via the Internet. Internet assignments will also require you to evaluate the reliability of the information. Other assignments will require you to visit government agencies. Expect about one assignment per week.

Class Participation

Class participation counts for a significant portion of your grade. This means I will evaluate you for the contributions you make to class discussions and in-class critiques. In addition, it means that attendance is mandatory. All excused absences must be arranged in advance, including those for illness unless you are in the hospital or on your way to the hospital. You may call my office phone the night before to notify me of illness. All unexcused absences above two will mean that you will lose one full letter grade off of your final grade in the class.

Class Policies

1. Office Hours. Please use the office hours to discuss both specific questions raised by the course work and more general concerns pertaining to the study of history, journalism and academic life. Also, please use the office hours if you feel you don’t understand basic or advanced concepts discussed in class.

2. Deadlines. Assignments will be collected at the beginning of the class period on the day they are due. Late assignments will not be accepted.

3. Academic honesty. All work done for this course must be your own. When using someone else’s ideas or words, you must give that person credit to avoid plagiarism. We will discuss appropriate documentation in class. Plagiarism and other forms of scholastic dishonesty, as defined in the Student Conduct Code in the 2003-2005 Duluth Catalog, p. 46-50, will result in zero credit for the assignment and may result in a course grade of F or a more substantial penalty, depending on the severity of the offense.

4. Students unable to take the final exam on the designated date are expected to notify the instructor immediately via voicemail. Excused absences from the final exam must be approved by the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. Exam conflicts will be resolved according to the policies outlined in the 2003-2005 Duluth Catalog, p. 44.

5. Special needs. If you have a disability, either permanent or temporary, which might affect your performance in this class, please inform me at the start of the semester. Methods, materials, or testing will be adapted as required for equitable participation.