NEWS & NewspapersSix historical eras: partisan press, penny press, “yellow” journalism, modern era, postmodern phase, corporate periodCOM 259 1st Edition Lecture 16 Campbell Lecture Outlines – Test 3 Storytelling (see also article on “narrative formulas”)“We tell ourselves stories in order to live.” – Joan Didion, The White Album, 1979“A need to tell and hear stories is essential to the species Homo sapiens—second in necessity apparently after nourishment and before love and shelter. Millions survive without love or home, almost none in silence; the opposite of silence leads quickly to narrative, and the sound of story is the dominant sound of our lives.” -- Reynolds PriceNarrative – dominant symbolic way individuals and societies make sense of experience and articulate their valuesTwo basic of elements of narrative:1. story -- chronology of events w/ a beginning, middle and end; what happens; the plot -- featuring a problem, conflict, and resolution. 2. discourse -- how the story is told; the narrationPower of narrative formulas (according to John Cawelti in Adventure, Mystery, and Romance)1. affirm our “existing interests and attitudes by presentingan imaginary world that is aligned with these interests and attitudes” – narratives seem familiar2. help us “resolve tensions and ambiguities resulting from conflicting interests” – narratives solve problems 3. enable us “to explore in fantasy the boundary between the permitted and the forbidden and to experience in a carefully controlled way the possibility of stepping acrossthe boundary” – narratives help us confront deviance and evil4 basic narrative formulas/patterns (see Frank McConnell’s Storytelling & Mythmaking; Northrup Frye’s Anatomy of Criticism)1. epic – about the founding of “cities” and civilization; about beginnings and the origins of a society’s laws and mysteries – kings/fathers are classic heroes (think Genesis, Iliad, or Superman)2. romance – about civilizing of “the city” – introducing rules for city to live by; about maintaining social order; love, duty, loyalty are central concerns – knights and princesses (children of kings/fathers) are classic heroes(think King Arthur, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Sex in the City)3. melodrama – “city” has become complex & dangerous; rules, laws subverted and social order corrupted; about finding way and depending on own individual code of justice and honor – detectives, gunfighters are classic melodrama heroes (think Dirty Harry, Buffy the VampireSlayer, Chinatown, The Departed, 24, evening news4. satire – “city” so corrupt/shaky it needs to start over; about advocating for new city, new social order, new beginning; heroes are often saints or “clowns” (think NewTestament or The Matrix, The Daily Show, House)NEWS & NewspapersSix historical eras: partisan press, penny press, “yellow” journalism, modern era, postmodern phase, corporate period1-- partisan era – 1690s-1830s -- twin masters – political partiesand business/commercials interest2--penny press era – 1830-1880s – news as product, freedom from political subsidies INCLUDES “yellow” journalism – Pulitzer and Hearst3--modern era – 1896-today -- NY Times, Ochs & paper of record - rise of objectivity (as ideal)_- “inverted pyramid” model: 5Ws4-- postmodern phase – 1960S-today: rise of TV news; 1982, USA Today; attack on “objective” ideal 5-- corporate era – late 1980s-today JOAs, chain ownership; editors as MBAs; pressures on newspapers in age of Internet; consolidation in TV news under entertainment companiesABC News – DisneyCBS News – Viacom/ParamountNBC News – COMCAST/UniversalFox – News Corp/Twentieth Century FoxCNN – AOL Time Warner/ Warner Bros6- Internet and new partisan era – rise of partisan news on cable and in blogs -- making money in a fragmented marketplaceJournalism and BiasStudies from 2003-2008: 19-24 percent of the public describe themselves as liberal, 36-38 percent as conservative, 33-41 percent as moderate.31-34 percent of journalists describe themselves as liberal, 8-9 percent as conservative, 49-53 percent as moderate managers and CEOs of news organizations are more conservative and match the public profile more closely.Between 1985 and 2003, those who thought news organizations were biased politically rose from 45 percent to 59 percent.2012 (Pew Research Center) – “more voters … unaffiliated with a majorparty than at any other point in last 75 years—-- 38 percent independent-- 32 Democratic-- 24 RepublicanRandom House primary dictionary definitions –Conservative: “disposed to preserve existing conditions, institutions, etc., or to restore traditional ones, and to limit change.”Liberal: “favorable to progress or reform, as in political or religious affairs.” “President Obama says he wants to fundamentally transform America. We want to restore to America the founding principles that made the country great.” -- Mitt Romney (2/4/12), after winning Nevada GOP caucusWho’s more likely to become a reporter?Other ways to think about bias -- mainstream “objective” JRN IS biased:--in favor of professional standards that solve time deadlines and space limitations--in favor of what happened yesterday --against historical and social context--against independent analytical thinking--in favor of “balanced” moderate positions--in favor of status quo/elite/powerful/famous sources--in favor of stories that will serve middle and upper middle class readers.--in favor of “bad” or news that deviates from norm -- in favor of conflict--in favor of storytelling (not scientific