Libel

A sophomore at Springfield University claims a chemistry professor has sexually harassed her.

Karen Hart, 123 Hill Hall, says the professor, George O.T. Jungle, has touched her during tutoring sessions in his office and has invited her to his apartment several times. She said she declined his invitations.

"I am having trouble in the class and I have to go see him to get help with my papers and projects," Hart said. "But I am scared to go in his office now."

Jungle denied having an improper contact with the student and threatened this newspaper with a libel suit if it published the story.

Hart said she is thinking of filing a formal complaint with the university.

"I don't know how to do that," she said. "I don't know what to do."

I would not put the professors name in the story. I don't believe the story should be published unless there was proof that the man actually had improper contact. I would print out the story once a formal complaint had been made and there was evidence. I would also wait until someone was being charged to make the story more concrete. It seems that it can turn into a he said, she said ordeal.

Law and Ethics

You are interviewing a high government
official about her involvement in a bribery
scheme, when she is called out of her office.
While alone, you notice some documents on
her desk that appear to be related to your
investigation.
Would you read them? Take them? Ask her
about them when she returns?

I don’t believe I would read them but possibly ask her about them saying I noticed them on her desk. I have too much of a conscience and would feel guilty if I mentioned reading them. Or if I was feeling really brave to get the story I would overlook the papers and then just keep it to myself.


Conditions at a local nursing home are
known to be substandard. It’s privately
owned, and efforts to gain admittance or
information have failed
Your editor asks you to get a job as an
orderly and write a story based on your
first-hand experiences.
Would you do it? Why or why not?

Just as in the Food Lion case the reporters made a false application with false references. It went against the first amendment but they found out how terrible the re-packaging was in that place. I think I would only do it if I had real experience in a nursing home so then there wouldn’t be much that was false about my application. If someone is being mistreated or the conditions are terrible in a place such as a nursing home, then people have the right to know. It would also hopefully make that place shape up and better the living conditions and staff etc.


You are writing a feature story and
find some excellent quotes about your
subject from another written source.
– May you use those quotes as if you
obtained them yourself, or must you
credit the other written source?
– What if you obtained the quotes from a
web site?

I believe I can use the quotes but I must credit the written source. Otherwise it is like plagiarism. If the quotes are from a website it is still the same story. Taking someone else’s work and trying to make it your own doesn’t seem legal, logical, or ethical.

FOG Index

An enormous accident took place around 1:30 this afternoon causing a fire and injury at Moeser Lane in El Cerrito. Somehow a 10-wheel hauler had overturned and smashed against someone’s house. Along the path of destruction by the truck were a snapped power pole and five badly damaged vehicles.

Ruben Sharma, a witness whose home was destroyed by a fire from the crash, said, “I thought it was a major earthquake. This is unbelievable.“ Sharma’s front yard is covered with bricks, broken glass, car parts, and splintered wood. Power has been lost from the crash in neighboring cities including Berkley and Richmond.


My FOG Index from my sample writing was 9.2. This is how many years of schooling a reader needs to understand what I’ve written. I have to wonder when the schooling would start. Does this mean from preschool? So then to understand my reading the person should be 13-years-old? It’s really interesting to see this as a way to score writing. I will use it with my future writing to see how my index changes.

Got What it Takes To Be A Reporter

My score was less than 20. This score makes sense to me however because I don’t see myself working in a newsroom. I found it odd the way the points were high and low for each question. I guess some were more important than others. For instance, on question 12 it says, “If I really want something, I’m tenacious until I get it”, that was 3 points. But then a question regarding skills with the computer was only 1 point, this is an area I am strong in. Interesting test though.

AP Exercise S-Z

1) He thought of Smokey Bear every time he got near a smoldering fire or entered a smoky room. (3)

2) The forecast is for lower temperatures, falling to the low 30s by tonight. If the rain continues, as expected, there could be a traveler's advisory. (3)

3) To celebrate Veteran’s Day, the anniversary of the armistice that ended World War I, troops of former soldier's will march down Main Street carrying U.S. flags. (3)

4) His weeklong ordeal will be finished when finals week is over. Until then, his well-being is in doubt. (2)

5) A 19-year-old man was arrested Monday for carrying a Saturday night special without a permit. After being released on bail, he disappeared. His whereabouts are unknown. (4)

6) She’d hoped to be able to trade in her car after getting a tuneup, but she totaled it last night. (3)

7) Could you photocopy that invoice for me? I need it for our year-end budget. (2)

Math For Journalists

Reporting with Numbers

1) A local college releases figures showing that its total budget is $120 million. Of that total, $80 million comes from the state, $6 million from student tuition, and the remaining $34 million from fees, grants and gifts.

Percentages:
State-67%
Student Tuition-5%
Grants/Gifts-28%

The most significant funding source is from the state which is more than half the total. Next are grants and gifts given to the school as well as fees. The student tuition barely makes notice in the college’s budget, it is only one-twentieth of the total.

The budget at a local college shows that the majority of funding comes from the state and less then half of that comes from fees, grants, and gifts. Only a small 5 percent is paid from student tuition.


2) Your editor assigns you to do a story about prison sentences handed down in cases of aggravated assault. He gives you the following figures from an anti-crime group that is lobbying for tougher sentencing guidelines. The cases represent the people convicted for aggravated assault in San Jose in one month in 2006.

Average prison term for people convicted of aggravated assault: 22 months
Median prison term for people convicted of aggravated assault: 12 months

The median is the most accurate description of prison terms because the mean can be misleading. With 84 months as the longest term and 8 months as the shortest it shows a somewhat extreme difference. The median is the halfway point, which would define the prison term better.


Name
Sentence
Donald Lee
1 year prison, 2 years probation
Richard Smith
1 year prison, 1 year probation
Wesley Mitchell
14 months prison, 1 year probation
Mary Jones
1 year prison, 1 year probation
Juan Rodriguez
1 year prison, 2 years probation
Harold Rothstein
8 months prison, 1 year probation
Michael Reese
7 years prison, 5 years probation

3) The state legislature is considering exempting restaurant food sales from the sales tax in the same way grocery sales are exempt.

CA sales tax= 7.25

$5 dollars per meal
If patrons ate out once a week for a year without sales tax it would cost 260$.
If the sales tax was still implemented it would cost 278.72$
Without tax patrons save 18.72$

$20 dollars per meal
If patrons ate out once a week for a year without sales tax it would cost 1040$
If sales tax was still implemented it would cost 1115.40$
Without tax patrons save 75.40$