An Introduction To Journalism...

-Lecture 1

Journalism is so much more that the investigating and reporting of issue’s, trends and events to the wider masses, it is a dynamic literary and historical art form, which constantly grows and evolves to meet the needs of the consumers. Journalists feed the insatiable hunger of the public with information which they demand more instantly then ever before in its history.

With the introduction of the movable type printing press by Johannes Gutenberg in the 15^th century the possibility of regularly published material became possible and the idea of Newspapers was conjured. By the 17^th century, journalism had ski-rocketed into the paper empire with twice weekly releases available in Europe.

 Philip Graham, publisher of the Washington Post in the 1940’s declared that “Journalism is the first rough draft of history.” But the caution laid at the feet of all journalists by Henry Grunwald who was Time Magazines editor during the 80’s points towards the real dichotomy that is faced; “Journalism can never be silent; that is its greatest virtue and its greatest fault.” He goes on to issue the challenge that, “It (Journalism) must speak and speak immediately, while echoes of wonder, the claims of triumph and the signs of horror are still in the air.”

Journalism has become a part of everyday life in our contemporary world, it is seen and heard everywhere and is readily available. It reflects back to us not only our personal views and that of others but the dominated values of society. In this way journalism insinuates a way of understanding the world and the people around us.

Today, Newspaper companies at the very least have a daily release and more often and evening paper, but the progress has not been with out cost. The industry faces many complex hurdles, the establishment of pay walls, competition from social media, the controversial “death of newspaper’s, not to mention the skewered pubic perception of journalists and PR’s. Many of these issues tarnish journalism as it runs the risk of being seen as little more than an entertainment form, “Organized gossip” which equates to the “scribbling on the back of advertisements,” and not the hard-hitting factual masterpiece that it was initially intended to be. The integrity of journalism must be upheld so that it remains an integral part of today’s society and be forever valued for its source of factual knowledge.