Level(s): Grades 8 - 12
Overview
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This lesson is based on an article, which ran in the January 21, 1995 issue of the London Free Press. In the article, readers were asked to "play editor," by responding to cases based on real news events. The Free Press had an overwhelming response to their call for participants, which resulted in a follow-up article called "You were the Editor." In this lesson, students will become aware of the editorial decisions that have to be made by assuming the role of a newspaper editor who must decide what information to report, and what information to withhold in a series of prospective news stories. Once students have made their decisions, they shall see what the real editors decided in each case.
Outcomes
Students will:
- appreciate the tension that exists between freedom of expression and an individual's rights to privacy
- understand the editorial process in news journalism
- analyse how individuals or groups are presented in newspapers and assess the accuracy and influence of these representations
- understand media representations of social, political, and cultural issues
Preparation and Materials
Photocopy the following case studies:
Once students have made their editorial decisions, use the following summaries to discuss the editorial decisions that were made by newspaper professionals and London Free Press readers.
Procedure
You be the Editor: Introduction
Newspapers and their readers love the truth, but they routinely differ over how much truth should be published. The decision to print potentially embarrassing, agonizing facts is a judgement call - and today, you are all going to experience that decision making process.
Ask students:
- What is the role of a newspaper? (Newspapers are expected to report the truth, keep readers fully informed and aware of events that may affect their lives; to reflect the world as it really is, not as we would like it to be.)
- What is the role of a newspaper editor? (A newspaper editor acts as a "gate-keeper," who makes decisions regarding the appropriateness of the content within newspaper stories.)
- Should the whole truth always be told? (There are many situations where editors must consider the harmful effects on others of upholding these journalistic ideals.)
- Under what circumstances does the public's right to know conflict with a person's right to privacy? (Deciding which has a greater weight is something editors grapple with almost daily.)
- Comment on the following statement: "The hardest choices are not between good and bad. They are between differing outcomes which appear to have equal merit."
- Frequently the question arises: "Should newspapers more vigorously pursue the right to print, or should they exercise more restraint and publish only that which is socially acceptable?" Do you agree or disagree?
Activity
- Here is your chance to play the role of an editor. The following cases are based on real news events. Some are from the files of The London Free Press, others copies from similar quizzes at other newspapers.
- You have two choices in each scenario. There are no right or wrong answers. Other options may occur to you, but to keep results uncomplicated, please mark either (a) or (b) for each case on the coupon provided on this page. Use a separate piece of paper to explain or amplify your decision if you wish.
- Distribute the following case studies amongst students or groups of students:
- Once students have made their editorial choices, discuss each case and their decisions as a class.
You were the Editor: Follow-up
Explain to students that you are now going to see how their answers compare to those of London Free Press readers, and to the decisions that would have been made by newspaper professionals.
When The London Free Press first published these case studies, more than 500 readers jumped at the chance to be the editor. They made the call on 12 real life situations that required agonizing judgements on how to tell those stories. Here are their decisions, along with some comments they offered, and a comparison with the choices some Free Press staff would have made.
From the responses they received, the Free Press found:
- That readers care passionately about the way newspapers keep them informed.
- That readers want editors to avoid sensational headlines and show more respect for individual privacy in assessing and reporting the news.
- Answers to the same questions by 21 Free Press editorial staff found editors more or less on the same wavelength as readers on eight of the cases, but at odds with readers and each other on four.
- Publishing photographs of grieving relatives at funerals of prominent citizens was one issue where readers and editors differed sharply. All but one of the 21 editorial staff supported publication, but 65 per cent of the readers were opposed.
- What to include or leave out of obituaries produced a similar split, with 79 per cent of readers against reporting cause of death when a prominent person dies of AIDS, an opinion shared by only 21 per cent of editors.
- An overwhelming 82 per cent of readers would not include details of a deceased businessman's 20-year-old fraud to mar an otherwise unblemished record of public service, but 80 per cent of editors would include it.
- A majority of both readers and editors opposed publishing an unconfirmed rumour of impending layoffs at a local manufacturing plant, but 34 per cent of readers and 43 per cent of editors felt it should appear.
The summaries to each of the case studies can be obtained through the following links:
- Have students compare and discuss the answers in the summaries to their own responses.
Acknowledgements:
Henry McNulty, Hartford Courant (Conn.)
Jerry Finch, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Va.)
John Sweeney, Wilmington News-Journal (Del.)
Gina Lubrano, San Diego Union-Tribune (Cal.)
Phil Record, Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Tex.)
Larry Fiquette. St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Mo.)
Reprinted with permission from The London Free Press, Saturday, January 21, 1995 and Saturday, February 18, 1995. Published by London Free Press Printing Company, London, Ontario.
