Chapter 2 Week 3

1. I think the most important media function is to inform. Informing the public of current affairs and news is a very important part of journalism because the public demand to know what is happening in their world.

2. When profits and ratings are involved in determining what is reported on, the material chosen to report on is done so in a bias manner due to the person deciding 'what's newsworthy' being swayed by making money and increasing theiraudience.

3. The presence of bias in regards to what is newsworthy is a big problem in the media. Newsworthyness should reflect public interest, not the interest of the one gaining profit.

4. Investigative journalism involves gathering information. Australian newspapers are not very commited to investigative journalism as it is alot more time consuming than other forms of journalism. The large amount of time required for this reporting means increased cost to the newspapers which editors are not usually willing to pay. Legal issues such as defamation action also play an important role in the decision to abandon investigative journalism.

5. I think in all aspects of the media, journalists should stay loyal to their readers. This kind of problem brings in thoughts of the influence of the fourth estate in the media today. Advertisers can be replaced, whereas the newspaper's readers once lost are lost forever.


Points of Interest:

- The success of a media outlet is measured by its audience. As i learnt in the text book this week, all media forms strive to achieve mass audiences because their success depends upon it. Media forms get their funding from advertisers etc who are wanting publicity through the certain medium, therefore the media outlet needs to attract large audiences in order to keep their funding coming. This means that a media outlet with a large audience is more successful than that with a smaller audience because advertisers are going to support those who reach alot of people rather than a small amount of people.

- The media's entertainment sections are there purely for enjoyment and to add a little lighthearted edge to the 'hard' stories reported on. Although many people deny reading and caring about the entertainment sections of the newspaper, it is one of the most popular sections featured in all papers. The public interest of celebrities etc is so massive that hundreds of magazines make success of writing only about that. Many people find the entertainment sections a leisurely activity. I think it is iimportant to have a mix of hard news, soft news and entertainment within newspapers, the world would be a very depressed place if all we ever read about was war and natural disasters.

- Australian laws in regard to journalism and reporting are alot stricter than in America. For example, in Australia a journalist can be charged with defamation if they don't follow strict rules when writing about people or places. It is just as important for the laws of journalism to be applied to protec t the public as it is to apply the AJA Code of Ethics to protect journalists and the public. The laws may be stricter, but they keep the balance between writer and reader.