I was engrossed in following our Malaysian shuttlers' fortunes at the Olympics when an SMS from fellow newshound, Jacqueline Ann Surin, informed that The Nut Graph has made its APpearance. I believe this new online newspaper will surely add colour and light to the local media scene -- and the Malaysian state of democratic space and discourse will reap benefits as more seasoned journalists launch such initiatives to offer the readers CHOICE.
At the end of the day, harsh reality will prove that truism inherently propounded by Charles Drawin's Evolution Theory will hold -- ONLY THE FITTEST WILL SURVIVE. Open market and competitition will ensure that in all worldly environments, including MEDIA, both old and new.
I sincerely extend to the A*team headed by award-winning Jac -- mostly ex-theSun, yes? -- CONGRATULATIONS and smooth sailing ahead!:)
Here's an initial serving from the guysy newshound who also helmed MalaysiaVotes in the leadup to the 12th General Elections climaxing March 8, 2008 -- ala Lee Chong Wei's semi-finals win I just savoured from 6.30PM -- extracting from thenutgraph.com:
Keeping the public's interest
By Jacqueline Ann Surin
“SEX, Jacky. It’s what people want to read! It’s what will sell the paper!” This is how my former editor at the first newspaper I worked in justified the images of sexy women and titillating stories in the paper. Often, it felt as if he could have gleefully continued with “Sex, and more sex!” as the newspaper’s circulation climbed.
Perhaps the “give readers what they want to read” formula works to some extent, because the newspaper I used to write for remains the country’s #1 English daily. And while I know there are objections within that newsroom about sexist coverage, the truth is, because newspapers are also business entities, increasing readership in order to draw in advertising revenue can be really important.
Which is why it was very refreshing and encouraging to hear Charles Glasser at a July 8, 2008 luncheon talk in Kuala Lumpur at a Bar Council- and Centre for Independent Journalism-organised training programme for media defence lawyers. A former journalist turned lawyer and trainer, Glasser is the high-profile media counsel for Bloomberg News. Glasser’s brief bio states that “much of his work involves training members of the media on how to exercise their freedom to speak responsibly.”
In his talk titled Working as Media Counsel in the 21st Century: A New Paradigm, Glasser said: “What is of interest to the public need not necessarily be in the public’s interest.” If ever an apt and succinct response was needed to the argument that the media need sex, women and salacious scandals to sell, this was it, I thought.
One of the core values and practices newsrooms should have, Glasser argued, is that the media needs to serve the public interest. “The public interest is not what the public merely ‘finds’ interesting; the public interest is served when those with something at stake have the opportunity to learn facts that affect their health, safety, financial or physical security.”
And so, while a newspaper that focuses on what kind of model Altantuya Shaariibuu was, for example, may have pulled more readers, it really misses the point of serving the public interest if it doesn’t ask a far more important question: Who had the authority to direct special action unit personnel to blast her up with restricted explosives?
Public interest is also not served when the media only react to what’s new or current all the time. Yes, it’s true that the “news” is about what’s new, but when the media hop from one new issue to the next, what tends to happen is that “older”, unresolved issues tend to be forgotten.
A good example is the coverage on the Auditor General’s annual report. Every year, the media have a field day with the Auditor General’s disclosures of corruption and inefficiencies involving public funds. Every year, the issues are forgotten by the media within a couple of weeks, until the following year’s report. “Older” stories tend to end up smaller in paragraph length, and further back in the inside pages, until the issue vanishes from the media, and the public’s, consciousness.
At The Nut Graph, we hope we will be able to serve public interest ethically, responsibly and with courage. The nut graph is the paragraph that explains the point of a story. In a nutshell, it tells readers why something is significant enough that it needed to be written and published and read.
What is of significance to the public’s interest is not always what is new or what is salacious. While it may be riveting coffeeshop talk to keep abreast of the latest sodomy accusations against Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, does it really serve the public interest if the media allocates so much resources to the latest twists and trysts at the expense of other larger issues that need serious national attention? As unsexy or “old” as the issue of urban poverty may be at a time when sex scandals are the talk of town, do we serve the public interest when we report on the scandals and forget about the stories of social inequality that really need to be told?
This is why, at The Nut Graph, we plan to not just do spot reporting of the latest breaking news; we plan to also connect the dots for readers so that we can all make sense of what’s going on in and outside the country, and so that we can respond intelligently and responsibly as informed and knowledgeable citizens. And we plan to carry out journalism that is as ethical, fair and responsible as possible. Where we fail, we hope we will be held accountable.
Will we draw eyeballs to our site so that we can make The Nut Graph financially viable through income from advertisements? That’s left to be seen because it’s as much a decision by readers and advertisers as it is ours in managing the business aspect of our humble outfit.
What matters, though, is whether we, as journalists, can serve the public interest as the latest media in town. Our readers will be our judge, but as Stephen Covey states in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, it’s best to start with the end in mind.
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Jacqueline Ann Surin is editor at The Nut Graph.
She is an award-winning journalist who is also the author of the book
Shape of a Pocket. Her email is:
jacquelinesurin@thenutgraph.com
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In an unrelated development, from NEWS.au.com:
War correspondent shot on live television
August 15, 2008 07:54am
Sniper shoots female reporter on live TV
Footage comes as Rice tries to seal peace
Pictures: Human cost of the Georgia conflict
A REPORTER has been shot by a sniper while covering the Georgian conflict - with the dramatic footage appearing live on TV.
Gunshots are heard and the correspondent - named by British media as Tamara Urushadze - is seen to fall to the ground.
But in the panic that follows she still tries to continue her report for public television.
Urushadze is seen with a bloody arm after the attack, and apparently escapes with a graze.
But the coverage is further evidence of the continuing violence in Georgia, even as US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice tries to get a peace deal signed today.
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Video: Fox reporter's dash to safety as Georgians shoot
Video: Russian-Ossetian troops confront aid workers
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Georgian President Micheil Saakashvili this morning accused irregulars associated with the Russian army of raping and looting their way across his country.
"This army travels around with irregulars, travels around with marauders, travels around with rapists, travels around with arsonists, robbers and with looters," he said.
Just hours earlier, Georgia's prime minister said a convoy of more than 100 Russian tanks and other vehicles were moving from the western city of Zugdidi deeper into Georgia.
Lado Gurgenidze said it was unclear where the tanks were going or why, but suggested Russian forces were "trying to rattle the civilian population".
Meanwhile US President George W. Bush said the standoff with Russia over Georgia could stretch "throughout the coming weeks".
"My call, of course, is for the territorial integrity of Georgia to be respected and for the ceasefire agreement to be honoured," he said. "And we will be working this issue throughout the coming weeks."
French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Ms Rice would today ask Georgia's president to sign a ceasefire document that will pave the way for Russian troops to pull back.
"If ... Saakashvili signs the document that we have negotiated with (Russian President) Mr (Dmitry) Medvedev, then the withdrawal of Russian troops can begin," he said.
With Reuters
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