In response to blog post, The Future of Journalism Education, by Dan Gillmore

BLOG: The Future of Journalism Eduction

Gillmore lists a number of ideas, "If I ran a journalism school..." It appears to me, based on the reading, that the direction of journalism education is becoming a more holistic or comprehensive approach. There are so many aspects of journalism that go beyond simply reporting the news. I suppose that is true for any profession. There are jobs and careers that fall under the umbrella of "journalism". I like the more well-rounded approach.

One thing I would add, perhaps already eluded to in the post, is for the need of a more skills oriented education. Theory is fine, and important I suppose, but when we really get down to it we students need practical application for jobs in the real world. This is my first semester of grad school, pursuing a Master's in Journalism, and I'm not sure where exactly this is going to lead me. So, I'm probably not qualified at this stage to respond to Gillmores' post with anything of real value. I'm just trying to understand how all this works.

Gillmore lists the basic principles for creators of journalism. The standard principles are thoroughness, accuracy, fairness, independence and transparency. Gillmore mentioned that the fifth one, transparency, was rather new and somewhat controversial. I don't really understand why. To me that one should be listed at the top. Transparency, in my opinion, simply means a person or an organization can walk confidently in the world knowing they have nothing to hide. That doesn't mean we have to tell everyone everything all of the time (because some things are better left unsaid), but integrity and honesty produces confidence.

Gillmore lists 5 other basic principles for journalists:
1. Do your homework, and then do some more.
2. Get it right, every time.
3. Be fair to everyone.
4. Think independently, especially of your own biases.
5. Practice and demand transparency.

This list looks good to me. Along with fairness I might add the word "respect".  Be fair and respectful to everyone.