ISSUE

Special Issue 2001

The Elements of Journalism

In “The Elements of Journalism,” Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel describe nine principles of journalism that speak to the essential responsibilities of journalists, the standards informing their work, and the role of a free press in a functioning democracy. Nieman Reports invited U.S. and international journalists to write short reflective essays about how these principles affect their work. Their insightful commentaries are paired with excerpts from the book to create a valuable teaching tool and classroom resource.

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Articles

Features

Journalists Must Serve as an Independent Monitor of Power

“In 1964, the Pulitzer Prize, the most coveted award in newspapers, went to the Philadelphia Bulletin in a new reporting category…called Investigative Reporting. …the journalism establishment was acknowledging a kind…
Bill Kovach
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

Special Issue 2001: Introduction to ‘The Elements of Journalism’

In “The Elements of Journalism,” Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel describe nine principles of journalism that speak to the essential responsibilities of journalists, the standards informing their work, and the…
June 15, 2001
Features

Journalists Should Keep the News in Proportion and Make It Comprehensive

“Journalism is our modern cartography. It creates a map for citizens to navigate society. This is its utility and its economic reason for being…. As with any map, journalism’s value…
Bill Kovach
June 15, 2001
Features

Journalists Have an Obligation to Personal Conscience

“Every journalist—from the newsroom to the boardroom—must have a personal sense of ethics and responsibility—a moral compass. What’s more, they have a responsibility to voice their personal conscience out loud…
Bill Kovach
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

Journalists Must Maintain an Independence From Those They Cover

“…Being impartial or neutral is not a core principle of journalism. …impartiality was never what was meant by objectivity. …the critical step in pursing truthfulness and informing citizens is not…
Bill Kovach
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

Journalism’s First Loyalty Is to Citizens

“A commitment to citizens is more than professional egoism. It is the implied covenant with the public…. The notion that those who report the news are not obstructed from digging…
Bill Kovach
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

The Essence of Journalism Is a Discipline of Verification

Excerpt from "The Elements of Journalism" by Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel. Principle Three
Bill Kovach
June 15, 2001
Features

Journalism Must Provide a Forum for Public Criticism and Comment

“…This forum function of the press would make it possible to create a democracy even in a large, diverse country by encouraging what James Madison and others considered the basis…
Bill Kovach
June 15, 2001
Features

Journalists Must Make the Significant Interesting and Relevant

“… This classic way of posing the question of engagement—as information versus storytelling, or what people need versus what people want—is a distortion. This is not how journalism is practiced,…
Bill Kovach
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

Journalism’s First Obligation Is to Tell the Truth

Principle One
Bill Kovach
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

KGUN9 Viewers’ Bill of Rights

You Have a Right to KnowKGUN9 will ask the tough questions, conduct the investigations necessary, and give the timely information needed to serve the public interest and protect public safety.You…
June 15, 2001
Features

When the Public Speaks, Do Journalists Listen?

‘I don’t recognize myself or anyone I know in your newspaper.’
Geneva Overholser
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

The Pursuit of Truth Can Be Elusive in Africa

Independent journalists are branded unpatriotic and anti-government.
Gwen Lister
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

Retaining Independence Isn’t Easy for Journalists

But protection of sources can cheat the public and betray the truth.
Robert Blau
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

Making Truth an Idea That Journalists Can Believe in Again

‘Every journalist knows that truth can make nonnegotiable demands.’
Jack Fuller
June 15, 2001
Features

Press Failure to Watchdog Can Have Devastating Consequences

Every news organization should monitor the powerful in the public interest.
Murrey Marder
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

Loving and Cussing: the Family Newspaper

It’s a place where community and citizens come before big profits.
Brandt Ayers
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

Inviting Viewers to Enter the Newsroom

With its Viewers’ Bill of Rights, KGUN9-TV in Arizona broke new ground.
Forrest Carr
June 15, 2001
Features

Investigative Journalism Can Still Thrive at Newspapers

It requires fierce determination, hard work, some guerrilla tactics, and thick skin.
Loretta Tofani
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

In Crisis, Journalists Relinquish Independence

‘Ideological biases can overtake the desire to be independent.’
Ying Chan
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

Determining the Line Between Fact and Fiction

In broadcast news, compelling TV and good journalism can coexist.
Olive Talley
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

Accuracy Must Be Our Journalistic Grail

Editors at The Oregonian make writers pause and verify before publication.
Michele McLellan
June 15, 2001
Features

Why Has Journalism Abandoned Its Observer’s Role?

‘The mirrorer was viewed as fat to be trimmed, and was.’
Jon Franklin
June 15, 2001
Features

The Absence of Memory Hurts Journalism

Short-term investors stifle investment in long-term and necessary research.
Philip Meyer
June 15, 2001
Features

Refusing to Take the Easier Route

Journalists have an important social contract to uphold.
Mark G. Chavunduka
June 15, 2001
Features

Journalists Need Help With Ethical Decisions

In today’s newsrooms, there are plenty to be made.
Carol Marin
June 15, 2001
Features

Journalists Engage Readers By Learning Who They Are

Newsrooms should know more than marketers do about their audiences.
Melanie Sill
June 15, 2001
Features

A Newspaper Strives to Make Its Coverage Complete

The new approach works but reporters feel constricted by its rigidity.
Mike Connor
June 15, 2001
Features

Is Journalism Losing Its Place in the Boisterous Public Forum?

An editor finds an appetite for serious conversation. Media ought to respond.
Christine Chinlund
June 15, 2001
Journalist’s Trade

‘The News Has Become the News’

Influential voices spotlight failures and remedies for today’s journalists.
Michael Getler
June 15, 2001
From the Curator

Creating a Road Map for Journalism’s Mission

Journalists reflect on nine core principles.
Bob Giles
June 15, 2001