Journoz: Updates for Australian Journalists

Time to get active

While the fact- and research-finding tools of the Net have been a godsend for many journalists, Online Journalism Review's Mark Glaser asks the question: "Are Online Search Tools Lulling Journalists Into Laziness?" If most of your research and interviews are done online, if your phone is gathering cobwebs and your shoes aren't wearing out, the answer is probably yes. Read the article - with tips - at http://www.ojr.org/ojr/glaser/1058908404.php. Time to hit the street.

Media blog, media futures

New Directions for News has a glossy brochure on the thirteen forces shaping media at http://www.ndn.org/webdata/Documents/36/13Forces11.pdf. Worth a look. The site has also launched a weblog, called Fast Forward, (http://www.ndn.org/blog/blog.aspx) which will cover the "media-centric life and the forces shaping the use of news, information and media".

Blame it on your parents

If you're feeling depressed, you can blame your parents, according to new research. In a "26-year study of the genetic profiles and hardships of 847 New Zealanders, researchers found that people with one version of a specific gene were protected from falling into depression, while those with another variation became depressed twice as often," according to a story called The Anxiety of Depression by Kristen Philipkoski in Wired News. Read her report at http://www.wired.com/news/medtech/0,1286,59656,00.html. Though the story does not give details of the study, it is based on an article, "Influence of Life Stress on Depression: Moderation by a Polymorphism in the 5-HTT Gene", that appeared in Science, v. 301, 18 July 2003, p.386. Science is online at http://www.sciencemag.org/.

RAMming home the message

The UK-based RAM Project (Refugees, Asylum Seekers & Media) at http://www.ramproject.org.uk/ has created a directory to assist refugee journalists find work in the media. The directory is currently being developed - see it at http://www.ramproject.org.uk/directory/. In addition to placing journalists in jobs, the project aims to help create more balanced coverage of refugee/asylum seeker stories in the news.

Shouldn't it be all the time?

The Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics, Charles Sturt University, has released a PDF entitled When police should say "NO!" to gratuities. Surprisingly, they say the odd gift is OK, and need not signify the start of a slippery slope to wholesale corruption. Read the piece yourself at http://www.csu.edu.au/faculty/arts/cappe/PDF%20Files/Coleman%202.pdf.

Locking up the youngsters

The Australian Institute of Criminology has released Statistics on juvenile detention in Australia: 1981-2002 (http://www.aic.gov.au/publications/tbp/tbp005.html). The numerous tables allow you to compare the rates of detention for males and females, Indigenous and non-Indigenous people and so on.

The Emmys

The Emmys may not have quite the same cachet as the Oscars, but they are still big business in TelevisionLand. The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (http://emmys.redlinemedia.com/) award them and this year's Emmy nominees can be seen at the 2003 Emmys site (http://emmys.redlinemedia.com/awards/search2003.asp).

Beyond the New York Times

There is quite a robust alternative newspaper sector in the US, if the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies Directory is any guide. It's at http://aan.org/gbase/Aan/publicationDirectory and offers links to online newspapers, a searchable archive, as well as a "This week in Alternative Weeklies" section.

Shared care of children after divorce - is it a goer?

The Australian Institute of Family Studies has a new paper out called Some whens, hows and whys of shared care: What separated parents who spend equal time with their children say about shared parenting. The paper was presented to the recent Australian Social Policy Conference (http://www.sprc.unsw.edu.au/ASPC2003/) and can be found at http://www.sprc.unsw.edu.au/ASPC2003/papers/Paper134.pdf.

Private health insurance

Choice, the consumers' magazine (http://www.choice.com.au/), has taken a hard-nosed look at private health insurance and whether it is worth your while. The full report is only available to subscribers, but you can read about the Regulation of Private Health Insurance Premiums in a Parliamentary Library Research Note at http://www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/rn/2002-03/03rn41.htm. If you want to subscribe to Choice Online, it only costs $13 pa, which is probably much better value for money than private health insurance.

Laughing all the way to the bank

Profitability is the Holy Grail of online journalism. Journalism.co.uk has a six-point plan by Jemima Kiss to push your site into the black. Read all about it at http://www.journalism.co.uk/news/story677.html.

A hundred million readers can't be wrong - or can they?

Rupert Murdoch's British tabloid The Sun has surpassed The Guardian as the most popular newspaper on the web, according to the latest figures from ABC Electronic (http:// www.abce.org.uk/). The audit puts page impressions for The Sun Online (http://www.thesun.com/) for April at over 107 million, more than 2 million ahead of the latest figures for The Guardian's network of websites (http://www.guardianunlimited.com/).

New Australian journalism prize

The Australasian Society for the Study of Obesity (http://www.asso.org.au/) is inviting Australian journalists to submit stories to their inaugural award for excellence in obesity journalism. The award recognises Australian journalists who have reported on obesity issues in a way that not only raises awareness levels, but also clearly presents obesity as a disease, rather than an issue of aesthetics. Stories are invited across all journalistic media (print, radio, and television) in two categories - healthcare and consumer. To be eligible, stories should have been published or broadcast in the Australian media between 1 September 2002 and 31 August 2003. The winner of each category will be awarded with a return business class flight to the 2003 European Congress on Obesity being held in Prague in May 2004 and will be presented with their award at the ASSO scientific meeting to be held in NSW this October. Full details, judging criteria and entry forms can be found at the site.

The whole story

Partial quotes often irritate those quoted since journalists often truncate, over-simplify or alter the meaning of statements by quoting only selections of what was said, or quoting remarks out of context. This could be set to change as bloggers upload full transcripts of statements and speeches so readers can see the context. Mark Glaser has a a column on this topic. Feeling Misquoted? Weblogs, Transcripts Let the Reader Decide is at http://www.ojr.org/ojr/glaser/1054844800.php.

Social inclusion or not?

Many papers from the Australian Social Policy Conference 2003, held at the University of New South Wales from 9-11 July, are available in full text online. See some of the papers, including the Australian Institute of Family Studies' Social capital at work: how family, friends and civic ties relate to labour market outcomes and the Centre for Independent Studies' Why reform welfare? via Australian Policy Online (http://www.apo.org.au/webboard/items/00352.shtml. Forty-two papers are available at the conference website at http://www.sprc1.sprc.unsw.edu.au/aspc2003/Downloads.asp.

All quiet on the blog front

I'm about to vanish for a week's holiday. See you in 10 days.

Deep background

Worth more than a passing glance are the Parliamentary Library's excellent and very detailed Research Notes. Recent notes have included titles as diverse as The Double Dissolution: Questions and References, Dollars and Sense: Trends in ASIO Resourcing, Hezbollah in Profile, Regulation of Private Health Insurance Premiums and Is there Adequate Parliamentary Scrutiny of Government Contracts?. The list for Notes for 2003 is at http://www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/rn/Index.htm, but Notes back to mid-1995 are archived online, making this a valuable source of good research.

Key to the labyrinth

Given the tortuous nature of changes to education funding, it is fortunate that the Parliamentary Library are up to the task of providing a guide to it. Their 2000 e-Brief on Higher Education Funding Policy has been recently updated to take in recent developments. Find it at http://www.aph.gov.au/library/intguide/SP/hefunding.htm.

US Geo-Data

The US Government has just launched a new geosciences and mapping portal. From the site : 'geodata.gov is a web-based portal for one-stop access to maps, data and other geospatial services that will simplify the ability of all levels of government and citizens to find geospatial data and learn more about geospatial projects underway.' See for yourself at http://www.geodata.gov/.

Preventing child abuse

The Australian Institute of Family Studies has just put out an issues paper, Preventing child abuse: Changes to family support in the 21st century. The paper looks at how methods of family support have had to develop, particularly regarding prevention of child abuse and other family violence. Details of the paper are at http://www.aifs.gov.au/nch/issues/issues17.html. The paper, in PDF, is at http://www.aifs.gov.au/nch/issues/issues17.pdf.

Working for our lives

Barbara Pocock has tackled some tricky issues in a new book, The Work/Life Collision, from Federation Press. The first chapter is available online at http://www.arts.adelaide.edu.au/social_inquiry/news/WLChap1.pdf. Pocock is from the Department of Social Inquiry, University of Adelaide, and her book deals with work and home issues such as longer working hours, parental leave, casual work, and the plummeting birth rate. You can see the full contents list at http://www.fedpress.aust.com/Books/Pocock.htm.

Women in universities - equal or not?

"How Far Have We Come? Gender Disparities in the Australian Higher Education System" is a new eBrief, compiled by the Federal Parliamentary Library, that illustrates that significant gender differences remain in higher education, despite recent gains in women's participation in universities. The full Brief is at http://www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/cib/2002-03/03cib31.pdf.

Another day, another award ceremony

The NewMediaAge Effectiveness Awards received 660 entries this year. According to NMA editor, Michael Nutley: "A large proportion of the projects entered were existing sites that had been reworked in order to generate revenues." One such, and a winner in the Media category, was FT.com, the electronic version of the UK Financial Times. Award categories included Business To Business, Public Sector, Media, Digital Advertising and Best Use Of Wireless/Mobile, with a Special Award For Innovation. You can see the full shortlist and category winners at http://www.newmediazero.com/awards03/shortlist.html.

Libel cover

Bloggers who republish potentially libellous information gleaned elsewhere have been protected from being sued by a new court ruling in the US. According to Online Journalism Review, "The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on June 24th that First Amendment protections against libel will be extended to information that is republished through outlets like e-mail lists and weblogs." Wired News has the story at http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,59424,00.html.

Letting the good stuff through

Most of us would be happy to see child pornography blocked online but a too-tight regulatory system would be bad for freedom of speech. Reporters Without Borders have produced a new report, "The Internet Under Surveillance Obstacles To The Free Flow Of Information Online", to examine these issues. Vint Cerf's introduction to the 151-page report on the RSF site (http://www.rsf.org/) states: "Free citizens must exercise due diligence to assure that their governments are not hiding political censorship behind a putative moral facade". Find out about the report at http://www.rsf.org/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=378report and find the report itself in PDF at http://www.rsf.org/IMG/pdf/doc-2236.pdf. You can also read country-specific sections. Australia's is at http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=7233.

Sea change, anyone?

If you feel you'd like to chuck in the 9-5, the 8-midnight, or whatever shift you currently work in favour of a more leisurely pace, you're not alone. The Australia Institute has a report on changing your life, called 'Downshifting in Australia : a sea-change in the pursuit of happiness'. It's at http://www.tai.org.au/WhatsNew_Files/WhatsNew/DP50sum.pdf. It has figures on how many have abandoned the rat race.

A pretty penny

They had a war and now they have to pay for it. The Cost of the War in Iraq contains "a running total of the amount of money spent by the U.S. Government to finance the war in Iraq." $69 billion, and it ain't over yet since the troops are still there. The figures are "based on estimates from the Congressional Budget Office," and may differ from those compiled by the US Department of Defense. The report includes an explanation of how the calculations were worked out, and shows what could have been achieved had the money been spent instead on education, children's health, affordable housing, and energy alternatives. Read the whole thing at http://www.costofwar.com/.