Drake University

School of Journalism and Mass Communication

JMC122: Magazine Editing and Publishing / CRN 3994
JMC 171: The Digital Newsroom / CRN 3070
Spring 2011
Tuesday-Thursday 12:00-1:50 p.m.
Meredith 104
twitter.com/JillVanWyke/think-2011-staff

INSTRUCTORS
Lori Blachford
Meredith 116 Office hours:
271-3050 MW 9:30-11:30 a.m.
[email protected] T 3-5 p.m.
twitter.com/blachford W 2-4 p.m.

Jill Van Wyke

Meredith 114 Office hours:
271-3867 MW 1-3 p.m.
[email protected] TR 2-3 p.m.
twitter.com/jillvanwyke



“Roads?
Where we’re going,
we don’t need roads!”
– Dr. Emmett Brown*

COURSE OBJECTIVES
During this semester, students will produce a professional-quality news magazine (Think),
both online and print. Students will manage all editorial, creative, production, business
and administrative functions. Each student will apply for and be assigned a job on the
staff. Students are expected to participate in a professional manner and to sign and adhere
to a job contract. Failure to adhere to that contract will result in a failing grade.

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This course will include all article reporting and writing, editing, fact-checking, copy-
editing, photography, design, pre-press work, promotion and distribution. Specific issues
that will be covered in this course will be: developing and implementing news magazine
concepts; in-depth reporting; long-form news writing; packaging magazine content;
audience assessment and targeting; production planning; and management and
organization.

CLASS FORMAT
Class will be conducted as a series of staff meetings, with the professors serving as
publisher and facilitator, but the actual creation of the magazine being managed by staff
members. Obviously, not all the work of producing a magazine can be accomplished
during classtime. In fact, the vast majority of our efforts will occur outside the classroom.

GRADING
• Grades will be based on how well a student does his/her job and on his/her level of
professionalism. Self-evaluations and peer evaluations will take place twice during the
semester. Work will be evaluated according to quality and professionalism. Your peers’
evaluation of your professionalism is a significant determinant of your grade.
• The expectation here is excellence, both journalistically and professionally.
• A staff member can be fired from the staff at any point in the semester. The class must be
re-taken before the student can graduate.

WEEKLY REPORTS
Beginning Feb. 3 and continuing for each Thursday throughout the semester, each student
will e-mail a comprehensive weekly report to one of the publishers. The report will
outline, in bullet points, the student's activities, plans, problems and concerns for that
week. These are intended to keep the publisher in tune with each student's individual
progress and to correct any small problems before they have a chance to grow. The
reports should be detailed and should include:
1. A precise list of what was accomplished in the previous week
2. A precise list of what the student plans to accomplish in the coming week
3. A list of any issues or concerns that need to be addressed.
4. Praise for co-workers who are advancing the magazine and complaints about those
who aren’t.

DRAKE SJMC CORE VALUES

Because the capstone is the culmination of your Drake education, we expect you to
exhibit your mastery of all 14 of the SJMC’s core values.
Our students will:
1. Understand and apply First Amendment principles and the law appropriate to
professional practice.

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 2. Demonstrate an understanding of the history and role of professionals and
institutions in shaping communications.
3. Demonstrate an understanding of the diversity of groups in a global society in
relationship to communications.
4. Understand concepts and apply theories in the use and presentation of images and
information.
5. Work ethically in pursuit of truth, accuracy, fairness and diversity.
6. Conduct research and evaluate information by methods appropriate to the
communications professions in which they work.
7. Think critically, creatively and independently.
8. Write correctly and clearly in forms and styles appropriate for the communications
professions, audiences and purposes they serve.
9. Critically evaluate their own work and that of others for accuracy and fairness,
clarity, appropriate style and grammatical correctness.
10. Apply basic numerical and statistical concepts.
11. Apply tools and technologies appropriate for the communications professions in
which they work.
12. Take ownership of their own academic experience.
13. Be engaged with the community: the university, the local community, professional
groups.
14. Cope and thrive in the workplace.

COURSE POLICIES
Academic dishonesty
We will not tolerate plagiarism, fabrication, cheating or any other kind of academic
dishonesty. Nor will we tolerate helping somebody else plagiarize, fabricate or cheat.
Such acts are a betrayal of this community of scholars, which is committed to the
highest professional and personal standards.
In the real world, plagiarism and fabrication are grounds for dismissal from a job. If
you are academically dishonest in any way in JMC122/171, you will fail the class and we
will recommend you be expelled from the SJMC.
A fuller discussion of what constitutes academic dishonesty is in the SJMC Honor
Code, part of which is attached to the syllabus.

Ethics
Students are expected to be familiar with the Society of Professional Journalists ethics
code (attached) and to abide by it.

Deadlines
A few dates and deadlines are listed in the syllabus. Many more will be established as
we map our publication plan.

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 Journalism is a deadline profession. Late work is unacceptable and unprofessional. In
this class, late work hampers everybody. Don’t ask for extensions of deadlines. Plan ahead
and don’t procrastinate. Technical difficulty is no excuse for missing a deadline. Back up
all your work electronically.

Incompletes
“Incomplete” final grades will be assigned only for emergencies and only if a student is
averaging at least a “C” grade.

Attendance
Students are to attend all scheduled class—or staff—meetings. A student's final grade
will be reduced one letter for every three absences. Students will also have meetings
outside of class and will be downgraded for missing those.

Class communication
As a staff, we will often communicate electronically. All communication is to be
appropriate and professional. If you have concerns with an individual, you must handle
them in person and with personal care and concern; you never criticize an individual
through e-mail, texting or IM’ing. Airing your grievances to other classmates or peers will
lead to trouble, so think before you speak. Be aware that any communication you have
with the publisher is considered confidential.
One way that we will communicate is via a private class blog,
www.thinkstaff.wordpress.com. Get in the habit of checking it frequently, if you aren’t
already.

Accommodations
If you have a disability and will require academic accommodations in this course, we
are happy to discuss your needs. Accommodations are coordinated through Student
Disability Services. Please contact Michelle Laughlin, Student Disability Services
coordinator, at 281-1835 or [email protected]

GENERAL SCHEDULE
This scheduled will be developed in far more detail by staff members. Expect many, many
more deadlines and assignments than these.

Jan. 20: Job applications due

Jan. 25 (&27?): Interviews with local magazine and news professionals
Feb. 1: Staff in place
Feb. 3: First of weekly reports due (every Thursday)
Feb. 8: Job contracts due
Feb. 10: Mission statement / editorial philosophy complete
Editorial formula complete

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March 3: First peer evaluations due
March 7-11: One-on-one performance evaluations with publishers
March 11: Semester midpoint.
March 14-18: Spring break
March 24: Preliminary pin-up (tentative)
April 8: Pin-up (tentative)
April 13: Print edition to printer (tentative)
April 29-30: Relays
May 2-7: Distribution of print edition
May 5: Second peer evaluations due
May 6: Dead day
May 10: Professional critique, noon-1:50 p.m.
May 9-13: One-on-one performance evaluations with publishers
Letter to successors due

*
Dr. Emmett Brown is the mad scientist in “Back to the Future.”

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School of Journalism and Mass Communication
Drake University

Honor Code
Drake School of Journalism and Mass Communication

“Promoting student moral development requires affirming shared values … [O]ne

value goes to the heart of the academic enterprise: a commitment to honesty in the

pursuit of truth.”

— Gary Pavela
“Applying the Power of Association on Campus:
A Model Code of Academic Integrity”(1997)

I. Principles and students subject to Honor Code

The Drake School of Journalism and Mass Communications (“SJMC”) is a

community of scholars committed to the highest professional and personal
standards. Members of this community accept responsibility for honesty and
excellence in all of their interactions. Such integrity is the foundation of our
academic and professional careers, and of our lives as ethical people.

Cheating, plagiarism and other forms of academic dishonesty by SJMC students,

whether it occurs in class or in extra-curricular activities related to the journalism
profession, will not be tolerated. Academic dishonesty on the part of any student
of another college or school enrolled in an SJMC class will also not be tolerated.
Academic dishonesty constitutes grounds for penalties, ranging from failure in an
academic exercise to suspension or dismissal from an SJMC class, the School
and/or the University.

II. Definitions and examples

A. An act of academic dishonesty is a violation of the SJMC Honor Code.

Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to:

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 1. Fabrication — intentional falsification or invention of information,
data, quotations or sources.
2. Plagiarism — presenting another’s ideas or work as your own.
3. Cheating — the act, or attempted act, of giving or obtaining aid or
information by illicit means.
4. Facilitating academic dishonesty — intentionally helping another
commit an act that would be a violation of the Honor Code.

B. Examples of academic dishonesty include, but are not limited to, the
following:
1. Copying from another student during an exam.
2. Using unauthorized notes, study aids or other materials, or receiving
other unauthorized help, during an exam or other graded work.
3. Collaborating with others on an assignment in a manner not
permitted by the instructor.
4. Claiming as one’s own work, or using without proper citation,
material copied from the Internet or from another person.
5. Fabricating quotations or sources for a journalism assignment or data
for a research assignment.
6. Deliberately obstructing another student’s completion of an
assignment.
7. Submitting identical or substantially identical work for credit in more
than one course without permission.
8. Falsely representing one’s presence, or another student’s presence or
absence, on an attendance sheet in a class.
9. Falsely representing one’s academic or professional credentials on a
job application or resume.
10. Failing to report an incident of academic dishonesty of which one
has actual knowledge.
11. Knowingly providing material to a person who the person knows will
use it to violate the Honor Code.
12. Cheating, plagiarizing, fabricating or other academic dishonesty or
misconduct in connection with any SJMC activity, any campus
organization or activity, or any employment.

C. For SJMC students, this Honor Code applies, not only to classroom work,
but also to extra-curricular activities related to the journalism profession,
including, but not limited to, SMJC-related clubs and University-related
media, such as the University newspaper, magazine(s) and broadcast
outlets.

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