IS story sources

OK, I'm starting a thread for you to request sources from each other. Here's how it works. If you are looking for a source, add a comment to this post stating specifically what you're looking for and including your e-mail address for other students to reply. (Note of warning: putting your e-mail address in a public blog means you open yourselves up to robot spam. Use your @wisc.edu addy and you'll have the power of their spam filters.)
You should all troll the comments regularly this week and make suggestions as you can.
Example: I am trying to find students to interview who have used Community Car. If you can connect me, e-mail at profme@wisc.edu.

Fact-checking Joe the Plumber

Good post from a 202er:

As much as I wanted to believe in Joe it looks like the Times did some serious background checking. His name isn't even JOE! seems like a good example of our fact finding lecture last week with checking for his licenses and taxes, I bet he's wishing he just kept his mouth shut.

U.S. | October 16, 2008
The Caucus: Joe in the Spotlight
By Larry Rohter and Liz Robbins
When "Joe the Plumber" stopped Senator Barack Obama during a visit to his block this weekend to ask about his taxes, he set himself on a path to being the newest media celebrity — and, like other celebrities, found himself under scrutiny.

Pulling aside the curtain

Check out this fascinating piece about the slate of rumors that Barack Obama is secretly Muslim, and the man behind the ideas. Think about credibility and sources, as we've been discussing.
What is Martin's personal obligation to be accurate and truthful? Did Fox News have an obligation to vet his credibility before inviting him as a guest? Did other media outlets have an obligation to look into his background?

Sources Beyond Google

Katy,
I thought you might share this with the students on the blog?
I went to the Midwest Journalism Conference in Minneapolis this weekend and Al Tompkins from the Poynter Institute gave a great seminar.
He posted his favorites sites(over 100) for Internet research from his "Beyond Google" seminar.
Everything from voting records to cell phone numbers.

http://atompkins711.googlepages.com/home

LA Times Hoax

The LA Times had to apologize this week, acknowledging that its controversial story on the Tupac Shakur slaying relied in part on falsified documents. The Smoking Gun revealed the hoax.
It's a valuable case for you to look at through the lens of our discussions on judging source credibility. Check out this piece in Slate and this one from Poynter on how they might have avoided falling into this trap.

High on sourcing

Check out this piece on marijuana availability from the student newspaper at Tulane. Let's open a discussion on credibility and anonymous sourcing. Is this piece believable? What might have improved it? Do your experiences on this campus jibe with the reporting here? What would you expect of your student newspapers in a similar situation?

Interview Links

You're about to begin doing interviews for your individual stories, and we'll discuss interviewing in lecture Monday. One great way to get comfortable interviewing is to watch other people do it. If you happen onto interviews online, post a link as a comment.
One of my favorites is the "Questions For" feature in the New York Times Sunday Magazine. But please note the line at the bottom regarding editing. We'll discuss the ethics of interviewing Monday.

Source Me

Here's a thread for you to post requests for help in finding sources for your Individual Story assignment. You can ask for help by posting a comment and then check back to see if any fellow 202ers have added a comment with a suggestion. Please remember that this blog is public, so if you put up an e-mail or IM address or phone number, the world can see it.

Ethics and Medill

A great discussion topic from a 202-er:
______
Hi Katy,
I'm sure you've heard the dean of the Medill school of journalism at Northwestern was caught possibly using fabricated sources in the alumni magazine. I thought this would be interesting to discuss on the blog. It is really shocking that the dean at the most prestigious journalism school would resort to this- what kind of example does his behavior give to journalists everywhere? Here is the link to the article in the Chicago Tribune: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-northwestern-dean_14feb14,0,4916533.story
__________
Let's explore this.

I wrote a piece in our alumni newsletter a few years ago and led with a reference to an old city editor of mine. Unlike Lavine's vague memory I recall clearly, actually, stewing a bit over quoting him, grappling with whether to go with "show them" or "show 'em." But I decided the latter was really the way he spoke to me. Honestly, it never occurred to me to name him. I never considered him an "unnamed source." His identity was in no way germane to the story, and I remembered vividly what he had said to me (I routinely saw him as god-like in my reporting infancy).

I also realize now that I did just the same thing with a column I wrote last summer on the ethics of using social networking profiles of crime victims in reporting. The wrap to that story came from a visit I made to a 202 lab to discuss the issue. I recall just as vividly who told me the story and the context in which it was raised. Yet, again, I did not name her and made no conscious decision not to do so.
___________
Journalism schools are interesting places to play out journalism ethics. So what of it, the dean's and my choices? What of the other sources -- students and faculty members -- refusing to go on the record to discuss the situation? Is it OK to use anonymous sources? If so, in what circumstances? Was the dean's letter "journalism"? Did I do my audiences in both cases a disservice?