Kerala +2 Journalism cheat sheet

Journalism is the systematic gathering, verifying and disseminating of information about current events to a public audience; its core claim to legitimacy rests on verification rather than speed.

Lasswell's three functions of the press: surveillance of the environment, correlation of parts of society in responding to the environment, and transmission of social heritage; Wright added entertainment and mobilization.

The normative roles of the press in a democracy are watchdog, agenda-setter, forum for debate and educator; the watchdog role justifies scrutiny of power holders.

In Kerala, the press traces to missionary and vernacular beginnings: the first Malayalam newspaper was Rajyasamacharam (1847, Thalassery, Hermann Gundert); Paschimodayam followed in 1847.

Deepika (1887) is among the oldest surviving Malayalam newspapers; Malayala Manorama was founded in 1888 and Mathrubhumi in 1923, the latter tied to the freedom movement.

The Indian press shifted from a nationalist, opinion-driven press before 1947 to a commercial, advertising-funded mass press after Independence; the post-1990s period brought regional-language dominance and digital competition.

Development of press freedom in India runs through the Vernacular Press Act 1878, the Newspaper (Incitement to Offences) Act 1908, and the Press (Emergency Powers) Act 1931, each restricting the press.

Objectivity is a professional norm of method (attribution, balance, verification) rather than a claim of neutrality; opinion journalism and advocacy journalism are recognized alternative modes.

News is new, true, significant information about events, issues or people that a defined audience needs or wants and did not already know; recency, relevance and novelty are definitional.

Galtung and Ruge's news values include frequency, threshold, unambiguity, meaningfulness, consonance, unexpectedness, continuity, composition, reference to elite nations, elite persons and something negative.

Other standard news values: proximity, timeliness, impact, prominence, novelty/oddity, conflict, human interest, currency and usefulness.

News source categories: primary/secondary, on-record/off-record, named/anonymous, official/unofficial, and elite versus non-elite sources; attribution level must be agreed with the source.

On the record means the information is attributable by name and position; off the record means it cannot be published or used; on background means usable without naming the source.

Gathering techniques: interview, observation, document and RTI (Right to Information Act 2005) requests, press releases, press conferences, databases, social media monitoring and crowdsourcing.

Verification rules: corroborate with at least two independent sources; distinguish fact, inference and opinion; check names, numbers, dates and titles against documents.

A news beat is a regularly assigned subject or geographic area; the beat system builds source networks and is the main mechanism of routine news gathering.

The inverted pyramid orders information by descending importance so that any trailing paragraph can be cut without loss; it suits hard news and wire copy.

The summary lead answers the most important of who, what, when, where, why and how within one sentence, ideally under 30 words; the delayed lead is used for features.

Alternative lead types: question lead, quotation lead, anecdotal lead, contrast lead, direct-address lead and descriptive lead; each must be tied to the story's theme within two paragraphs.

The nut graf, usually the third to fifth paragraph, states why the story matters now and what is at stake; it bridges the lead and the body.

Attribution verbs carry legal weight: 'said' is neutral, 'claimed' and 'alleged' signal doubt, and 'admitted' implies wrongdoing.

Feature writing uses narrative structure: setting, character, complication, resolution; the ending is often a circle back to the opening image.

Interview preparation: research the subject, prepare primary and follow-up questions, and use open questions to open and closed questions to confirm facts and figures.

Direct quotation rules: quote verbatim, do not clean up meaning, use ellipsis for omissions, and place 'said' after the speaker's name in standard news style.

Copy editing checks accuracy, grammar, spelling, punctuation, style consistency, attribution, legal risk and length; it is the last verification gate before publication.

Standard copy-editing symbols include the caret for insertion, the dele mark, 'stet' for ignore the correction, and 'transpose' for swapping letters or words.

Headline functions: attract the reader, summarize the story and index it; a headline must be accurate, use active verbs, avoid unsupported claims and be written in present tense for past events.

Headline types: banner, crossline, drop or stepped, kicker, subhead, sidehead, pull quote and skybox; a kicker is a short line above the main headline.

A deck or standfirst sits between headline and body and adds context; a caption identifies the photograph and must not state what the photo cannot show.

Page design principles: balance, contrast, hierarchy, unity, proximity and white space; the grid provides the underlying column structure.

Newspaper page elements: masthead, folio line, ear panel, index, flag, jump line and photo credit; the fold divides the upper and lower half of a broadsheet page.

Layout sequence: dummy the page, place advertisements and standing elements, place dominant photo, then flow copy by priority; a modular layout uses rectangular blocks.

Article 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution guarantees freedom of speech and expression; Article 19(2) permits reasonable restrictions on grounds including sovereignty, security, public order, decency, morality, contempt of court and defamation.

Defamation in India is both civil (tort) and criminal (Sections 356 and 358 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, which replaced IPC Sections 499 and 500).

Civil defamation requires a defamatory statement, publication to a third party, reference to the plaintiff and resulting damage; defences are truth, fair comment, privilege and consent.

Absolute privilege covers parliamentary and judicial proceedings; qualified privilege covers fair and accurate reports of public proceedings, defeated if malice is proved.

Privacy is a fundamental right under Article 21 (K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India, 2017); intrusion, disclosure of private facts, false light and appropriation are the four privacy torts.

Copyright: the Copyright Act 1957 protects original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works; fair dealing for criticism, review, reporting of current events and private study is permitted under Section 52.

Contempt of court under the Contempt of Courts Act 1971 covers civil and criminal contempt; the sub judice rule bars comment that tends to prejudice pending proceedings.

Press Council of India norms require accuracy, correction of errors, avoidance of obscenity, no encouragement of communal hatred, and protection of the identity of victims of sexual violence and of juveniles.

A photograph's news value rests on timeliness, relevance, impact and the 'decisive moment' - the instant when subject and composition align to tell the story.

Caption rules: identify who, what and where; give date; use present tense for what the photo shows; never caption something the image does not depict.

Standard press camera controls: aperture controls depth of field, shutter speed controls motion, ISO controls sensor sensitivity and noise.

Composition principles: rule of thirds, leading lines, framing, perspective, balance, and use of foreground and background layers.

Photo ethics prohibit staging, altering content in ways that change meaning, and adding or removing elements; cropping and tonal adjustment are acceptable, content manipulation is not.

Manipulated or posed photographs must be labelled; composite and illustration images require a credit line stating they are not documentary.

Photo agencies and wire services use metadata (IPTC fields) to record caption, credit, date and rights; stripping metadata breaks attribution and licensing.

Visual grammar terms: juxtaposition, anchorage (caption fixing meaning), cropping, angle (high, low, eye-level) and shot size (wide, medium, close-up).

The AIDA model describes advertising response as Attention, Interest, Desire, Action; DAGMAR frames objectives as awareness, comprehension, conviction and action.

Advertising copy structure: headline, subhead, body copy, slogan/tagline and call to action; the USP (unique selling proposition) is the single differentiating benefit.

Media planning terms: reach (number of different people exposed), frequency (average exposures per person), GRP = reach x frequency, and CPM (cost per thousand impressions).

Advertising regulation in India: the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) code prohibits misleading claims, offensive content, and ads harmful to children; the Consumer Protection Act 2019 covers misleading advertisements.

Public relations is the deliberate, planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain mutual understanding between an organization and its publics (Grunig and Hunt definition tradition).

PR tools: press release, press kit, media briefing, press conference, house journal, annual report, event, sponsorship and crisis communication; the press release follows the inverted pyramid.

The PR transfer process: organization to media to audience, with gatekeeping and framing effects; publicity is earned media, advertising is paid media.

Crisis PR rules: respond fast, state known facts, name a single spokesperson, avoid speculation, and issue corrections promptly when facts change.

Radio news writing is for the ear: short sentences, active voice, no unfamiliar abbreviations, numbers rounded and spelled for pronunciation, and no reliance on visual cues.

Radio programme formats include news bulletin, current affairs discussion, phone-in, interview, feature, documentary, and radio drama; All India Radio began broadcasting in 1936.

Doordarshan began as an experimental service in 1959; television news writing pairs words with pictures so the visual carries what the words do not repeat.

Broadcast script conventions: two-column AV script with visuals on the left and audio on the right; SOT (sound on tape), OOV (out of vision), piece to camera, and anchor lead-in.

Sound elements: ambient sound, actuality, sound bite, voice-over, and natural sound; a sound bite is a short extract of a speaker's own words.

Online journalism characteristics: immediacy, hypertextuality, interactivity, multimedia and searchability; these change story structure from linear to layered.

SEO basics for journalists: descriptive headline, accurate slug/URL, meta description, subheads, alt text for images and internal links; keyword stuffing harms credibility.

Digital verification tools: reverse image search, metadata inspection, geolocation from landmarks, chronolocation from shadows and weather, and cross-checking with official records.

Media effects models in sequence: hypodermic needle or magic bullet, limited effects (Lazarsfeld two-step flow), agenda-setting (McCombs and Shaw), cultivation (Gerbner), uses and gratifications, and framing.

Agenda-setting holds that media tell audiences what to think about, not what to think; framing concerns how issues are presented and interpreted.

The normative social responsibilities theory of the press (Hutchins Commission, 1947) holds that freedom carries obligations to be accurate, fair and accountable.

Media literacy is the ability to access, analyse, evaluate, create and act on media messages; key concepts include authorship, format, audience, content, purpose and credibility.

Development communication applies communication to planned social change; key approaches are diffusion of innovations (Rogers), social marketing and participatory communication.

The Indian development communication experience includes SITE (Satellite Instructional Television Experiment, 1975-76), Krishi Darshan and Kheda communication project.

Kerala's development indicators are often linked to public communication campaigns in literacy (Total Literacy Campaign, 1989), health and local self-government.

Media pluralism and ownership concentration are measured by the number of independent outlets, cross-media ownership and diversity of voices; concentration narrows the range of opinion.

Journalism's core claim to legitimacy rests on verification rather than speed.

Lasswell's functions of the press: surveillance, correlation and transmission of social heritage.

Wright added entertainment and mobilization to Lasswell's three functions.

The watchdog role justifies scrutiny of power holders in a democracy.

Objectivity is a professional norm of method, not a claim of neutrality.

Opinion journalism and advocacy journalism are recognized alternative modes to objectivity.

News is new, true, significant information a defined audience did not already know.

Galtung and Ruge's news values include threshold, unambiguity, consonance and unexpectedness.

Proximity, timeliness, impact and prominence are standard news values.

On the record means information is attributable by name and position.

Off the record means the information cannot be published or used.

On background means usable without naming the source.

A news beat is a regularly assigned subject or geographic area.

The inverted pyramid orders information by descending importance so trailing paragraphs can be cut.

A summary lead answers the most important of who, what, when, where, why and how in one sentence.

The nut graf states why the story matters now and bridges lead and body.

Attribution verbs carry legal weight: 'said' is neutral, 'claimed' signals doubt.

Feature writing uses narrative structure: setting, character, complication, resolution.

Use open questions to open an interview and closed questions to confirm facts.

Copy editing checks accuracy, grammar, style, attribution, legal risk and length.

Standard copy-editing symbols include the caret, dele mark, stet and transpose.

Headline functions: attract the reader, summarize the story and index it.

A kicker is a short line above the main headline.

A deck or standfirst sits between headline and body and adds context.

A caption must not state what the photograph cannot show.

Page design principles include balance, contrast, hierarchy, unity and proximity.

Article 19(1)(a) guarantees freedom of speech and expression; Article 19(2) permits reasonable restrictions.

Defamation in India is both civil (tort) and criminal under Sections 356 and 358 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023.

Civil defamation requires a defamatory statement, publication to a third party, reference to the plaintiff and damage.

Absolute privilege covers parliamentary and judicial proceedings.

Privacy is a fundamental right under Article 21 (K.S. Puttaswamy, 2017).

Section 52 of the Copyright Act 1957 permits fair dealing for criticism, review and reporting of current events.

The sub judice rule bars comment that tends to prejudice pending proceedings.

Aperture controls depth of field; shutter speed controls motion; ISO controls noise.

The rule of thirds and leading lines are core composition principles.

Photo ethics prohibit staging and content alteration that changes meaning.

Cropping and tonal adjustment are acceptable; adding or removing elements is not.

Manipulated or posed photographs must be labelled.

Present tense is used in captions for what the photo shows.

IPTC metadata records caption, credit, date and rights.

AIDA stands for Attention, Interest, Desire, Action.

GRP = reach x frequency; CPM is cost per thousand impressions.

The USP is the single differentiating benefit of a product.

ASCI code prohibits misleading claims and ads harmful to children.

PR is planned, sustained effort to maintain mutual understanding between an organization and its publics.

Publicity is earned media; advertising is paid media.

Crisis PR rules: respond fast, state known facts, name one spokesperson.

Radio news writing uses short sentences, active voice and numbers spelled for pronunciation.

All India Radio began broadcasting in 1936; Doordarshan began experimentally in 1959.

A two-column AV script puts visuals on the left and audio on the right.

A sound bite is a short extract of a speaker's own words.

Online journalism characteristics: immediacy, hypertextuality, interactivity, multimedia and searchability.

Digital verification uses reverse image search, metadata, geolocation and chronolocation.

SEO basics: descriptive headline, accurate slug, meta description and alt text.

The two-step flow model holds that opinion leaders mediate media messages.

Agenda-setting holds that media tell audiences what to think about, not what to think.

Cultivation theory (Gerbner) concerns long-term effects of repeated media exposure.

Media literacy is the ability to access, analyse, evaluate, create and act on media messages.

Diffusion of innovations (Rogers) explains how new ideas spread through a society.

SITE (1975-76) was India's Satellite Instructional Television Experiment for development communication.

Media pluralism is measured by number of independent outlets and diversity of voices.