Community Learning

While sifting through the Covering Communities website, I found many useful tips. Especially if journalism becomes a point of definitive interest for me. Anyways, beyond the interactive puzzle on the 7 Knowledge Keys for Covering a Community, I found the 7 keys themselves to be very informative. Listing them out just made it so much more obvious than just thinking about it. Before reading the list and their descriptions, typically I'd think somewhere along the lines of "OK, topic is __blank__, it relates to these people in this place and happened at this time. Find out the affects it had on said community." But now, with descriptions like "Concerns: What are the concerns, challenges and issues that people talk about? How do they define those concerns? What are the icons (labels) or buzz phrases people use?"* and "People: What are the things people hold valuable (such as heritage, sports, work, leisure)? How do people talk to one another? What is the language they use? What are the norms and practices that shape people’s interactions?"*, a whole new avenue of ideas and questions is opened. Interrelating aspirations, civic places, concerns, people, places, sources, and stereotypes gives the journalist a bigger arsenal in hunting down the truth of the story. In all honesty, at this point, I wouldn't have thought of even considering some one's aspirations towards a certain topic unless that was the whole focal point of whatever storyline, let alone incorporating civic places and stereotypes.

In relation to my community, I am now armed to find the crux of whatever topic. Be it the art world, local elections, or even the national elections, I have a few tricks up my sleeve.

*Covering Communities