Learn the standards of quality journalism by playing the role of reporter in a game-like simulation of a breaking news event.

News literacy topics

Investigative journalism/watchdog role; News judgment; Standards of quality journalism

Learning objectives

• I can list and explain seven major standards of quality journalism.
• I can apply those standards to differentiate between a credible news report and an unreliable news report.

Essential questions

• How is news journalism different from opinion journalism?
• What rules and guidelines should journalists abide by when reporting a story, and why?
• What is required to make a piece of information credible?
• How do aspiring to the standards of quality journalism help journalists minimize bias and produce credible news coverage?

Excerpt

“In this lesson, you’ll learn about the standards of quality journalism — what they are and how you, as a news consumer, can identify them — so you can separate fact from fiction in every piece of information you encounter. These standards function like a set of guidelines that journalists follow as they report and present news stories. As a news consumer, you need to be able to identify whether a piece of information meets these standards. If it doesn’t, it may not be credible, and you shouldn’t believe it, share it or act on it. Most of these standards are common-sense — for example, journalists should only report information that they have confirmed to be accurate. But this is a lot easier said than done.”