Animal Allies Shelters Itself from the Winter

            The 2014 winter in Duluth has been an especially rough one. With over 60 subzero days, it has definitely been a challenging year for businesses in the northland. No more so is this apparent than at the Animal Allies animal shelter out on Airport Road. As an organization that sees most of its support coming from volunteers and the community, it has seen its share of difficulties from the snow and extreme cold.

“We joke here saying: how can things be so hard, it’s just puppies and kittens.” Said John Gustafson, the Director of Development and Communications at Animal Allies. “But our job is not just to provide a place for these animals but to educate and motivate the community to support us and adopt.” The center relies primarily on support from the community and volunteers for their funding and workers. Currently, Animal Allies has help from enough volunteers to staff 17 full-time employees.

Shy shelter resident, Betelgeuse, spends most of his time sleeping in his room. While cats don’t need to get outside, they do interact with volunteers on a daily basis and other cats if they are social.

“Our snow removal is provided to us, free-of-charge, by Billmans Home Center.” Said Gustafson. The home center plows their road and parking lots, allowing them and their patrons access on the worst of the snowy days. A snow blower was also donated to the shelter last year, providing Animal Allies with an easier way to clear their walks and dog trails behind the building.

“January was particularly tough as most of our student volunteers left over the break.” Said Amy Miller, the Marketing and Communications Director for Animal Allies. “Other volunteers couldn’t make it in because of the snow or cold. We’re primarily here for the animals.” She recalled how on the particularly brutal winter days, staff would drop what they were doing in order to walk and feed the animals.

“On the upside, we’ve got a relatively new facility,” said Gustafson. “Some parts of the building are definitely colder than others. For the smaller dogs, we make them sweaters. We have the staff wear sweaters too and tell them to suck it up.”

A volunteer prepares to take a shelter dog out for a walk in the snow. Dogs are only walked for as long as they feel comfortable, sometimes even less on the subzero days. They do, however, get enrichment and behavioral training with volunteers and medical treatment to prepare them for adoption.

 The building, built in 2009, is energy efficient and retains its heat better than older buildings. A tint was recently put on the building’s windows, intended to limit the heat that got into the building during the summer, but also has worked to stop heat loss during the winter.

Winter is generally a slower period for Animal Allies anyway. Fewer strays are brought in and less people make the trip out to adopt.

“Our rates of intake and adoption haven’t really changed this winter either, but we have seen an increase in frostbitten animals being brought in.” said Gustafson.

He shared a story about a poor kitty who was found trying to cross the Blatnik Bridge from Superior with frostbitten feet. After finding out where he was picked up, the shelter lovingly named him Blatnik. He had bandages on a front paw and a back legs for weeks. Luckily, Blatnik found a home after the Animal Allies shared his story on their website.

Animal Allies lays under a layer of snow and ice, but that can’t shut them down. Located out on Airport Road in Duluth, the shelter operates off of volunteer support and donations like free plowing and a snowblower.

“Animal Allies has a ‘zero-euthanasia’ policy.” Said Miller, “Medical treatment is expensive, that is one of our biggest challenges. But we think of it as a worth-while investment to make these pets presentable to the community.” Animal Allies has maintained that policy since 2010 and through continued support, hopes to keep it going strong despite the frigid temperatures.

Reporting II Week 5 Lesson Ethics

Many journalistic organizations have worked for years to create codes of ethics to define a journalist’s obligations as part of their craft. One of the more well-known ones in the Society of Professional Journalists’ code which has four main parts to it. The first is “seek truth and report it” which means a journalist should be actively looking for the truth in stories and giving voices to sides of a story that might not be obvious or speaking as loud as other. It calls for credibility through quotations and reliable sources that would know best what is really happening in the story. The second is “minimize harm” which means showing compassion to both the subjects of stories and the readers, giving both sensitivity as not to intentionally offend or endanger anyone unnecessarily. The third is “act independently” meaning that a journalist should not be swayed by politics, advertisers, or sponsors to further their careers or to present a single-sided story that would seek to sway public opinion. The final part is “be accountable” which calls for transparency between the journalist and their readers. If a mistake was made in a story, it needs to be admitted so that the readers know you are a trustworthy source. These are all examples of professional journalism ethics. But personal ethics can vary between writers. Some may choose not to write about political events if they themselves are active in that party. Some may choose to publish someone’s Facebook photo even though that person did not give them permission to. Some may choose to print language that they don’t consider offensive even if some people do.

Journalists are often faced with difficult ethical situations and questions while reporting stories.  When uncertain how to approach these situations there are three steps that can be taken.  First of all, reporters should consider their own opinions on how just the action is.  They can reflect on what concerns they have and what they would want to happen if the roles were reversed.  After evaluating their own concerns and opinions, writers should think about how their actions will affect others.  It is important to know specifically who will be impacted by the writer’s decision and what the short and long term affects are for that person or those people.  Finally, journalists should search for any alternatives that are more just than their original action.  It is important to anticipate any ethical challenges before things “blow up” and get way out of hand.  Everyone has different opinions on what is or is not ethical so it is helpful to work with others while considering how to approach a situation to receive a wide range of ideas and feedback.

Although there isn’t an established code of ethics in the world of journalism, many journalists know right from wrong when it comes to writing and reporting stories. One way that journalism ethics can be separated is by the do’s, don’ts, and dilemmas of reporting. The “do’s” deal with things like fairness, accuracy, context and truth. Fairness has to do with looking at a story from each angle and getting a perspective from everyone who was involved with the event. Accuracy is getting the correct information and making sure that it is verified more than once. It is important for journalists to verify the information before publishing it so that they stay as a credible source. Context is all about putting the story in perspective for the reader, giving background. Truth reiterates accuracy, a journalist always publishes the truth. The “don’ts” of this list deal with things such as plagiarism, sloppy reporting, bias and deception. A good journalist never plagiarizes. They never take another person’s work without citing where it came from. Leaving out important details and assuming things makes for a sloppy article and a sloppy reporter. Having a bias is something that a good reporter never does. The readers won’t be able to form their own opinion if the journalist has already done that for them. Deception can be anything from making up a quote in a story to making up a person in a story. This is lying and makes the journalist and the company they work for lose credibility. Dilemmas are the gray areas in reporting, in some situations they might work but in others they could be unethical. It is important for journalists to consider the consequences before acting on impulse because many things can be at fault. Getting input from other people is a key part in journalism.  

Journalism is in a constant state of change in regards to social issues. Individuals who identify as gay, lesbian, transgender or bisexual do not have to be challenging to write about, despite the cultural changes. The AP Stylebook is a reference that has proven to be invaluable for journalists. As students, the assistance of professors, editors and other peers are essential to learning how to approach potentially sensitive areas to report about.

Sexual relations are also ethically challenging to report about. It is important to respect sources and other students. Avoid behavior that could be interpreted as offensive or harassment. There are no rules or laws dictating what a journalist can or cannot do so it is important for individuals to understand what personal ethics will dictate the course of a career.

Social ethics in journalism change depending on many factors including location or region, the type of publication and the type of material covered.

The location of a publication changes for what is socially acceptable and therefore can be published. This can be different internationally and regionally within the United States.

The type of publication can affect what is socially ethical in print. The College of St. Scholastica’s newspaper The Cable is an example of a publication that could be censored. Contributing reporter and photojournalist for the Cable, Veronica Cich is a communications student at the College of St. Scholastica. Despite the conservative view of the Catholic church, Cich said that the Cable was not forced to write with a particular agenda. The editorial oversight is not an issue for the newspaper at this time.

“A lot of nuns read the paper,” Cich said.

The publication in this situation does not dictate an agenda, despite how socially controversial a subject might be.

Story choice is another factor that affects the social ethics in a journalistic setting. Strongly dependent on the type of news outlet editors will publish material that would be considered offensive by some readers. This subject is a diverse as there are people, because what offends some may be more than appropriate for others, both in intended audience and writers and editorial staff.

The ethics of politics to be considered in journalism is another extremely large subject.  A journalist can use a story to shed light on a political situation. The scope of what is considered ethical politically is a fundamental part of the United States’ political process. In order to meet the needs of this scope, many different and frequently opposing media outlets will present information in differing ways. The First Amendment allows for this freedom of the press that presents through journalism and media different political opinions.

Reporting II Working Report 2/21/14

     Not much was accomplished this week. I spent most of the week sending emails and leaving messages with the communications people over at Animal Allies, but they only just got back to me on Thursday. They did seem happy to let me come in and talk with them, but my interview is set for Tuesday. I know my angle and the questions I'm going to ask, I just have to get over there and get this done. I'm planning on taking pictures of some of the animals and probably get a word from some volunteers. Until then, we play the waiting game.
     I'll probably also get into contact with the contacts for the next story this weekend. If I can get a jump on that early, then I may not run into such a time-crunch that I have now.

Reporting II Work Report 2/14/14

        For the next story project, I've decided to focus on Animal Allies as my place/subject. As for the angle, I have an idea to talk about how the shelter has kept their animals healthy and exercised throughout this, one of the coldest winters on record in Duluth. I've already been in contact with Pat Castellano, the staff educator whom I bumped into at the city council debate last fall, and she's very excited to have me come in and talk to folks there. I've scheduled an initial visit for Monday afternoon, after which we'll see if I need to go back continually to get the full story that is there.

As for the other stories; I have ideas for all the other stories that I will be doing initial research on before picking an angle. My person is a UMD graduate named Drew Ley who has pursued a career in teaching, and after spending some time out in Montana has found a teaching position back in Duluth. My process will be about a local homebrewer named Sean Monroe. The article will cover not only his process on how he makes beer in his garage, but how he's pursuing his dream of being a brewer by studying the brewing craft and spending time with other master brewers in town. The event I have is a bit strange, but I know of a group of guys who have been getting together once a year since they started college to play Halo. There are about five or six core members who bring their friends for a total of sixteen at playing in a small house. I'd cover how they started and continued the annual ritual, even though they've all graduated and gone on into their careers, and despite the game being over ten years old.
That's all for now. I'd say I've got a lot planned and a lot more to do. I'm excited to see how this is all going to turn out with my impending graduation, Lakevoice, day-job, interning, and campus-group commitments all happening at the same time.

Reporting II Week 4: Newsworthiness

            Newsworthiness is a topic much analyzed and debated to this day. What is news for one publication might not be news for another. So how to define something that is so relative across the entire news medium?

There are five factors that should be considered when deciding to run a story. The first factor is timing or things that are new. Consumers of news want to be updated at all times, and there is so much news that the old news is discarded quickly. The second factor is significance. A reporter would want to report a story that had more significance than another. For example a story where 100 people died in a car accident would be published before a story about a grandma getting hit by a car and surviving. The third factor is proximity. Stories that happen close or near to a person will have more relevance, or proximity than a story overseas. The fourth factor is prominence. A good example of this would be if the president broke his arm versus you breaking your arm. The president is going to have a story about how he broke his arm. Finally, the last factor is human interest. These stories will often appeal to emotion, or make you feel attached to the story. They will often be offbeat or unique stories that appeal to a lot of people. Many organizations can have different views on what they perceive as news.

Kearston Wesner, professor of journalism at UMD, said that in her professional opinion newsworthiness depends most on who you are as the reporter and who you work for.  She said that what is deemed newsworthy depends on the audience and what they think is worthy of being news.  

As an example, she said that the UMD community would be very interested to know that Maurices recently donated their downtown headquarters to UMD to use as part of it’s campus and it will be open to students and staff in the spring of 2014.  But the New York Times most likely would not consider this newsworthy of it’s audience and would not publish it.  On the other hand, TMZ considers what celebrities do and what they are up to as newsworthy whereas the UMD Statesman does not and focuses more on what is happening with students and with the UMD community.  

To her personally, Professor Wesner considers disasters, weather, sports teams (depending on the state, not Vikings) and breaking news as newsworthy.  As long as the story is close to home and somehow could affect her or does affect her, she sees it as newsworthy.  
          Sometimes newsworthiness is subjective across multiple news outlets. If a story pops up that is so important that all news networks need to cover it, there may appear to be a division between those networks as to what the focus of the story should be. The factors of newsworthiness still apply, but they seem directed in a way that would best attract or cater to a certain audience rather than simply inform. While this would not necessarily apply to smaller, local brands of news, the larger, national news outlets will often decide the newsworthy direction of an important event to appeal to their American audience. At the same time,international news networks will focus on an entirely different side of the event in a way that they feel is more newsworthy. For example, when President Obama met with the French President recently, international news outlets like BBC and Al Jazeera reported on the topics discussed in the meeting concerning international relations. The American news networks, however, focused exclusively on how the French President met with the Obama without bringing a spouse/girlfriend/lady for the formal occasion and how that threw off the photos and seating arrangement. It’s easy to see the different ideas of newsworthiness here.
        So when considering newsworthiness in deciding a story's angle, remember these these tips.

• Finding a newsworthy topic to cover
• Always be on the lookout for a topic.  News is constantly happening around us, so watch out for those interesting or conflict events.  When you see such an event grab out your notebook and/or phone and start reporting.  
• Since newsworthiness has to do with proximity and if you’re still looking for a story to cover look at bulletin boards that have listed events or do research online.  This will be easier so you can plan to attend that event.  
• Listen to classmates or professors they might offer you a good topic to cover. 

          

Reporting II Lesson Week 3: Newswriting and AP Style

There are so many styles of writing in the world today, yet journalists tend to limit themselves to the news writing in conjunction with the AP style. Technical style emphasizes the factual procedures for using instruments and machines, fiction writers employ a style of long series of conversations interspersed with action and description in order to tell a story, while still the Twitter style has people saying whatever they please so long as they keep it within 140 characters. Why then do journalists stick so close to their roots in the news writing style and Associated Press style? This article explores why.

News writing style has been developed over a couple hundred years of experimental journalism that tended to emphasize sensational happenings and long strings of facts over truth and understanding. As the industry grew, more people called for ethics in journalism which led to the formation of the Society of Professional Journalists in 1909. The SPJ laid the groundwork for the modern news writing style we know today. They created a style which focused on informing the reader on the important facts of the story before leading into a chronology or details. They also made sure that stories were credible by including quotes, paraphrasing, and references to source materials so people knew that what they were reading was the truth.

Writing in a journalistic style is often difficult, and takes a lot of practice to be done concisely. There are many of things to consider when writing for a journalistic purpose for the general public. The most important thing is to stay true to the story you are trying to tell, and to keep the facts in line. Without these facets of the business, journalism would be degraded significantly as a form to exchange news. The news business is controlled by people,  driven by the facts, and a product of the audience.  It is the journalist’s role to interpret and convey information in a way that stays true to the audience.

Within the news writing style there is a standardized set of rules for journalists to follow. These rules are known as AP style. Much like how APA or MLA styles are used for academic writing, the rules for the AP style of writing give journalists a clear set of rules to follow when writing articles. The AP style guidelines include but are not limited to rules for capitalization, abbreviation, spelling, and numerals.

    In journalism, it’s not uncommon for multiple people to have their hands in on part of an article. Many different writers and editors could work on a piece before it’s finally published. For this reason it’s important that they all use AP style for the sake of being able to always know what the others are saying. It’s also important to note that AP style tries to avoid stereotypes and offensive language.

Checking AP style has been the most challenging part for journalists and journalism students while finishing a news report. The rules are complicated, detailed, and some even irregular. It requires a lot of  practices. Journalism professors and experts are trying to summarize some  easier ways to deal with AP style. Debora Wenger, a 17-year broadcast news veteran, is a journalism  professor at the University of Mississippi. She summed up 12 essential AP style rules including the rules of  title, time, address, term, and abbreviation, etc. to help people remember and apply AP style in their news writing.

“I’m focusing on what I called the 12 big rules for AP style. These are the rules that I really do recommend people to memorize,” said Wenger when talking about the complexity of AP style.

    Before memorizing Wenger’s 12 main rules though, a writer must first grow comfortable with using their AP Stylebook.  Some writers may find it easy to use and look up whatever they need, while others may struggle.  For those that are visual learners, Dr. Kim Zarkin, a communications professor at Westminster College in Salt Lake City, Utah, has provided an instructional video on youtube, entitled “Using the AP Style Guide with Dr. Kim Zarkin.”  The video consists of her examining several sample sentences, and then checking select words and punctuation marks in the Stylebook.  Watching it is a great way to get a feel for the Stylebook, and to see what sorts of things you may want to use it for.

References:

• Harrower, Tim. Inside Reporting: A Practical Guide to the Craft of Journalism. 3rd ed. Copyright 2013. McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

• Christian, Darrell, Sally A. Jacobsen, and David Minthorn, eds. Associated Press Stylebook 2013. 

48th ed. New York: Associated, 2013. Print. 

• "Welcome to the Purdue OWL." Purdue OWL: Journalism and Journalistic Writing. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Feb. 2014.

• Wenger, D. (2013) 12 Rules of AP Style. [Video Tape]. (Available from Youtube)
•  Zarkin, Kim, writ. Using the AP Style Guide with Dr. Kim Zarkin. 2013. Web. 6 Feb 2014.
•  "Journalistic Guidlines." PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 06 Feb. 2014.