what is general assignment reporting

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8.1: Types of Journalism

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Introduction

Although "journalism" is a singular term, which may imply a homogeneous entity, it is helpful to think of it as an umbrella term for a number of distinct forms, practices, and genres. Put another way, journalism has many looks, can be produced in many ways, and can be about many things.

There are many ways to categorize different types of journalism. One helpful schema involves three dimensions: media vehicle , beat , and method . A single story is likely to be shaped by its categorization within each dimension. For example, you may have a television (media vehicle) segment about politics (beat) reported through a breaking news approach (method). That story would be tailored to meet the expectations (and advantages) of each of those dimensions, from its storytelling structure to the depth of the report.

Media Vehicle

There are a number of different media vehicles that can be used for conveying journalism. These include text-oriented (e.g., newspapers or online articles), audio-oriented (e.g., radio or podcasts), and visual-oriented (e.g., television or photography).

The media vehicle matters because it offers certain technical affordances (possibilities and limitations). For example, photojournalism relies primarily on still photographs to convey the essence of a development or issue. A photojournalist may need to capture multiple facets of a complex issue through a single, representative photograph — perhaps a melting glacier with a skeletal polar bear in the foreground. Put another way, the photojournalist may need to aim to convey a thousand words with just one shot. (They also write accompanying photo captions, but those rarely exceed a couple of sentences.) Alternatively, the photojournalist may be tasked with producing a photo essay, wherein they piece together multiple photographs that capture different dimensions of an issue in a manner that conveys a narrative. Photojournalism shoots can involve candid, heat-of-the-moment reporting (e.g., documenting a battle in a conflict zone) as well as documenting daily life for a particular group of people (e.g., homeless veterans).

Similarly, news produced for a television newscast is likely to differ in important ways from news produced for an online news article. For example, a story about local opioid addiction rates may need to be condensed into a three-minute TV segment. That might involve just 200 words of voice-over narration on the journalist’s part. In contrast, an average article on the BBC’s website is roughly 750 words in length. (If they’re writing for The New York Times , that’s closer to 1,000 words.) The shorter length for the newscast requires the journalist to hone in on a narrower aspect of the issue, or perhaps offer a more superficial account of its many aspects. Moreover, the style of writing differs: Writing for the ear is distinctly different from writing for the eyes.

Reporting jobs are often oriented around either beat reporting or general assignment reporting .

Beats are niche categories of journalistic coverage in which individual journalists may specialize. A beat can be a topic, a person, or an institution, though they are most commonly niche topics. For example, a political journalist might cover the politics beat, the election beat, or the Kamala Harris beat — or all three. Beat reporters immerse themselves in their beats and gain specialized insights and knowledge of the key stakeholders, actors, trends, and influences within those beats over time. As they do so, they become experts in those beats, and that expertise appears in the stories they identify and cover. Moreover, by virtue of repeatedly covering the same topics or people, beat reporters tend to develop deep and specialized sourcing networks, often resulting in elevated access to some sources and exclusive information.

Beats are not just genres. They may require distinct approaches to newsgathering and involve different audience expectations for storytelling structures. Consider the film beat: It may involve a mixture of reported and objective pieces (e.g., news about the latest film Ryan Gosling has signed on to), short lifestyle features (e.g., a non-combative and abridged interview with Gosling about his morning workout routine), and subjective opinion pieces (e.g., a review of Gosling’s latest movie). By contrast, the courts beat is more likely to have inverted pyramid-style stories detailing incidents and events derived from reviews of court documents, or reports about arguments in an on-going case. (Audiences are unlikely to expect short interviews with judges about their morning case review routine.)

Common beats include business, courts and crime, education, film, food, health, international affairs, music, politics, science, sports, style, and technology. Some outlets (especially niche publications) have even more specialized beats, like Big Tech, Medicare, or Green Energy. Many journalistic outlets organize their staffs and their editorial content based on distinctions between specialized beats, meaning that they will have a reporter (or group of reporters) who occupy a particular physical space in the newsroom and publish primarily on a dedicated portion of the news product (e.g., a "Science" section) based on their beat. While many journalists focus on a single beat, some journalists may be tasked with covering multiple beats — especially during times of newsroom cutbacks.

Not all journalists are assigned to a beat, though. Some journalists' expertise lies in their ability to quickly learn new topics and make sense of them for non-specialized audiences. These journalists are often called general assignment reporters because they may be tasked with covering an entertainment story one day and a court story the next. The need to cover such a wide array of topics often comes at a cost, though: General assignment reporters are typically more likely to get facts wrong (especially with an unfamiliar topic), may struggle to offer deep coverage, and their sourcing network for a topic may be sparse or superficial. Nevertheless, many journalistic outlets will complement their beat reporters with at least one general assignment reporter in order to have a frequent and predictable stream of news stories and to help round off the outlet’s news coverage as needed.

Journalism may also be distinguished based on the approach to reporting that is used. Examples of common approaches are breaking news reporting , straight news reporting , feature reporting , enterprise reporting , investigative reporting , and advocacy reporting .

Breaking news reporting involves covering a development with a particular emphasis on timeliness. Breaking news stories depict current events, recent developments, and information that is generally just coming to light. For example, this might include a shooting outside a bar. Breaking news stories are often updated regularly as news develops and as journalists uncover new information about the sometimes ongoing event. Put another way, breaking news reporting doesn’t aim to deeply report multiple aspects of a development and package it as a single, stand-alone news product. Instead, it concedes its incompleteness and focuses on unearthing and describing the most recent developments.

Straight news reporting aims to synthesize recent developments and contextualize them into a stand-alone news product. It is similar to breaking news reporting in that it emphasizes the timely presentation of information in a clear, quick, and straight-to-the-point manner — often by using a story structure like the inverted pyramid. However, compared to breaking news reporting, there is more of an emphasis on sense-making and contextualizing information, with the expectation that a story will be more complete and not require constant updating (even if the event is still developing).

Feature reporting allows journalists to take a more creative approach to the information they present. While the newsgathering methods may be similar to those of traditional reporting, the newswriting approach is quite different. First, they are typically written with a more open-ended and less-strict story structure. Feature stories often apply creative storytelling techniques, such as playful or poetic language, narrative structures, detailed anecdotes, and multi-part vignettes. Second, because of their more open-ended writing styles and less strict relationship to timeliness, feature stories are often long-form and evergreen . Evergreen stories are not tied to a specific time peg, or timely event. They are designed to maintain their relevance to audiences for a longer period of time.

Enterprise reporting relies heavily on original reporting driven by a journalist. It is called enterprise reporting because it requires an enterprising journalist who is able to develop their own story ideas, sources, and means of gaining access to information. (The opposite of enterprise reporting would be reporting that relies primarily on press releases, press conferences, or news that is given in some way to a journalist rather than uncovered by that journalist.) Enterprise reporting often involves creative and advanced reporting methods, such as public records requests, data collection and analysis, and access to historical documents. The result is often, though not always, a longer-form and in-depth news product.

Investigative reporting is a particularly rigorous form of reporting and one of the most powerful types of journalism for advancing the public’s knowledge. Investigative reporters dedicate themselves to the sleuth-like pursuit, through a wide variety of investigative techniques, of information about a niche topic that is often difficult to access. The subjects of investigative reporting are frequently topics of deep conflict and vast public importance, such as political or corporate corruption, violence, crime, financial malfeasance, or other cases of wrongdoing and injustice. Investigative journalists dedicate weeks, months, and even years to the dogged pursuit of a specific person, entity, or topic in order to bring their subject to public light. This type of journalism is strongly associated with watchdog journalism because of the role it plays in holding powerful actors accountable. In this case, investigative journalists are the metaphorical watchdogs who seek to make the actions of the powerful transparent to their audiences. (However, watchdog journalism is a broader form of journalism that also includes traditional, day-to-day reporting on the mundane matters of governance, such as attending School Board meetings.) Investigative stories often take the shape of long-form stories (or a series of shorter stories) because of the amount of reporting and information they comprise.

Advocacy reporting is a form of reporting that distinguishes itself by formulating a clear opinion, or substantiating an existing one, with timely, factual information. This approach outwardly rejects the norm of neutrality, and instead aims to promote a cause or intervention. For example, advocacy reporting may focus on illustrating the plight of young undocumented immigrants by including anecdotes about the challenges they face, statistics about the prevalence of the issue, and offering the journalist’s evaluation of a key policy presently being considered by lawmakers. Such reporting is typically labeled as a "news analysis" or presented as an author’s column in an Opinion section. However, it may also be the approach to reporting that defines the identity of a journalistic outlet (and is therefore not segregated from the other reporting done by that outlet). Not all opinion pieces warrant the label of advocacy reporting, though. Many are better categorized as "opinion writing" if they do not follow at least some of the staple practices of journalism, like verifying information.

Hard vs. Soft News

Another way of categorizing journalism is through the distinction of "hard" and "soft" news.

Hard news journalism refers to breaking news and reports about serious or hard-hitting topics that are both timely and of civic interest. They are usually based on factual information and rigorous research. Political journalism, business journalism, and watchdog journalism are all typically recognized forms of hard news.

Soft news journalism refers to reports about predominantly lifestyle and entertainment affairs, or other topics of human interest. While such journalism may involve rigorous research, it is also more open to interpretive and literary accounts. Sports journalism, entertainment journalism, and celebrity coverage are all typically recognized forms of soft news.

Although this categorization schema is quite popular — it is not uncommon to hear those terms in the newsroom — it is also arguably over-simplistic and does a disservice to certain genres. Specifically, hard news is often used to connote a superior form of journalism, and is often talked about within the industry as being more important (and pure) than soft news. However, consider the case of a rigorously reported investigative piece unearthing corruption in a multi-billion dollar sports league, resulting in criminal prosecution of league executives. It would be a disservice to label that as soft news — with its implied inferiority — simply because it is "a sports story." Conversely, a puff piece on a politician designed to help a journalist gain access hardly warrants the label of hard journalism.

Instead, it is more fruitful to view journalism through a more nuanced typology that takes into account dimensions like the media vehicle, beat, and reporting method associated with that piece of journalism. This focuses less on a shortsighted heuristic for determining a story’s import based on its genre and instead allows us to think more about the norms and expectations associated with a journalistic form.

Key Takeaways

• One way to categorize different types of journalism is to focus on three dimensions: media vehicle, beat, and method.
• The media vehicle matters because it offers certain technical opportunities and limitations, and will have some associated norms. Most media vehicles can be sub-categorized under text-oriented, audio-oriented, and visual-oriented, but hybrid forms also exist.
• Reporting jobs are often oriented around either beat reporting or general assignment reporting. Beats refer to niche categories of coverage that journalists may specialize in.
• Journalism may also be distinguished based on the journalist’s approach to reporting. Common approaches include breaking news reporting, feature reporting, and investigative reporting.
• Journalism is also sometimes categorized under labels of "hard" news and "soft" news, with the former encompassing genres like crime and politics, and the latter genres like entertainment and sports. Although popular within the industry, this typology is arguably overly simplistic and problematic.

Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.

7 Chapter 5: Basic Reporting/Developing Sources 

Basic reporting .

In the fall of 2023, a podcast dropped called “The Kids of Rutherford County.” It’s a four-part investigative journalism project from Serial Productions and the New York Times. Reporter Meribah Knight describes how a Tennessee county and its people arrested and illegally jailed hundreds – possibly thousands – of children as young as 7 years old for petty crimes, such as pulling hair and not stopping other kids from fighting.

She covered this story through vigorous reporting and finding sources to talk to her about their experiences. Let us start with the first episode, titled “The Egregious Video.”

It begins like this: “It was a March afternoon in Rutherford County, Tennessee, a growing community about 30 miles southeast of Nashville. School was out for the day, and a dozen or so little kids were playing a game of pickup basketball in someone’s backyard. And then, as kids do, one said something about another kid’s mom. This insult led to some shoving. And then, as kids also do, one of them pulled out a cellphone and started filming.”

The 28-minute podcast describes what happened next, from a police investigation to the arrest of 11 children who were not fighting. How did Knight get that story?

Answer: Sources.

A source is a person, organization or document that provides information for a news story.

In the first episode, Knight uses the video as one source and interviews one of the children who witnessed the fight and her mother, who was approached by police.

Knight tells the listener that she tried to interview the police officers who arrested the children, but they refused to talk to her. Instead, she legally obtained copies of interviews of those officers conducted by the department’s internal affairs division to get the police side of the story.

In the second episode, she speaks to two attorneys whose job was to represent the children who were jailed. She also interviews the county attorney whose job is to prosecute them. In episode three, Knight goes even further, interviewing 25 people who were illegally jailed as children and asking them to recount those experiences and the impacts on their lives.

Notice how Knight is trying to present all sides of the story? This is basic reporting.

General Assignment Versus Beat Reporting

There are two kinds of reporters in most news organizations. A general assignment reporter writes a variety of news or feature stories on a wide range of issues. They do not specialize in one kind of news and must be ready to quickly learn about a subject before they write about it. Examples are reporters who cover a street fair one day and write a feature on a school principal the next day.

A beat reporter covers the same geographic or subject area consistently and specializes in the subject matter. These reporters become experts in their beat and enjoy the ability to dig deeper into a subject because they are familiar with the players and ways to get information. Examples of this are police reporters, sports reporters who cover one team or sport, city or education reporters.

Though different, both general assignment and beat reporters must do something that is difficult for many students. Reporters need to talk to people, in person, on the phone, online every day. Journalists must put themselves out there to reach different kinds of sources. They need to show up at offices and houses and coffee shops to find the best people to interview.

When I was a reporter, I wanted to talk to a source who owned a car dealership but would never return my calls. I finally took my laptop and sat in his Mercedes car showroom for six hours while he hid in his office. But eventually he came out and agreed to an interview. Persistence gave me a story that beat my competition.

Reporters should get in the habit of routinely leaving their desks and physically following a story. Invite a source to lunch, chat up a city official at a park opening or a school board member after the meeting. In this technology-heavy society, it’s easy to rely on digital sources, but the best reporters are still physically going to report a story whenever possible. The effort of in-person interviewing often pays off with better information, anecdotes and news stories.

Steps to Reporting

• Google your subject and start reading. It’s good to know everything that has been written about the subject, but remember this is not for the actual story. This is background information for you.
• Read news coverage of your subject, if possible. Or try to find information about them on social media. Learning what happened before allows you to ask better questions about what is happening now.
• Begin the research phase. This involves collecting information for your story. Only collect and track information from verified sources such as government documents, lawsuits and reputable news sources. If you are unsure about a website’s veracity, check the “About Us” section and note the mission of the organization. Understanding the organization helps both you and the reader put in context why the information is available there.
• Once you’ve compiled your research, go through it again and look for human sources. If an expert is quoted in other articles, they might be good for you as well. (Note: We will delve into sources later in this chapter.)
• Draft a list of questions you want the story to answer. Remember that the story needs to tell readers something that they don’t know that could impact them. A good starter question is: Why should the reader care about this? If sources can answer that question, you will have a relevant story.
• Interview your sources and take good notes. Remember to aim for in-person interviews. Also consider including an audio recording as backup.
• Interview again if needed. Reporting takes time and patience. It may take days or weeks for sources to call you back or give you the information. You might have to nag them to get what you need. The effort pays off in well-sourced stories.

Sometimes it’s tough to get information. But the law is on a reporter’s side. The U.S. government requires much of its information be available to every citizen.

Enacted in 1976, the Freedom of Information Act, or FOIA governs the public’s right to request access to records from any federal agency. The Department of Justice has a website that explains your legal rights in detail and contains a helpful video.

Some areas are off limits. The DOJ website includes nine exemptions to the access rules, which range from personal privacy to national security and law enforcement.

That is only for federal information; each state has its own laws regarding freedom of information. A national nonprofit organization called the State Freedom of Information Coalition tracks each state’s FOIA laws.

Each page provides links to the state laws and includes contact information for organizations that can help journalists get the information they need. For example, California’s page includes contact info for the California News Publisher Association , a respected and active media organization in the state.

Another resource for student journalists is the Student Press Law Center , which has existed since 1974 and “promotes, supports and defends the First Amendment and free press rights of student journalists and their advisers.” The group’s webpage on access is full of helpful tools, including a legal FOIA letter generator.

Though reporting is difficult, there are many people and organizations across the country willing to help student journalists in their quest for information.

The biggest struggle for journalism students is finding sources. Students are eager to interview and report a story but are often at a loss as to how to find the right person.

Sources vary per news article, but often fall into certain categories.

• Officials : Most stories have some group that is in charge or leading in the story. Whether it is an event organizer, college president or city mayor, these are people who have the information you will need for a story. They also are used to speaking to the media and tend to be accessible and available for interviews.
• Spokespeople : These are people whose job is to help the media obtain accurate information. They work in a field called public relations that uses the same writing style and requires similar skill sets as journalism. Public relations jobs are defined as professional work to gain a favorable public image of a company, organization or person. People working in this field are often called spokespeople and can be helpful sources or can connect a journalist with those sources.
• Experts : Many news stories involve conflicting or complicated information that could use the help of an expert. An expert is someone who has extensive knowledge and experience in a field. Most colleges have a wealth of experts in the form of professors. The person teaching your archaeology class spent years in the field and could talk with authority on topics related to it. Curious about a new diet trend? Your kinesiology professor could speak about the health benefits. The best part of this type of source is that many colleges make them easy to find. Your college’s spokesperson can help you. And the school website also might have something called an experts directory that lists sources, their areas of specialty and their contact information. It is a convenient tool for many news writers.
• Associations : I often tell my students that if they are having trouble finding sources, try Googling the topic with the word “association.” An association is a group of people who have joined together to promote some cause or topic. These people are happy to talk to the media about their passion to garner publicity. Are you writing a story about students slacklining on campus? Search for a slackline association or club.
• Opposition : An editor once told me that when a person tells you something is a win-win, you should be suspicious. Someone will always lose. A reporter’s job is to talk to all sides, not just the winners. When crafting a story, it’s easy to find the winners. To be objective, a good reporter finds the losers and asks them what they think. I once did a story about a church that wanted to build a large facility in a neighborhood. I interviewed the pastor who was so excited. But the story was not complete. I knocked on the doors of people who would live by the church. They told me they opposed the church site because it would cause traffic, noise and parking hassles. Consider all the people who could be affected and make sure those voices are in your story as well.
• Public : If you are writing for your school paper, your public sources are often students or employees. At Palomar College, we strive to put a student source in every story. Their comments lend a perspective you might not have considered. For example, if you are reporting on school parking, interview students and employees who park and do not park. Beyond that, you need to talk to people who park in the morning versus afternoon or evening. Finding a variety of sources allows for a more interesting and objective news story. Be aware that to get a genuine sampling of opinions, you need to go to different areas at various times and approach different people. Consider varying ages, genders and races to get a wide array of experiences.

The professional media can help with source variety. 

National Public Radio (NPR) is an independent, nonprofit media organization that was founded on a mission to create a more informed public, according to its website . Through its member stations, NPR reports on local, national and global stories for an estimated 46 million people. It offers helpful resources for journalists, such as the NPR Diverse Sources Database .

It also has an accuracy checklist:

• Ages — Get the date and birth — and do the math.
• Days, date — Are you sure it happened then?
• Grammar and spelling — Listeners and readers notice mistakes and forget your great story
• Historical “facts” — Don’t trust your memory.
• Locations — Get them right and pronounce them correctly.
• Names of businesses, groups and schools — For the 100th time, it’s Dartmouth College.
• Numbers — Check your math. Don’t say “millions” if it’s “billions.” Learn about percent vs. percentage point.
• Personal names — Get the correct spelling and pronunciation.
• Pronunciations — Not only names, but places and terms, too. The dictionary is your friend!
• Quotes — Make sure they’re accurate and correctly attributed.
• Superlatives — If something is said to be the “first,” “last,” “best,” “worst,” “only,” “oldest,” “youngest” etc., that claim must be verified. If it can’t be, the claim should be deleted or qualified – and clearly attributed.
• Titles — President, CEO, professor, etc. They must be accurate.
• Web addresses and phone numbers — Never report them without testing them first.
• Pronouns — Essential.

Key Takeaways

• There are two kinds of reporters: a general assignment reporter who covers a variety of subjects and a beat reporter who focuses on one geographic or subject area.
• The Freedom of Information Act gives the public the right to request access to records from any federal agency. Each state decides its own laws for information access.
• Sources must be part of every news and feature article. Sources include officials, spokespeople, experts, associations, opposition and the public.
• It’s important to focus on diversity of sources by varying ages, genders and races.

Chapter Exercise

If you get your news from TikTok, you may want to consider its sources. Listen to this podcast from the New York Times called “The Daily.” The entire episode is worth a listen, but for this assignment, begin at the 11-minute mark of the podcast and listen until 17 minutes. The segment is about TikTok and its effects on the economy. Write a 500-word reaction to this podcast. What do you think? What are possible outcomes or solutions for change?

Broccoli and Chocolate: A Beginner’s Guide to Journalism News Writing Copyright © 2024 by Erin Hiro is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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GENERAL ASSIGNMENT REPORTER JOB DESCRIPTION

Find detail information about general assignment reporter job description, duty and skills required for general assignment reporter position.

Who are journalists assignment?

An assignment editor is an editor ? either at a newspaper or a radio or television station ? who selects, develops, and plans reporting assignments, either news events or feature stories, to be covered by reporters. An assignment editor is responsible for making sure the reports they produce are high quality and meet the needs of the publication in question. They also have a great deal of control over what is reported, and can choose to run features that will attract readers or viewers.

What do general assignment reporters do quizlet?

The general assignment reporter, like all reporters, is a people-watcher. They are always on the lookout for the latest development in their chosen topic, and they are always looking for ways to get their stories out there. In most cases, they work freelance or as part of a team.

What type of job is a reporter?

Journalism is the profession of researching, reporting, interviewing and writing for news outlets such as newspapers, magazines, websites and broadcast news. Journalists are media and communication professionals who observe and record newsworthy events and report them to the public. Journalism is a critical branch of reporting that helps reporters provide objective information to the public. Journalism can be used to help reporters tell powerful stories that can change the way people think or feel about important issues. Journalists use their skills to investigate crime, politics and other important topics.

Who assigns stories to general assignment?

A television station assigned a story about a young girl who is raped by her father to cover the news. The reporter who covers the story tells the story of how she was able to get justice for the victim and how she has been able to heal from the attack.

What are the 4 parts of a newspaper layout?

The four basic elements of a newspaper layout are photos, headlines, cutlines, and text. Photos are the pictures that accompany stories. Headlines are the most important part of a headline, and they must be catchy enough to make people want to read more of the story. Cutlines are places where information is cut away from the main story so that readers can see what else is going on in the story. Text is what is used to explain what happened in a story and how it affects people around the world. Strong headlines are a way to show off your writing skills and make sure your stories get read by as many people as possible.

What is a specialty reporter?

Reporting specialist reporters are constantly keeping up-to-date with the latest news in their field so they can provide reporters with the most current information that they can use to inform the public. Their creativity and ability to find stories makes them perfect for any reports or articles you might want to write.

What does a freelance reporter do?

As a freelance journalist, you are responsible for uncovering the news, writing the story, and pitching content suggestions to an editor. Your job is to make your ideas shine through and get your message across to readers. As a freelance journalist, you have access to resources that other reporters do not, so it is important that you use them to your advantage. By using online tools and sources such as social media and Google search, you can quickly piece together information and find new stories that might not have been reported. When pitching your content ideas to an editor, be sure to include a clear explanation of what you are trying to achieve and why readers should care about it.

What does a beat reporter always cover that a general reporter does not?

In recent years, beat reporters have had a growing appreciation for creativity in their reporting. They are able to focus on one area and develop in-depth knowledge about that topic. This way, they can produce journalism that is both powerful and informative.

What does the term beat reporter refer to?

As a news reporter, you walk the beat and talk to people to get their insights on what's going on. You often call, visit, and e-mail sources to gain any new information that may be helpful for your story. You have great experience with the beat so you can gain a wealth of knowledge and sources. This allows you to write creative stories that are informative and interesting for your readers.

What point was the newspaper motto it does not soil the breakfast cloth trying to make quizlet?

The motto of the paper "It does not soil the breakfast cloth" was likely trying to emphasize that the news stories would be more matter-of-fact and less sensational.

What are the three kinds of reporters?

Objective reporting is the type of reporting that tells the story or reports what has been found. Interpretative reporting is the type of reporting that tells the story or reports what has been done to try to understand what happened. Investigativereporting is the type of reporting that tells the story or reports what has been found and/or done to find out what happened.

What is difference between journalist and reporter?

Reporters are people who work in the media and have a lot of responsibilities. They help to report news, and sometimes they also write about it. They often have to be careful about what they say, because it could be used to hurt someone else.

What are the qualifications for reporter?

Do you have a love for the written word andreporting? Are you passionate about making a difference in the world? If so, look no further! You can become a news reporter in India with the right courses, skills and eligibility. To be a good news reporter, you must first complete a Bachelor's degree in Journalism or Mass Communication. You must also pass an English language test to prove your ability to converse in English correctly. After passing these tests, you will be able to start working as a news reporter.

What is the work environment like for a reporter?

On a recent morning, a group of reporters from different media outlets were positioned along the busy streets of downtown Los Angeles. They were waiting for a major story to break, but nothing did. The reporters started to get restless, so they decided to take a walk around the city. They walked up and down the streets, taking in the sights and sounds of the city.

How do you report news to the media?

The most important part of any press release is the angle. By choosing a good angle, you can create a powerful story with the right audience. You can also build relationships with local press contacts to help promote your story.

How many types of news editors are there?

"When I was a child, I always loved going to the library. It was such a fun experience to sit in the reading area and read stories that I never knew existed before. Even now, as an adult, I love going to the library because it's such a great way to learn new words and phrases. A developmental editor is someone who helps you develop your writing skills. They may help you with grammar, word choice, and sentence structure. A substantive editor is someone who looks for errors in your work and helps you fix them. They may also help you with formatting issues and making sure your work is error-free. A copy editor is someone who helps you make sure your work is formatted correctly so that it will look its best on the screen. They may also help with making sure your work is easy to read and that errors are corrected." - source.

What is general news section?

In today's paper, an important story is being reported about a hacker who has taken over a large part of the internet. This hack has caused a lot of disruption and isangering many people's lives.

How do you write a newspaper report?

The school was in a lot of trouble. The Principal had to call in the police and they arrived just in time for the final exam. Unfortunately, one of the students had killed another student and it was all over the news.

What are the 7 parts of newspaper?

On the first page of every newspaper, you will find the title and other important information. This includes the masthead, which lists all of the major news organizations that are published by the paper. You will also find a list of editorial pieces and feature articles. These are some of the most popular stories that newspapers publish each week.

What does an assignment editor do in news?

As an assignment editor, you are responsible for developing, selecting and assigning news stories to reporters and journalists. You work in a newsroom where you monitor the activities and make sure all areas of production are covered. As an editor, your job is to provide the story ideas that will make the paper's readers happy.

What is input desk journalism?

The News Desk is a place where reporters and anchors get all the information they need to cover breaking news stories. They also keep track of other incidents so that they can present them in a balanced way.

What does an assignment manager do?

On assignment desk, the newsroom supervisor oversees all daily news coverage and special events. They also keep track of the newsroom's planning for future events. They are responsible for writing creative English paragraphs that capture the excitement and excitement of the newsroom.

What are types of reporters?

A freelance journalist is responsible for translating spoken words into text during court proceedings. They may work as a reporter, broadcaster, or cart provider.

What are some types of reporters?

Reporting can be defined as the process of gathering information or reporting on events through writing, spoken or video transmission. It can also refer to the act of writing, recording, transmitting or publishing information. Types of reporters include assignment reporters, broadcast captioners and freelance reporters. Assignment reporters are responsible for gathering information from sources within a certain topic area and then reporting this information in a written or televised form. Broadcast captioners are usually used to insert captions into television programs in order to provide an overview of the action taking place on-screen. They may also be used for sound effects during live events. Freelance reporters are those who work without an assigned project and instead report news from their own personal perspective. They may work for both local and national news organizations. Official reporters are those who work for a specific government agency or company and are responsible for gathering all the necessary evidence before releasing any information. Webcasters are individuals who create and stream live webcasts from their personal computer Screencasts can also be defined as reports which originate from one person's point-of-view while they're engaged in some other activity such as studying, working on a project, playing video games or watching a movie

What are the 4 types of journalism?

There are different types of journalism, each serving a different purpose and audience. Investigative journalism is focused on uncovering the truth, usually through reporting on sensitive or confidential information. News Reporting is the type of journalism that typically covers the news as it happens, with no editorial interference. Columnists are writers who focus on one or more specific topics and write pieces that are meant to be read by a large audience. Feature Writing is a type of Journalism that often focuses on creative writing and tells stories that are not typically covered in other genres.

How do I become a reporter with no experience?

In recent years, the number of journalists working in the United States has decreased. This is likely due to a lack of interest in the profession by consumers and businesses alike. However, there are still many opportunities for journalism students to gain experience and learn about news reporting. If you are interested in becoming a journalist, you may want to consider attending an accredited college or university where you can receive a degree in journalism. Additionally, it's important to have strong research abilities so that you can understand complex stories and develop meaningful reports.

What are the 7 types of journalism?

There are many types of journalism one could explore, such as investigative, watchdog, online, broadcast, opinion, and sports. Each has its own unique strengths and weaknesses. It's important to consider which type of journalism best fits your needs before making any decisions.

Can you be a journalist without a degree?

The media is a vital tool for journalists. Not only can they report on the news, but they can also help people understand it. By writing stories and creating reports, reporters can help people learn more about the world around them and what's happening. They can also make sure that people know what's going on, so that they can make better decisions. There are many opportunities for reporters out there. If you're motivated and committed, there's no reason not to try to be a part of the media. There's definitely a lot of competition out there, but if you're determined and willing to work hard, you'll be fine.

How do you get the best reporter in MUN?

As a first-time MUN-goer, it is important to be aware of the different aspects of press delegation. Faculty advisors usually assign delegates with little or no press experience. This can lead to lack of interaction and creativity. Additionally, chairs often do not allow for much interaction with the press corps. This can lead to a feeling that the delegates are just there to answer questions and not to make a difference in the context of the conference.

Why it is important to do beat reporting?

In a recent article, the reporter described how beat reporters help to build in-depth knowledge of their beats and how this can help them give detailed informed and timely reviews, commentary and news reports. This type of reporting is also great for building a good rapport with their sources. By chronicling the events that take place in their beat, reporters are able to develop an understanding of what they are covering, as well as the potential implications it may have for the community they live in.

What are the two main types of beat?

Stressed beats are the 'strong' beats and unstressed are the 'weak' beats. They can be found in a person's heart rate, breathing, and speech. When a person is stressed, their heart rate increases and they may also experience an increased respiration rate and an increased number of breath mints. They may also speak more loudly and faster than normal.

What is a new reporter called?

An anchorman is a person who anchors a news program on TV. They are responsible for reporting the news and ensuring that the audience understands it. Anchormen must be able to keep the material organized and on point, while maintaining a high level of communication with the reporters covering the story.

Is news anchor a journalist?

One of the most well-known Broadcast journalists is David Letterman who anchors the late night talk show on CBS. He is known for his clever and informative jokes that always keep the audience entertained. Letterman also has a long history of activism, having visited many impoverished areas of America in his time as a journalist.

What are the qualities of a beat reporter?

Today, the paper had to report on a story about a young girl who was beaten up by her family. The news made national headlines and the paper was able to get important information from the source. The story is well-reported and gives readers a good understanding of what happened.

What is Penny Press journalism?

In the early 1800s, penny press journalists were the first to report on crisis and crime news. This was something that became a staple in newspapers since. The reports kept people updated on the latest events and gave them a sense of safety.

Which of the following is generally considered the biggest threat to the future of newspapers?

In recent years, penny press newspapers have become more popular than ever. They're favored by human interest stories, general assignment reporters, and even decline readership among younger people. However, there are many reasons why penny press newspapers may be declining in popularity. One reason is that their readership is especially among those who are younger. Another reason is that they're not as popular withDeclining readership, especially among younger people.

How do you introduce yourself to a reporter?

Janet Falk is an experienced public information officer. She has worked in a number of different settings, including the newsroom, as a spokeswoman for a public relations firm, and as a law enforcement officer. Janet has learned a great deal about how to communicate with the media and how to work with clients. She is excited to share her knowledge with you in this case study.

How many types of reporting are there?

Informal reports can be very beneficial in helping to gather information. They can be helpful in understanding what is going on and can also provide a way to communicate with people who may be involved in the situation. Formal reports, on the other hand, are more formal and may require a bit more planning and thought before they are created. They can provide a more accurate portrayal of what is happening and can also be used to present findings to others.

Do reporters write their own stories?

The Rebus Community is a community of reporters who write their own scripts for their packages and "vosots" which stands for "voice over/sound on tape," a live voice-over with a sound bite. If they are focused on only one story, they will conduct interviews, attend press conferences, and collect video for that package. The Rebus Community is an online community of reporters who share their stories and ideas with others in order to create a shared experience that can be enjoyed by everyone.

Is journalism a good career?

With the increasing number of people that are using the internet and other communication channels, the demand for quality journalism has increased as well. Many students are choosing to pursue a career in journalism because it is a challenging field that is playing a key role in the development of the nation. Journalism is a challenging field that requires great writing skills as well as an understanding of complex topics.

Who is a staff reporter?

The staff writer for a magazine or website is an office-based role. They work with a variety of clients, such as businesses, organizations and governments. They are responsible for providing standard content, such as news reports, reviews and features. In comparison with a newspaper journalist or reporter which requires traveling, a staff writer for a magazine or website can be more creative. They can write creative English paragraphs that capture the essence of their clients and the world around them.

How do I get a job as a reporter?

In India, the media is a very important part of the society. It plays an important role in transmitting news and opinions to a large audience. Journalism is the study of writing, producing newspapers, magazines, or television programs that are meant to be read by people all over the world. Many journalists in India start their careers as reporters. They work on stories that are reported by newspapers or television networks. After they have worked their way up through the ranks, many journalists become editors or producers. They work on programs that are meant to be watched by people all over the world. One of the most popular journalism programs in India is journalism school. This program provides students with skills that will help them in their future careers as journalists. Many newspapers and television networks in India require reporters to pass a course called journalism academy. This course covers everything from reporting basics to writing about different topics. Journalism schools in India offer many different courses that can help journalists learn how to write about different topics and produce great stories. After they have completed their studies at one of these schools, many journalists go on to work for various news organizations around the world.

How much a reporter earns in India?

A journalist in India is paid a median annual salary of ? 3.0 lakhs. This salary is likely to increase as the journalist?s skills and abilities develop. The pay scale for journalists in India is typically more lucrative than that of other professional occupations, making it an attractive career choice for those with creativity and a strong writing instinct.

More jobs related with General

8.5 Writing Process: Creating an Analytical Report

Learning outcomes.

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

• Identify the elements of the rhetorical situation for your report.
• Find and focus a topic to write about.
• Gather and analyze information from appropriate sources.
• Distinguish among different kinds of evidence.
• Draft a thesis and create an organizational plan.
• Compose a report that develops ideas and integrates evidence from sources.
• Give and act on productive feedback to works in progress.

You might think that writing comes easily to experienced writers—that they draft stories and college papers all at once, sitting down at the computer and having sentences flow from their fingers like water from a faucet. In reality, most writers engage in a recursive process, pushing forward, stepping back, and repeating steps multiple times as their ideas develop and change. In broad strokes, the steps most writers go through are these:

• Planning and Organization . You will have an easier time drafting if you devote time at the beginning to consider the rhetorical situation for your report, understand your assignment, gather ideas and information, draft a thesis statement, and create an organizational plan.
• Drafting . When you have an idea of what you want to say and the order in which you want to say it, you’re ready to draft. As much as possible, keep going until you have a complete first draft of your report, resisting the urge to go back and rewrite. Save that for after you have completed a first draft.
• Review . Now is the time to get feedback from others, whether from your instructor, your classmates, a tutor in the writing center, your roommate, someone in your family, or someone else you trust to read your writing critically and give you honest feedback.
• Revising . With feedback on your draft, you are ready to revise. You may need to return to an earlier step and make large-scale revisions that involve planning, organizing, and rewriting, or you may need to work mostly on ensuring that your sentences are clear and correct.

Considering the Rhetorical Situation

Like other kinds of writing projects, a report starts with assessing the rhetorical situation —the circumstance in which a writer communicates with an audience of readers about a subject. As the writer of a report, you make choices based on the purpose of your writing, the audience who will read it, the genre of the report, and the expectations of the community and culture in which you are working. A graphic organizer like Table 8.1 can help you begin.

Summary of Assignment

Write an analytical report on a topic that interests you and that you want to know more about. The topic can be contemporary or historical, but it must be one that you can analyze and support with evidence from sources.

The following questions can help you think about a topic suitable for analysis:

• Why or how did ________ happen?
• What are the results or effects of ________?
• Is ________ a problem? If so, why?
• What are examples of ________ or reasons for ________?
• How does ________ compare to or contrast with other issues, concerns, or things?

Consult and cite three to five reliable sources. The sources do not have to be scholarly for this assignment, but they must be credible, trustworthy, and unbiased. Possible sources include academic journals, newspapers, magazines, reputable websites, government publications or agency websites, and visual sources such as TED Talks. You may also use the results of an experiment or survey, and you may want to conduct interviews.

Consider whether visuals and media will enhance your report. Can you present data you collect visually? Would a map, photograph, chart, or other graphic provide interesting and relevant support? Would video or audio allow you to present evidence that you would otherwise need to describe in words?

Another Lens. To gain another analytic view on the topic of your report, consider different people affected by it. Say, for example, that you have decided to report on recent high school graduates and the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the final months of their senior year. If you are a recent high school graduate, you might naturally gravitate toward writing about yourself and your peers. But you might also consider the adults in the lives of recent high school graduates—for example, teachers, parents, or grandparents—and how they view the same period. Or you might consider the same topic from the perspective of a college admissions department looking at their incoming freshman class.

Quick Launch: Finding and Focusing a Topic

Coming up with a topic for a report can be daunting because you can report on nearly anything. The topic can easily get too broad, trapping you in the realm of generalizations. The trick is to find a topic that interests you and focus on an angle you can analyze in order to say something significant about it. You can use a graphic organizer to generate ideas, or you can use a concept map similar to the one featured in Writing Process: Thinking Critically About a “Text.”

Asking the Journalist’s Questions

One way to generate ideas about a topic is to ask the five W (and one H) questions, also called the journalist’s questions : Who? What? When? Where? Why? How? Try answering the following questions to explore a topic:

Who was or is involved in ________?

What happened/is happening with ________? What were/are the results of ________?

When did ________ happen? Is ________ happening now?

Where did ________ happen, or where is ________ happening?

Why did ________ happen, or why is ________ happening now?

How did ________ happen?

For example, imagine that you have decided to write your analytical report on the effect of the COVID-19 shutdown on high-school students by interviewing students on your college campus. Your questions and answers might look something like those in Table 8.2 :

Asking Focused Questions

Another way to find a topic is to ask focused questions about it. For example, you might ask the following questions about the effect of the 2020 pandemic shutdown on recent high school graduates:

• How did the shutdown change students’ feelings about their senior year?
• How did the shutdown affect their decisions about post-graduation plans, such as work or going to college?
• How did the shutdown affect their academic performance in high school or in college?
• How did/do they feel about continuing their education?
• How did the shutdown affect their social relationships?

Any of these questions might be developed into a thesis for an analytical report. Table 8.3 shows more examples of broad topics and focusing questions.

Gathering Information

Because they are based on information and evidence, most analytical reports require you to do at least some research. Depending on your assignment, you may be able to find reliable information online, or you may need to do primary research by conducting an experiment, a survey, or interviews. For example, if you live among students in their late teens and early twenties, consider what they can tell you about their lives that you might be able to analyze. Returning to or graduating from high school, starting college, or returning to college in the midst of a global pandemic has provided them, for better or worse, with educational and social experiences that are shared widely by people their age and very different from the experiences older adults had at the same age.

Some report assignments will require you to do formal research, an activity that involves finding sources and evaluating them for reliability, reading them carefully, taking notes, and citing all words you quote and ideas you borrow. See Research Process: Accessing and Recording Information and Annotated Bibliography: Gathering, Evaluating, and Documenting Sources for detailed instruction on conducting research.

Whether you conduct in-depth research or not, keep track of the ideas that come to you and the information you learn. You can write or dictate notes using an app on your phone or computer, or you can jot notes in a journal if you prefer pen and paper. Then, when you are ready to begin organizing your report, you will have a record of your thoughts and information. Always track the sources of information you gather, whether from printed or digital material or from a person you interviewed, so that you can return to the sources if you need more information. And always credit the sources in your report.

Kinds of Evidence

Depending on your assignment and the topic of your report, certain kinds of evidence may be more effective than others. Other kinds of evidence may even be required. As a general rule, choose evidence that is rooted in verifiable facts and experience. In addition, select the evidence that best supports the topic and your approach to the topic, be sure the evidence meets your instructor’s requirements, and cite any evidence you use that comes from a source. The following list contains different kinds of frequently used evidence and an example of each.

Definition : An explanation of a key word, idea, or concept.

The U.S. Census Bureau refers to a “young adult” as a person between 18 and 34 years old.

Example : An illustration of an idea or concept.

The college experience in the fall of 2020 was starkly different from that of previous years. Students who lived in residence halls were assigned to small pods. On-campus dining services were limited. Classes were small and physically distanced or conducted online. Parties were banned.

Expert opinion : A statement by a professional in the field whose opinion is respected.

According to Louise Aronson, MD, geriatrician and author of Elderhood , people over the age of 65 are the happiest of any age group, reporting “less stress, depression, worry, and anger, and more enjoyment, happiness, and satisfaction” (255).

Fact : Information that can be proven correct or accurate.

According to data collected by the NCAA, the academic success of Division I college athletes between 2015 and 2019 was consistently high (Hosick).

Interview : An in-person, phone, or remote conversation that involves an interviewer posing questions to another person or people.

During our interview, I asked Betty about living without a cell phone during the pandemic. She said that before the pandemic, she hadn’t needed a cell phone in her daily activities, but she soon realized that she, and people like her, were increasingly at a disadvantage.

Quotation : The exact words of an author or a speaker.

In response to whether she thought she needed a cell phone, Betty said, “I got along just fine without a cell phone when I could go everywhere in person. The shift to needing a phone came suddenly, and I don’t have extra money in my budget to get one.”

Statistics : A numerical fact or item of data.

The Pew Research Center reported that approximately 25 percent of Hispanic Americans and 17 percent of Black Americans relied on smartphones for online access, compared with 12 percent of White people.

Survey : A structured interview in which respondents (the people who answer the survey questions) are all asked the same questions, either in person or through print or electronic means, and their answers tabulated and interpreted. Surveys discover attitudes, beliefs, or habits of the general public or segments of the population.

A survey of 3,000 mobile phone users in October 2020 showed that 54 percent of respondents used their phones for messaging, while 40 percent used their phones for calls (Steele).

• Visuals : Graphs, figures, tables, photographs and other images, diagrams, charts, maps, videos, and audio recordings, among others.

Thesis and Organization

Drafting a thesis.

When you have a grasp of your topic, move on to the next phase: drafting a thesis. The thesis is the central idea that you will explore and support in your report; all paragraphs in your report should relate to it. In an essay-style analytical report, you will likely express this main idea in a thesis statement of one or two sentences toward the end of the introduction.

For example, if you found that the academic performance of student athletes was higher than that of non-athletes, you might write the following thesis statement:

student sample text Although a common stereotype is that college athletes barely pass their classes, an analysis of athletes’ academic performance indicates that athletes drop fewer classes, earn higher grades, and are more likely to be on track to graduate in four years when compared with their non-athlete peers. end student sample text

The thesis statement often previews the organization of your writing. For example, in his report on the U.S. response to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Trevor Garcia wrote the following thesis statement, which detailed the central idea of his report:

student sample text An examination of the U.S. response shows that a reduction of experts in key positions and programs, inaction that led to equipment shortages, and inconsistent policies were three major causes of the spread of the virus and the resulting deaths. end student sample text

After you draft a thesis statement, ask these questions, and examine your thesis as you answer them. Revise your draft as needed.

• Is it interesting? A thesis for a report should answer a question that is worth asking and piques curiosity.
• Is it precise and specific? If you are interested in reducing pollution in a nearby lake, explain how to stop the zebra mussel infestation or reduce the frequent algae blooms.
• Is it manageable? Try to split the difference between having too much information and not having enough.

Organizing Your Ideas

As a next step, organize the points you want to make in your report and the evidence to support them. Use an outline, a diagram, or another organizational tool, such as Table 8.4 .

Drafting an Analytical Report

With a tentative thesis, an organization plan, and evidence, you are ready to begin drafting. For this assignment, you will report information, analyze it, and draw conclusions about the cause of something, the effect of something, or the similarities and differences between two different things.

Introduction

Some students write the introduction first; others save it for last. Whenever you choose to write the introduction, use it to draw readers into your report. Make the topic of your report clear, and be concise and sincere. End the introduction with your thesis statement. Depending on your topic and the type of report, you can write an effective introduction in several ways. Opening a report with an overview is a tried-and-true strategy, as shown in the following example on the U.S. response to COVID-19 by Trevor Garcia. Notice how he opens the introduction with statistics and a comparison and follows it with a question that leads to the thesis statement (underlined).

student sample text With more than 83 million cases and 1.8 million deaths at the end of 2020, COVID-19 has turned the world upside down. By the end of 2020, the United States led the world in the number of cases, at more than 20 million infections and nearly 350,000 deaths. In comparison, the second-highest number of cases was in India, which at the end of 2020 had less than half the number of COVID-19 cases despite having a population four times greater than the U.S. (“COVID-19 Coronavirus Pandemic,” 2021). How did the United States come to have the world’s worst record in this pandemic? underline An examination of the U.S. response shows that a reduction of experts in key positions and programs, inaction that led to equipment shortages, and inconsistent policies were three major causes of the spread of the virus and the resulting deaths end underline . end student sample text

For a less formal report, you might want to open with a question, quotation, or brief story. The following example opens with an anecdote that leads to the thesis statement (underlined).

student sample text Betty stood outside the salon, wondering how to get in. It was June of 2020, and the door was locked. A sign posted on the door provided a phone number for her to call to be let in, but at 81, Betty had lived her life without a cell phone. Betty’s day-to-day life had been hard during the pandemic, but she had planned for this haircut and was looking forward to it; she had a mask on and hand sanitizer in her car. Now she couldn’t get in the door, and she was discouraged. In that moment, Betty realized how much Americans’ dependence on cell phones had grown in the months since the pandemic began. underline Betty and thousands of other senior citizens who could not afford cell phones or did not have the technological skills and support they needed were being left behind in a society that was increasingly reliant on technology end underline . end student sample text

Body Paragraphs: Point, Evidence, Analysis

Use the body paragraphs of your report to present evidence that supports your thesis. A reliable pattern to keep in mind for developing the body paragraphs of a report is point , evidence , and analysis :

• The point is the central idea of the paragraph, usually given in a topic sentence stated in your own words at or toward the beginning of the paragraph. Each topic sentence should relate to the thesis.
• The evidence you provide develops the paragraph and supports the point made in the topic sentence. Include details, examples, quotations, paraphrases, and summaries from sources if you conducted formal research. Synthesize the evidence you include by showing in your sentences the connections between sources.
• The analysis comes at the end of the paragraph. In your own words, draw a conclusion about the evidence you have provided and how it relates to the topic sentence.

The paragraph below illustrates the point, evidence, and analysis pattern. Drawn from a report about concussions among football players, the paragraph opens with a topic sentence about the NCAA and NFL and their responses to studies about concussions. The paragraph is developed with evidence from three sources. It concludes with a statement about helmets and players’ safety.

student sample text The NCAA and NFL have taken steps forward and backward to respond to studies about the danger of concussions among players. Responding to the deaths of athletes, documented brain damage, lawsuits, and public outcry (Buckley et al., 2017), the NCAA instituted protocols to reduce potentially dangerous hits during football games and to diagnose traumatic head injuries more quickly and effectively. Still, it has allowed players to wear more than one style of helmet during a season, raising the risk of injury because of imperfect fit. At the professional level, the NFL developed a helmet-rating system in 2011 in an effort to reduce concussions, but it continued to allow players to wear helmets with a wide range of safety ratings. The NFL’s decision created an opportunity for researchers to look at the relationship between helmet safety ratings and concussions. Cocello et al. (2016) reported that players who wore helmets with a lower safety rating had more concussions than players who wore helmets with a higher safety rating, and they concluded that safer helmets are a key factor in reducing concussions. end student sample text

Developing Paragraph Content

In the body paragraphs of your report, you will likely use examples, draw comparisons, show contrasts, or analyze causes and effects to develop your topic.

Paragraphs developed with Example are common in reports. The paragraph below, adapted from a report by student John Zwick on the mental health of soldiers deployed during wartime, draws examples from three sources.

student sample text Throughout the Vietnam War, military leaders claimed that the mental health of soldiers was stable and that men who suffered from combat fatigue, now known as PTSD, were getting the help they needed. For example, the New York Times (1966) quoted military leaders who claimed that mental fatigue among enlisted men had “virtually ceased to be a problem,” occurring at a rate far below that of World War II. Ayres (1969) reported that Brigadier General Spurgeon Neel, chief American medical officer in Vietnam, explained that soldiers experiencing combat fatigue were admitted to the psychiatric ward, sedated for up to 36 hours, and given a counseling session with a doctor who reassured them that the rest was well deserved and that they were ready to return to their units. Although experts outside the military saw profound damage to soldiers’ psyches when they returned home (Halloran, 1970), the military stayed the course, treating acute cases expediently and showing little concern for the cumulative effect of combat stress on individual soldiers. end student sample text

When you analyze causes and effects , you explain the reasons that certain things happened and/or their results. The report by Trevor Garcia on the U.S. response to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 is an example: his report examines the reasons the United States failed to control the coronavirus. The paragraph below, adapted from another student’s report written for an environmental policy course, explains the effect of white settlers’ views of forest management on New England.

student sample text The early colonists’ European ideas about forest management dramatically changed the New England landscape. White settlers saw the New World as virgin, unused land, even though indigenous people had been drawing on its resources for generations by using fire subtly to improve hunting, employing construction techniques that left ancient trees intact, and farming small, efficient fields that left the surrounding landscape largely unaltered. White settlers’ desire to develop wood-built and wood-burning homesteads surrounded by large farm fields led to forestry practices and techniques that resulted in the removal of old-growth trees. These practices defined the way the forests look today. end student sample text

Compare and contrast paragraphs are useful when you wish to examine similarities and differences. You can use both comparison and contrast in a single paragraph, or you can use one or the other. The paragraph below, adapted from a student report on the rise of populist politicians, compares the rhetorical styles of populist politicians Huey Long and Donald Trump.

student sample text A key similarity among populist politicians is their rejection of carefully crafted sound bites and erudite vocabulary typically associated with candidates for high office. Huey Long and Donald Trump are two examples. When he ran for president, Long captured attention through his wild gesticulations on almost every word, dramatically varying volume, and heavily accented, folksy expressions, such as “The only way to be able to feed the balance of the people is to make that man come back and bring back some of that grub that he ain’t got no business with!” In addition, Long’s down-home persona made him a credible voice to represent the common people against the country’s rich, and his buffoonish style allowed him to express his radical ideas without sounding anti-communist alarm bells. Similarly, Donald Trump chose to speak informally in his campaign appearances, but the persona he projected was that of a fast-talking, domineering salesman. His frequent use of personal anecdotes, rhetorical questions, brief asides, jokes, personal attacks, and false claims made his speeches disjointed, but they gave the feeling of a running conversation between him and his audience. For example, in a 2015 speech, Trump said, “They just built a hotel in Syria. Can you believe this? They built a hotel. When I have to build a hotel, I pay interest. They don’t have to pay interest, because they took the oil that, when we left Iraq, I said we should’ve taken” (“Our Country Needs” 2020). While very different in substance, Long and Trump adopted similar styles that positioned them as the antithesis of typical politicians and their worldviews. end student sample text

The conclusion should draw the threads of your report together and make its significance clear to readers. You may wish to review the introduction, restate the thesis, recommend a course of action, point to the future, or use some combination of these. Whichever way you approach it, the conclusion should not head in a new direction. The following example is the conclusion from a student’s report on the effect of a book about environmental movements in the United States.

student sample text Since its publication in 1949, environmental activists of various movements have found wisdom and inspiration in Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac . These audiences included Leopold’s conservationist contemporaries, environmentalists of the 1960s and 1970s, and the environmental justice activists who rose in the 1980s and continue to make their voices heard today. These audiences have read the work differently: conservationists looked to the author as a leader, environmentalists applied his wisdom to their movement, and environmental justice advocates have pointed out the flaws in Leopold’s thinking. Even so, like those before them, environmental justice activists recognize the book’s value as a testament to taking the long view and eliminating biases that may cloud an objective assessment of humanity’s interdependent relationship with the environment. end student sample text

Citing Sources

You must cite the sources of information and data included in your report. Citations must appear in both the text and a bibliography at the end of the report.

The sample paragraphs in the previous section include examples of in-text citation using APA documentation style. Trevor Garcia’s report on the U.S. response to COVID-19 in 2020 also uses APA documentation style for citations in the text of the report and the list of references at the end. Your instructor may require another documentation style, such as MLA or Chicago.

Peer Review: Getting Feedback from Readers

You will likely engage in peer review with other students in your class by sharing drafts and providing feedback to help spot strengths and weaknesses in your reports. For peer review within a class, your instructor may provide assignment-specific questions or a form for you to complete as you work together.

If you have a writing center on your campus, it is well worth your time to make an online or in-person appointment with a tutor. You’ll receive valuable feedback and improve your ability to review not only your report but your overall writing.

Another way to receive feedback on your report is to ask a friend or family member to read your draft. Provide a list of questions or a form such as the one in Table 8.5 for them to complete as they read.

Revising: Using Reviewers’ Responses to Revise your Work

When you receive comments from readers, including your instructor, read each comment carefully to understand what is being asked. Try not to get defensive, even though this response is completely natural. Remember that readers are like coaches who want you to succeed. They are looking at your writing from outside your own head, and they can identify strengths and weaknesses that you may not have noticed. Keep track of the strengths and weaknesses your readers point out. Pay special attention to those that more than one reader identifies, and use this information to improve your report and later assignments.

As you analyze each response, be open to suggestions for improvement, and be willing to make significant revisions to improve your writing. Perhaps you need to revise your thesis statement to better reflect the content of your draft. Maybe you need to return to your sources to better understand a point you’re trying to make in order to develop a paragraph more fully. Perhaps you need to rethink the organization, move paragraphs around, and add transition sentences.

Below is an early draft of part of Trevor Garcia’s report with comments from a peer reviewer:

student sample text To truly understand what happened, it’s important first to look back to the years leading up to the pandemic. Epidemiologists and public health officials had long known that a global pandemic was possible. In 2016, the U.S. National Security Council (NSC) published a 69-page document with the intimidating title Playbook for Early Response to High-Consequence Emerging Infectious Disease Threats and Biological Incidents . The document’s two sections address responses to “emerging disease threats that start or are circulating in another country but not yet confirmed within U.S. territorial borders” and to “emerging disease threats within our nation’s borders.” On 13 January 2017, the joint Obama-Trump transition teams performed a pandemic preparedness exercise; however, the playbook was never adopted by the incoming administration. end student sample text

annotated text Peer Review Comment: Do the words in quotation marks need to be a direct quotation? It seems like a paraphrase would work here. end annotated text

annotated text Peer Review Comment: I’m getting lost in the details about the playbook. What’s the Obama-Trump transition team? end annotated text

student sample text In February 2018, the administration began to cut funding for the Prevention and Public Health Fund at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; cuts to other health agencies continued throughout 2018, with funds diverted to unrelated projects such as housing for detained immigrant children. end student sample text

annotated text Peer Review Comment: This paragraph has only one sentence, and it’s more like an example. It needs a topic sentence and more development. end annotated text

student sample text Three months later, Luciana Borio, director of medical and biodefense preparedness at the NSC, spoke at a symposium marking the centennial of the 1918 influenza pandemic. “The threat of pandemic flu is the number one health security concern,” she said. “Are we ready to respond? I fear the answer is no.” end student sample text

annotated text Peer Review Comment: This paragraph is very short and a lot like the previous paragraph in that it’s a single example. It needs a topic sentence. Maybe you can combine them? end annotated text

annotated text Peer Review Comment: Be sure to cite the quotation. end annotated text

Reading these comments and those of others, Trevor decided to combine the three short paragraphs into one paragraph focusing on the fact that the United States knew a pandemic was possible but was unprepared for it. He developed the paragraph, using the short paragraphs as evidence and connecting the sentences and evidence with transitional words and phrases. Finally, he added in-text citations in APA documentation style to credit his sources. The revised paragraph is below:

student sample text Epidemiologists and public health officials in the United States had long known that a global pandemic was possible. In 2016, the National Security Council (NSC) published Playbook for Early Response to High-Consequence Emerging Infectious Disease Threats and Biological Incidents , a 69-page document on responding to diseases spreading within and outside of the United States. On January 13, 2017, the joint transition teams of outgoing president Barack Obama and then president-elect Donald Trump performed a pandemic preparedness exercise based on the playbook; however, it was never adopted by the incoming administration (Goodman & Schulkin, 2020). A year later, in February 2018, the Trump administration began to cut funding for the Prevention and Public Health Fund at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, leaving key positions unfilled. Other individuals who were fired or resigned in 2018 were the homeland security adviser, whose portfolio included global pandemics; the director for medical and biodefense preparedness; and the top official in charge of a pandemic response. None of them were replaced, leaving the White House with no senior person who had experience in public health (Goodman & Schulkin, 2020). Experts voiced concerns, among them Luciana Borio, director of medical and biodefense preparedness at the NSC, who spoke at a symposium marking the centennial of the 1918 influenza pandemic in May 2018: “The threat of pandemic flu is the number one health security concern,” she said. “Are we ready to respond? I fear the answer is no” (Sun, 2018, final para.). end student sample text

A final word on working with reviewers’ comments: as you consider your readers’ suggestions, remember, too, that you remain the author. You are free to disregard suggestions that you think will not improve your writing. If you choose to disregard comments from your instructor, consider submitting a note explaining your reasons with the final draft of your report.

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jeanette abrahamsen

Beat Reporting

Beat reporting, as opposed to general assignment reporting, gives journalists the opportunity to focus on one area. Many beats are defined geographically, others focus on important issues like health, education or the environment.

Beat reporters develop in-depth knowledge. They get to know experts related to their beat and create a thorough contact list of people to help them tell compelling and credible stories. Beat reporters should stay up to date on all major developments about their topic.

Being a beat reporter allows journalists to delve much deeper and pushes them to uncover enterprise stories. Beat reporters help bring context to stories and explain how each story affects the audience.

My biggest piece of advice is to document everything . You will forget a person’s name. You will misplace their contact information. You should write down what you did before you leave work every single day. I kept a word doc open all day and would add notes as I worked. Write down every interaction you have  in person, on the phone, via email or social media. Include their name, title, phone number, email address, physical address and photo if possible. Include any links to related stories. This is especially helpful when there’s breaking news on your beat. But it also pays off in the long run because you can search for key words that perhaps never made it to your publication. This will help you with enterprise and in-depth stories.

I also encourage you to keep a digital folder with story ideas. Don’t rely on stacks of messy papers. This old school reporting style is inefficient. Keep everything on your computer so you can easily search. Also, back up everything onto external hard drives in case your computer crashes or gets hacked.

A great reporter always leaves a story with a new one in mind . While you’re conducting your interviews, ask people if they know of any other stories that you should look into. Most people like being useful and will often give you story ideas if you ask them. I also encourage you to ask your followers on Twitter and Facebook for story ideas and people to interview.

Not sure where to start? Bookmark USF experts who you can reach out to with questions about your beat. Congratulations, you just started.

Poynter’s NewsU provides a free resource for journalists called “ Introduction to Reporting: Beat Basics .” Here are the key suggestions for beat reporters:

• Make a contact list of all officials, activists, and experts related to your beat.
• Add calendar alerts to remind you to regularly check in on people related to your beat.
• Follow related people and organizations on social media.
• Bookmark websites you should check regularly.
• Add related meetings to your calendar. Decide which meetings you’ll attend.
• Which public records and databases are the most helpful?
• Who are interesting (non-official) people you can feature?
• What are the most important issues on your beat?

Here are some of the resources Poynter suggest you use regardless of the beat you have:

• Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Census Bureau
• DocumentCloud
• Freedom of Information Letter Generator
• Investigative Reporters and Editors’  beat source guide
• Journalism Tools (articles by the Project for Excellence in Journalism)
• Journalist’s Toolbox  from the Society of Professional Journalists
• New York Times’ Navigator
• Open records and meetings laws for every state,  compiled by The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press
• Reporter’s Desktop
• Switchboard
• White pages

Courts and Criminal Justice Links

• Cornell University Law School database of state court opinions and legal resources
• “Covering Crime and Justice,”  a guide for reporters on police and court beats compiled by Criminal Justice Journalists
• Covering Criminal Justice, a resource guide published by the Center on Crime, Communities and Culture and Columbia Journalism Review
• The Crime Report
• Criminal Justice Journalists’ guide to reporting about guns
• Death Penalty Information Center
• Findlaw,  database of lawyers and legal cases
• Journalist’s Toolbox crime resources
• LexisNexis,  a subscription service that offers legal, news, public records and business information
• Martindale-Hubbell legal directory
• Pacer,  online service to federal courts
• Poynter’s crime and courts coverage bibliography
• USC Annenberg Institute for Justice and Journalism

Local Government Links

• Center for Urban Policy Research
• National Association of Counties
• National League of Cities

Neighborhood or Suburban Links

• Huck Boyd National Center for Community Media
• National Neighborhood Coalition
• National Neighborhood Watch Institute
• Texas Center for Community Journalism

Police and Public Safety Links

• Anti-Defamation League  (source on hate crimes)
• Brady Center To Prevent Gun Violence
• Bureau of Justice Statistics
• Center for Sex Offender Management
• Children of the Night  resource on child prostitution
• Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants
• Court Appointed Special Advocates  (CASA), volunteers appointed by judges to advocate for the best interests of abused and neglected children
• Covering Criminal Justice , a resource guide published by the Center on Crime, Communities and Culture and Columbia Journalism Review
• Criminal Justice Journalists’ guide to reporting about guns *  The Crime Report
• Dart Center for Journalism & Trauma
• FBI crime statistics
• Federal Bureau of Prisons
• Federal inmate locator
• International Association of Arson Investigators
• Justice Department COPS Office
• National Association of Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement
• National Center on Institutions and Alternatives
• National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
• National Criminal Justice Reference
• National Drug Intelligence Center
• National Gang Center
• National White Collar Crime Center
• Office of National Drug Control Policy
• Officer.com,  law enforcement news
• Official Directory of State Patrols and State Police
• Police Executive Research Forum
• Police Foundation
• The Sentencing Project
• Tips for Covering Cops (by Chip Scanlan)
• U.S. Department of Treasury Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
• Learn whether your state prison system has an online inmate locator. For example, check out  Nebraska’s.
• Learn whether your state courts have an online database. For example, check out  Iowa’s.

A Closer Look At 3 Beats: Environment, Health, and Education

Environment beat.

Being on a beat like this means foreseeing cause and effect. There are times when you’re stories will just be a reaction to news events. But, your goal should be to uncover new stories.

One example is understanding that things like sea level rise will inevitably hurt coastal property value. When the value of properties drops, the amount of money local governments can collect from property taxes drops too. What does that mean for your audience? Property taxes pay for schools, police, fire departments, and much more. So the quality of those services will also drop unless local governments find ways to make up the loss. Governments often turn to tax hikes to meet the basic needs communities rely on. So, ask yourself again, how does sea level rise affect your community?

If you’re on an environment beat, you may find some inspiration and context in Al Gore’s 2017 film “ An Inconvenient Sequel .” I encourage you to check out the website and pay attention to the multimedia layout. Draw inspiration from the story ideas and visual representation of data. Part of providing value to your audience is informing them on how they can take action if your story inspires them to do so. Here you’ll find a list of ways your audience can make a difference like:

• how to lower your carbon footprint at home
• where to join a town hall meeting
• how to reach your governor about state regulations
• how to push for clean energy in your city
• find your elected officials’ stance on climate action

You should also subscribe to get emails from the National Wildlife Federation .

“An Inconvenient Sequel” is an update to the documentary “ An Inconvenient Truth ” that Gore helped create in 2006. You can find dozens of environmental resources to use in your reporting here:  http://an-inconvenient-truth.com/links-and-resources/  

Health Beat

If you’re on a health beat, you may want to watch the documentary “ Fed Up .” The film was released in 2014. The trailer got more than 11 million views on YouTube by 2017. There’s clearly an interest in this content. The creators of this film did an exceptional job making easy to understand visuals about sugar in foods and what it does to your body. I encourage you to create similar multimedia content to help your audience quickly consume complex information.

The film’s website has a list of sharable statistics like:

• Individuals who drink one to two sugar-sweetened beverages per day have a  26 percent higher risk  of developing type II diabetes.
• 98% of food related ads  that children view (3920/year) are for products high in fat, sugar, sodium.

The site also lists some of their sources:

• Kick the Can
• Lasater G, Piernas C, Popkin BM. Beverage patterns and trends among school-aged children in the US, 1989-2008. Nutr J. 2011;10:103
• Archives of Pediatric Adolescent Medicine: Trends in the nutritional content of television food advertisements seen by children in the United States
• American Academy of Pediatrics
• Obesity Action Coalition
• OnlineNursingPrograms.com Via: Forbes
• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: Food and beverage marketing to children and adolescents research brief
• Whole Health Source

Looking for story ideas? Here are just a few you can find on the “Fed Up” website.

• What Should You Really Eat? A Healthy Eating Plate
• A Shopping Guide: Good Food on Tight Budget
• Real Food, Not Junk Food
• The 10 Day Detox
• Recipes to Cook Seasonally
• Lunch Lessons: Changing the Way We Feed Our Children
• Cooking Medium Raw
• Leave out the Sugar and Cook with the Soul, Soul Food Recipes
• Fat Land: How we got overweight
• UltraHealthy Program for Losing Weight
• An Organic Manifesto 
• What Should I Cook? Tips from Mario Batali
• Vegan Cooking Recipes 
• Don’t Eat this Book!
• Why Diets Fail 
• Kitchen Tips

Education Beat

Poynter suggests using the following resources on your education beat:

• Education Resource Information Center
• Education Writers Association
• Council of the Great City Schools
• Journalist’s Toolbox education resources
• Journalist’s Toolbox school violence resources
• National Center for Education Statistics
• National Education Association
• U.S. Department of Education
• Great Schools

Higher Education

The CNN film “ Ivory Tower ” looks at student debt and higher education institutions. It reveals how the business of higher education changed in the past few decades.

PBS NewsHour interviewed filmmaker Andrew Rossi about the rising costs and if college is still worth it.

CNN’s website provides several breakout stories related to the film. There are lots of powerful statistics and animations. Much of this information was collected in 2014, so you’ll want to confirm updated numbers if you use any of these. I encourage you to review them here:  http://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2014/11/18/ivory-tower-education-debt.cnn/video/playlists/ivory-tower/

Here are some of the videos I found most valuable:

• Is college worth the cost?
• This is how an online college gets made
• Students build their own dorms to lower tuition
• From homeless to Harvard

College Sports

The EPIX original documentary “ Schooled: The Price of College Sports ” interviewed former student athletes and experts about the business and controversy around college sports.

Campus Sexual Assault

The documentary “ It Happened Here ” explores campus sexual assault. The film features five young survivors and shows what they’re doing to change the way schools handle sexual assault.

Here are some resources from the film’s website:

• It’s On Us
• SSAIS – Stop Sexual Assault in Schools
• SAFER – Students Active For Ending Rape
• Generation Progress
• Jules C. Irivn-Rooney J.D.  – President, Title IX and Clery Act Consulting, LLC
• Rebecca Leitman Veidlinger, Esq . –  Sexual misconduct attorney.
• Culture of Respect
• End Rape on Campus
• Know Your IX
• It Happened Here Discussion Guide

Public Schools

A great resource for education reform is TEACHED . The non-profit project is a series of films about racial inequality in America’s education system. I encourage you to raise your awareness by checking out their videos. They may inspire you to think of new story ideas.

Here’s one of the video descriptions from the  TEACHED YouTube channel :

The latest in the TEACHED short film series, “Code Oakland” examines the evolution of Oakland through the eyes of social entrepreneurs determined that youth of color not be left on the sidelines as Silicon Valley expands into the city that is home to the second largest black community in California. Kalimah Priforce, whose first success as a social justice rebel was a hunger strike at the age of eight, and Kimberly Bryant, a successful electrical engineer turned founder of Black Girls Code, are organizing large-scale hackathons to teach youth how to redesign the future through coding. Joined on the national stage by #YesWeCode founder Van Jones, their work represents the cusp of a movement changing both the face and use of technology in America. But is Silicon Valley ready to be hacked?

A National Disgrace

Dan Rather created an investigative documentary about public schools called “A National Disgrace.” Here is the full film and description from The Rathers Reports YouTube channel:

This special two-hour report documents a pivotal year and a half in the Detroit Public Schools, set against a backdrop of history and the plight of one student desperate to succeed despite the odds. “A National Disgrace” is part historical documentary, part investigative report and part personal profile detailing the political strife, corruption, and systemic breakdown during the tumultuous 2009-2010 school year when the state of Michigan imposed new leadership on the school district. The result is a searing portrait of a local tragedy that asks the question, does the situation in Detroit demonstrate how we view public education? Is the real “national disgrace” the fact that something like this could happen at all?

Segregation

Charter Schools

Standardized Testing

Additional Resources

Additional reading.

• Beat Reporting: What Does it Take to Be the Best?  by Chip Scanlan
• Breaking and Entering: How to Dissect an Organization  by Eric Nalder
• Commandments of Beat Coverage  by John Sweeney
• Finding and developing story ideas  by Steve Buttry
• The Heart of the Beat  by Chip Scanlan
• Living on the Beat  by Robin Sloan
• Turn the Beat Around  by Diana Sugg
• Writing About Place: The Boundaries of a Story  by Jeff Klinkenberg

Reporter Organizations

• Arena Football League Writers Association
• Association of Capitol Reporters and Editors
• Association of Food Journalists
• Association of Health Care Journalists
• Criminal Justice Journalists
• Football Writers Association of America
• Investigative Reporters and Editors
• Military Reporters and Editors
• National Association of Science Writers
• National Collegiate Baseball Writers
• North American Agricultural Journalists
• Obituary Writers
• Outdoor Writers Association of America
• Religion Newswriters Association
• Society of American Business Editors and Writers
• Society of American Travel Writers
• Society of Environmental Journalists
• U.S. Basketball Writers Association

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Published by jeanetteabrahamsen.

I am an instructional designer and TV news instructor at the University of South Florida. My passion for innovating learning led me to pursue my PhD in Curriculum and Instruction with a concentration in Instructional Technology. I love creating media to enhance eLearning and foster online engagement. I teach students to create multimedia stories for broadcast, web and social media platforms. I lead the Florida Focus class where students produce daily news shows that air on Tampa's PBS station. My reporting classes collaborated with Tampa's NPR station to produce award-winning stories. I am an Emmy Award-winning journalist. I produced thousands of hours of TV news in some of America's largest media markets at Tampa's NBC station, San Diego's ABC station and the San Diego Union-Tribune. I also produced immersive 360-degree virtual tours at the University of South Florida and reported for Hashtag Our Stories. View more posts

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• Internal audit
• Learn about internal audit
• Back to Learn about internal audit
• A brief guide to internal auditing
• A brief guide to assignment planning
• A brief guide to assessing risks and controls
• A brief guide to assignment quality

A brief guide to assignment reporting

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• A brief guide to relationship management
• A brief guide to audit governance
• A brief guide to standards and responsibility
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• A brief guide to audit committees
• Guidance for Heads of Internal Audit
• Guidance for Audit Committee Chairs on working with the Head of Internal Audit
• Introduction
• Standard 1100 Independence and objectivity
• Standard 2200 Engagement planning
• Standard 2300 Performing the engagement
• Standard 2400 Communicating results
• Standard 2050 Coordination and reliance
• Financial Reporting Council (FRC) International Standards on Auditing (UK)
• Benefits of coordination
• Facilitating coordination
• Guidance on auditing planning for Internal Audit

You’ll report to stakeholders with your opinion on the effectiveness of the controls in place to manage risk, a balanced overview of key effective controls and to agree on actions that will address the key issues.

A ‘no surprises’ approach to continuous communication should be adopted throughout assignments. This open communication will build professional relationships and assist the internal auditor in assuring themselves as to the validity of their findings.

At the end of the audit a formal feedback meeting should also be held with the agreed stakeholders from the assignment planning stage. At this time, a balanced overview should be communicated to provide a complete picture of the audit work undertaken, results of the audit and discuss any issues openly to ensure:

• there are no surprises
• clarify the facts
• avoid misunderstandings
• influence management in respect of what action is required to address risk exposure
• discuss and possibly agree corrective actions at this time

Assignment reporting

Internal audit report to a range of stakeholders with their opinion on the effectiveness of the controls in place to manage risk, a balanced overview of key effective controls and the agreed upon actions to address any areas of improvement identified from the audit.

The reporting format should balance the differing needs of stakeholders. A departmental template for written reports, guidance and training should be in place.

In-house guidance and training should cover both verbal and written reporting, influencing skills, dealing with conflict and how to write effective audit reports. The department should continually improve reporting and seek to meet the needs of all stakeholders, from local to senior management and the audit committee.

Reports generally include an executive summary (to meet the needs of audit committee and senior management) and a detailed findings section (to meet the needs of local management) including the issue detail, evidence, the associated risk and agreed actions with dates and responsibility.

The executive summary should provide a balanced overview enabling senior management and the audit committee to quickly understand why you’ve reached your opinion. It should be in context and include the key risks, key effective controls and key weaknesses identified.

Internal audit needs to provide sufficient context within written reports and importantly remember to write to its audience. The audit committee members may not be fully aware of technical jargon or sector specific terms. Where it is not possible to avoid such language then a glossary may prove beneficial.

It is important to make clear any limitations to the scope of the work as agreed during the assignment planning stage and which may have subsequently arisen during performance of the assignment.

Issues aren’t always black and white and additional information will provide the reader with a full picture as to why controls / processes require strengthening. Aspects to consider include:

• the economic, regulatory and political environment
• competitor behaviour and risk issues
• the market environment
• material organisational changes
• trends highlighted by audit intelligence, eg improving or deteriorating controls or clearance of issues
• all reports should be based on fact and evidence

However, you must balance the above with brevity and focus as otherwise important messages can be lost. The auditor should also balance narrative and statistical / graphical reporting to communicate their message in the most effective manner.

Within the detailed findings section the most material issues should be reported first.

It may be appropriate to group findings together to reduce the overall number of actions for reporting purposes. If doing so, you should consider if findings have the same root cause, the same impact or the same source. For example, do they relate to not evidencing control, imply that data is insecure or all relate to the same team or manager?

There are a variety of views on arriving at the agreed actions presented within reports. In general these are:

• The internal auditor makes recommendations, based upon their understanding, which management then consider and respond to, either accepting or proposing an alternative.
• The internal auditor does not make any recommendation, instead they just present the finding and risk, which management then state how they will address it.
• The two parties discuss the findings and risks identified, exchanging professional views and documenting this within the report, which management then confirm acceptance of.

The key is to agree a protocol that works for your organisation. Whatever approach is adopted, it is important that everyone understands that the agreed actions must be owned by management. It is not internal audit’s responsibility to implement the identified improvements.

Internal audit should agree with the organisation what level of management can agree actions. Relevant factors will include the seriousness of the issue and the length of time the action will remain open, and also who can approve the acceptance of risk and how this should be documented for clear communication to audit committee.

The focus for audit committee should be upon acceptance of issues within the report and what management are going to do to put it right. Avoid excuses.

Audit opinions and issue ratings (if used) should be defined and communicated as an appendix to the audit report. Changes to the grading methodology should be discussed with audit committee and senior management to ensure that they reflect the views of the business and align with wider risk management processes wherever possible.

Performance reporting

Audit progress reports should also include quantitative and qualitative information surrounding the performance of the audit function, particular reporting against any protocol, and key performance indicators within the approved IA charter.

Frequency of reporting

Frequency of reporting at an individual assignment level will be driven by the completion of audits. It is important to issue reports in a timely manner to ensure the results of the audit are communicated whilst the feedback meeting is still fresh in participants' minds and to ensure timely resolution of issues identified.

The CAE should agree the frequency of other reporting and the format of that reporting with audit committee and senior management.

Audit committee should receive a CAE annual internal audit report and opinion. However, most as a minimum will also desire regular progress reporting against the annual plan and sight of any reports which have resulted in a negative opinion and therefore have early sight of issues that impact upon the annual assurance provided.

Depending upon the size of the audit plan, the audit committee may receive copies of all reports in the same manner as management, or a summarised progress report from which they can then choose to dive into the detail of individual reports should they so wish.

Frequency of reporting is likely to reflect the number of audit committees per annum. Typically these occur quarterly.

Some organisations will report upon critical issues every month.

Annual internal audit report and opinion

The annual report should reflect upon the work performed over the year and provide overall opinion in respect of risk management, corporate governance and internal control.

This should be based upon the internal audit work performed during the year, knowledge and consideration of other assurance work, and management’s progress, commitment and ability to implement recommendations and complete required actions on a timely basis.

This report should also highlight significant risk exposures and control issues, including fraud risks, governance issues, and other matters requested by senior management and audit committee.

IIA IPPF Standard 2060 – reporting to senior management and the board

IIA IPPF Standard 2400 – communicating results

IIA IPPF Standard 2600 – acceptance of risk

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Below are some general suggestions to consider when creating assignments:

• Identify the learning outcomes. What do you want students to learn? What kind of assignment will focus on developing and demonstrating those skills and knowledge?
• Design assignments that are engaging. Consider how to engage students and focus their efforts in ways that are interesting, challenging, and motivating. What might interest students about a given topic or assignment?
• Clearly articulate the purpose of the assignment. Share with students how the knowledge, skills or activities may be useful in the students’ major, career, civic or personal life. This may include values or human dimensions – what students learn about themselves or interacting with others – as well as academics.
• Describe the component tasks clearly. Make the key steps in your assignment explicit, so all students are aware of them. If an assignment is vague, students may interpret it any number of ways – and not necessarily how you intended. While strong students can fill in the gaps, weaker students are disadvantaged.
• Situate each assignment in the course context. Consider how your assignment builds on students’ prior learning in your course or in previous courses. Could you include low stakes practice opportunities – with some feedback – for any skills or steps that are key to your assignment or course?
• Identify the intended audience. Students should consider the audience they’re addressing in papers and presentations, which influences how they pitch their message and other communication choices.
• Specify the format and other parameters. If you have specific parameters for the assignment (e.g., length, size, formatting, citation conventions), specify them in your assignment prompt. Otherwise, students may misapply conventions and formats they learned in other courses; your assignment can help students learn to apply communication conventions and approaches appropriate to the discipline and task.
• Provide clear performance criteria. Clearly articulate to students what your criteria are for strong work, either in your assignment prompt or as a separate rubric or scoring guide. Clear criteria, shared in student friendly language, can prevent confusion about expectations while also setting a high standard for students to meet.
• Share strong samples. If possible, share models or (annotated) samples of strong student work with your class.
• Give the assignment’s time frame and value. Be sure to include milestones and due dates, and any penalties, as well as the assignment’s point value / percentage of students’ grade.
• Consider scaffolding large, complex assignments. It can be beneficial to break complex assignments into smaller components and provide feedback along the way. This approach helps keep students on track, so their efforts are effective, and can be especially useful in group assignments, so you can intervene if needed.

Additional Resources and Scholarship

Cook, L. & Fusch, D. (2016). One Easy Way Faculty Can Improve Student Success . Academic Impressions.

Hutchings, P. (2016).  Aligning Educational Outcomes and Practices (PDF)  (Occasional Paper #26). Urbana, IL: University of Illinois and Indiana University, National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA).

Hutchings, P., et al. (2014). Catalyzing Assignment Design Activity on Your Campus: Lessons from NILOA’s Assignment Library Initiative (PDF) .  Urbana, IL: University of Illinois and Indiana University, National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA).

Hutchings, P. (2010).  Opening Doors to Faculty Involvement in Assessment (PDF)  (Occasional Paper #4). Urbana, IL: University of Illinois and Indiana University, National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA).

Note: Please contact ACE to borrow a book.

Barkley, E. & Major, C. (2016). Learning Assessment Techniques: A Handbook for College Faculty . San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Fink, L. (2013). Creating Significant Learning Experiences: An Integrated Approach to Designing College Courses .   San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

McKeachie, W. & Svinicki, M. (2013). McKeachie’s Teaching Tips . Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

Skene, A. & Fedko, S. (2010). Assignment Scaffolding (PDF) . Toronto, ON: University of Toronto Scarborough Centre for Teaching and Learning.

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General assignment reporters: how to become one.

If you were to ask a group of general assignment reporters about how they arrived at their current job, there's a good chance you would get several different answers about the paths and steps that each person took.

That said, there are still ways that you can develop a baseline understanding of the preparation that is necessary to become one.

The Best Adult Colleges and Careers Guide has gathered data to provide you with insight into the type of education that's commonly required for general assignment reporters to land a job. This page contains information, sourced from real job postings, that describes the experience levels and specific skills that employers of general assignment reporters expect candidates to have. In the end, this information will help you create an education or professional development plan that aligns with your career aspirations.

Keep reading to learn more about career steps for general assignment reporters.

What Education & Experience is Needed for General Assignment Reporters?

Do general assignment reporters need a degree? What kind of experience do general assignment reporters typically need? Thanks to data sourced from Lightcast™ from real job postings, we can get some clarity on those questions, as well as the level of education that is commonly required for general assignment reporters to secure jobs.

Education Level Required in Job Postings for General Assignment Reporters

Jobs postings for general assignment reporters by education.

• Bachelor's degree: 14,166 (53%)
• No Education Listed: 10,021 (37%)
• High School or GED: 1,430 (5%)
• Master's degree: 1,110 (4%)
• Ph.D. or professional degree: 102 (0%)

A bachelor's degree is the level of education sought the most by employers of general assignment reporters. According to job data, a bachelor's degree was required for 53% of positions. In 37% of job listings no education level was listed and in 5% of postings a High School diploma or GED was required.

Experience Level Required in Job Postings for General Assignment Reporters

Jobs postings for general assignment reporters by experience.

• 0-1 Years: 3,165 (22%)
• 2-3 Years: 8,051 (56%)
• 4-6 Years: 2,760 (19%)
• 7-9 Years: 195 (1%)
• 10+ Years: 188 (1%)

While the amount of required experience will vary based on the responsibility and seniority of the position, an aggregate view of job posting data can help paint a picture of the experience level sought for most job openings for general assignment reporters. In 56% of job postings for General Assignment Reporters, employers were looking for candidates with 2-3 years of experience. In 22% of listings employers were looking for candidates with 0-1 years of experience, while 4-6 years of experience was sought in 19% of job postings for general assignment reporters.

What Kind of Degree Do General Assignment Reporters Need?

So far this page has provided detail into the level of education and the amount of experience required in job openings for general assignment reporters, but what type of education or degree will help prepare you for a career in the field?

According to occupational data obtained through Lightcast,™ there are 23 key academic programs that can help prepare prospective general assignment reporters, and in 2021 a total of 147,385 of those programs were completed at institutions in the United States.

Check out the information below to learn more about the specific programs that should be considered by prospective general assignment reporters.

Top Degree Programs for General Assignment Reporters

Top 5 degree programs for general assignment reporters (2021), top online college for working adults.

Franklin University is a top choice for adults who need to balance school with busy lives. Founded in 1902 in Columbus, Ohio, Franklin's main focus has been serving adult students and tailoring education to fit their needs. Nonprofit and accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (hlcommission.org/800.621.7440), Franklin offers more than 50 affordable bachelor's, master's, and doctoral programs — all available 100% online.

Degree Options for General Assignment Reporters

Learn to craft clear and effective messages while adding new media communication methods to your professional toolkit.

• Class Type: 100% online
• Cost Per Credit: $398

What Skills Do General Assignment Reporters Need?

Education and experience have been covered, so what are the specific skills and traits needed by general assignment reporters to secure a job?

A good way to understand this is to examine actual job postings for skills commonly sought by employers. Continue reading for a breakdown of specialized skills found in job postings for general assignment reporters, as well as common skills that can help you thrive in the workplace.

In-Demand Skills for Today's General Assignment Reporters Based on 25,610 job postings

Top 5 specialized skills for general assignment reporters, top 5 common skills for general assignment reporters.

Based on 25,610 job postings related to general assignment reporters, journalism was the top specialized skill sought by employers, with 53% of all postings looking for that skillset. Skills for news stories, social media, storytelling, content creation and news anchoring were also highly sought.

As for common skills, writing was the most desired skill found in job postings for general assignment reporters, followed by communications, editing, research, ability to meet deadlines and english language.

Ready to dig deeper into career information about general assignment reporters? Visit our other pages focused on salary and education for general assignment reporters.

All Occupations

The Best Adult Colleges and Careers Guide has compiled data for dozens of in-demand jobs. Explore our full catalog of occupation data by visiting the link below.

About This Data

The Best Adult Colleges & Careers Guide is sponsored by Franklin University, a nonprofit, accredited institution. The guide uses 2022 information from Lightcast™ to provide data on dozens of in-demand jobs.

Job titles used in government data may differ slightly from the job title on this page, so the closest matching government job classification may be used as a proxy to present data here.

On this page, data corresponds to the following occupational classification: News Analysts, Reporters, and Journalists.

Copyright 2024 Franklin University

How to Write a Report for an Assignment

Academic assignments are very unpredictable. There are various fields, for example, Computer Programming or MBA, that you can be tested on, and one of them is writing a report. Whereas writing an essay is rather general, when report writing, you have to concentrate on factual information while taking any scientific and technical courses. Want to know how to write a report for a university assignment?

This article contains the instructions and guidelines concerning report writing, its target audience, and the problems to be addressed while completing the task.

If you’re a student struggling with a report writing assignment, you might wonder, “ Who can write my assignment for me ?” It’s understandable to feel overwhelmed and seek assistance when faced with a challenging academic task. Fortunately, many online writing services can help you complete your report writing assignment. These services offer professional writers who are experts in various fields and can provide high-quality, original content within your deadline. Before choosing a writing service, research and read reviews to ensure that you select a reputable and trustworthy company. With the right assistance, you can successfully complete your report writing assignment and achieve academic success.

How to Write a Report-Type Assignment: 9 Key Elements to Consider

A report is a short, well-planned, concise document written to address a specific purpose (to analyze a situation or issue) and audience (educators, a chief, subordinates, etc.) When writing a report, you should ensure that you address the highlighted issue adequately, providing evidence for each and every fact you mention. However, if you struggle with any of these steps or don’t have the time to complete the assignment, you may consider using a homework writing service . If you ask, “How to write my report?” the following points will be useful for you:

• Title Page. Every paper should have the name given to a particular type of work. You can learn how to write academic-style titles from Mark Fullmer, a teacher of English writing 101/102. If we are speaking about a report, you should state it in the title. Other details that you may need to include are your name, the university, and the date of submission if you are a student. And if you’re a worker who prepares a report for a chief, don’t forget to mention the organization’s name.

Have a look at the example.

• Executive summary report. A good report should have a summary that is approximately ½ of a page. The main details that should be included are a briefing on the main ideas discussed in the report, the analysis methods used, findings, and conclusions/recommendations, if any. It is important to clarify this so that your tutor/chief understands what you are doing right from the start of the report.
• Table of content. There should be a page of your report where a list of chapters/subsections with headlines and the page numbers are presented. Make this guide useful for your readers as they will easily find what they will be interested in, whether the findings or research methods chapters.
• List of abbreviations and symbols. If you are writing, for example, a technical report, there should be a separate list of the abbreviations used in your report. The technical language can be comprehensible for you and your professor, but others will struggle with most technical terms . Moreover, if you use some formulas for calculating, provide these symbols in this list as well.
• Introduction. The first chapter of your report should introduce the topic under discussion, some known information, and your approaches to the topic and how they relate to the other works.
• The main body. A good report, the topic of which is well-researched, should have 3 sections in the main part – methods, results, and discussion. In this part, you should include the research methods that are used and procedures that are followed to achieve the results of your analysis, then, you are also required to discuss your findings.
• Conclusions and recommendations. The concluding chapter should include an overview of the main ideas discussed in the report. Highlight your most central findings without including new ideas. Additionally, you can make suggestions for further research in the field you report on.
• Reference list. Every academic paper should have references, and there is no exemption when writing a report. Even if you are supposed to consider a particular subject on your own, you can’t escape from someone’s findings or ideas. Provide a list of the sources you consulted when conducting your research. Details to be included in the reference list are the data of all books, papers, reports, etc., you refer to in the text. In general, all sources are listed in alphabetical order by the surname of the author.
• Appendices. This section comprises all derivations, details, schemes, and listings that make your research/analysis in-depth. You may ask why it is necessary to separate this section. Can you imagine how boring it will be to read your report when there are tables, tables, and schemes on its pages? There is such a page for that purpose, but it is not always obligatory to have it in reports.

How to Make a Good Report: 5 Skills Needed

You may think that you need just a pen and a piece of paper to write a report. Indeed, you must have a set of skills to complete this assignment successfully. What are they?

• The skill to estimate adequately the time needed to complete the assignment. Usually, a student may procrastinate till the last minute as he/she is sure that it is a very easy task to write a report. Or vice versa – he/she believes this work requires much time. As a result, they spend a week or even weeks entirely on writing a report. What happens, then? Demotivation in studying and a ‘jumpy’ eye are guaranteed to you. As you understand, you should apply all essential time management skills to boost your productivity.
• The skill to define the scope of the study. A full understanding of the field of study is very important, but it plays into your hands when you know all the points that should be covered in the research project. So, it has to be defined at a preliminary stage of writing a report to arrive at more logical findings/conclusions. Outline the limitations of your study and the data specifications for your research paper.
• The researching skills. The research process involves finding out more about the topic under the question. What does it include in researching? Firstly, using effective tools to collect information. Secondly, refining search queries to obtain better research results. Thirdly, evaluate information found in different sources based on accuracy, validity, and appropriateness for your report. If you have all these skills, you are close to professional report writing.

But what if you don’t have the time or the skills to complete the assignment? In this case, you can use a “do my homework” service to help you with your report. These services can provide expert assistance with research, analysis, and writing to help you produce a high-quality report that meets your requirements and deadlines. Be sure to choose a reputable service that provides original and plagiarism-free work. With the help of a “ do my assignment ” service, you can save time and get the grades you need.

• The skill to plan and structure a piece of writing. According to CogniFit , the skill to plan forms our executive functions. It is a process that allows us to choose what needs to be done and what doesn’t. If you can create a framework for your paper writing, it will help you be excellent at it. Even short pieces require planning to be concise and to the point. Your report should fulfill its purpose to answer the assignment question according to a specific structure.
• Proofreading and editing skills. You probably want to present your report in the best possible light. Without any doubt, you are tired when finishing the assignment. Without proofreading your work, you might submit a paper with numerous grammar errors, unpunctuated sentences, or spelling mistakes. Moreover, you should remember what style you are required to use – whether it is an APA, MLA, or Harvard. All of them have peculiarities you should pay attention to while producing a report.

After reading this article, don’t just sit and enjoy the victory over report writing. The battle has not started and has not even been won yet. Let today be the day when you know how to write good academic reports. Subsequently, you’ll start writing reports as required. Practice makes perfect!

However, even with practice, some students may still struggle with report writing for various reasons, such as a lack of time or poor writing skills. In such cases, an assignment writing service can come in handy. These services provide professional assistance with report writing, ensuring that you receive a well-structured and well-written report that meets your academic requirements. These services employ experienced writers with the necessary skills and knowledge to handle different reports.

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Gender pay gap in U.S. hasn’t changed much in two decades

The gender gap in pay has remained relatively stable in the United States over the past 20 years or so. In 2022, women earned an average of 82% of what men earned, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis of median hourly earnings of both full- and part-time workers. These results are similar to where the pay gap stood in 2002, when women earned 80% as much as men.

As has long been the case, the wage gap is smaller for workers ages 25 to 34 than for all workers 16 and older. In 2022, women ages 25 to 34 earned an average of 92 cents for every dollar earned by a man in the same age group – an 8-cent gap. By comparison, the gender pay gap among workers of all ages that year was 18 cents.

While the gender pay gap has not changed much in the last two decades, it has narrowed considerably when looking at the longer term, both among all workers ages 16 and older and among those ages 25 to 34. The estimated 18-cent gender pay gap among all workers in 2022 was down from 35 cents in 1982. And the 8-cent gap among workers ages 25 to 34 in 2022 was down from a 26-cent gap four decades earlier.

The gender pay gap measures the difference in median hourly earnings between men and women who work full or part time in the United States. Pew Research Center’s estimate of the pay gap is based on an analysis of Current Population Survey (CPS) monthly outgoing rotation group files ( IPUMS ) from January 1982 to December 2022, combined to create annual files. To understand how we calculate the gender pay gap, read our 2013 post, “How Pew Research Center measured the gender pay gap.”

The COVID-19 outbreak affected data collection efforts by the U.S. government in its surveys, especially in 2020 and 2021, limiting in-person data collection and affecting response rates. It is possible that some measures of economic outcomes and how they vary across demographic groups are affected by these changes in data collection.

In addition to findings about the gender wage gap, this analysis includes information from a Pew Research Center survey about the perceived reasons for the pay gap, as well as the pressures and career goals of U.S. men and women. The survey was conducted among 5,098 adults and includes a subset of questions asked only for 2,048 adults who are employed part time or full time, from Oct. 10-16, 2022. Everyone who took part is a member of the Center’s American Trends Panel (ATP), an online survey panel that is recruited through national, random sampling of residential addresses. This way nearly all U.S. adults have a chance of selection. The survey is weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education and other categories. Read more about the ATP’s methodology .

Here are the questions used in this analysis, along with responses, and its methodology .

The  U.S. Census Bureau has also analyzed the gender pay gap, though its analysis looks only at full-time workers (as opposed to full- and part-time workers). In 2021, full-time, year-round working women earned 84% of what their male counterparts earned, on average, according to the Census Bureau’s most recent analysis.

Much of the gender pay gap has been explained by measurable factors such as educational attainment, occupational segregation and work experience. The narrowing of the gap over the long term is attributable in large part to gains women have made in each of these dimensions.

Related: The Enduring Grip of the Gender Pay Gap

Even though women have increased their presence in higher-paying jobs traditionally dominated by men, such as professional and managerial positions, women as a whole continue to be overrepresented in lower-paying occupations relative to their share of the workforce. This may contribute to gender differences in pay.

Other factors that are difficult to measure, including gender discrimination, may also contribute to the ongoing wage discrepancy.

Perceived reasons for the gender wage gap

When asked about the factors that may play a role in the gender wage gap, half of U.S. adults point to women being treated differently by employers as a major reason, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in October 2022. Smaller shares point to women making different choices about how to balance work and family (42%) and working in jobs that pay less (34%).

There are some notable differences between men and women in views of what’s behind the gender wage gap. Women are much more likely than men (61% vs. 37%) to say a major reason for the gap is that employers treat women differently. And while 45% of women say a major factor is that women make different choices about how to balance work and family, men are slightly less likely to hold that view (40% say this).

Parents with children younger than 18 in the household are more likely than those who don’t have young kids at home (48% vs. 40%) to say a major reason for the pay gap is the choices that women make about how to balance family and work. On this question, differences by parental status are evident among both men and women.

Views about reasons for the gender wage gap also differ by party. About two-thirds of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents (68%) say a major factor behind wage differences is that employers treat women differently, but far fewer Republicans and Republican leaners (30%) say the same. Conversely, Republicans are more likely than Democrats to say women’s choices about how to balance family and work (50% vs. 36%) and their tendency to work in jobs that pay less (39% vs. 30%) are major reasons why women earn less than men.

Democratic and Republican women are more likely than their male counterparts in the same party to say a major reason for the gender wage gap is that employers treat women differently. About three-quarters of Democratic women (76%) say this, compared with 59% of Democratic men. And while 43% of Republican women say unequal treatment by employers is a major reason for the gender wage gap, just 18% of GOP men share that view.

Pressures facing working women and men

Family caregiving responsibilities bring different pressures for working women and men, and research has shown that being a mother can reduce women’s earnings , while fatherhood can increase men’s earnings .

Employed women and men are about equally likely to say they feel a great deal of pressure to support their family financially and to be successful in their jobs and careers, according to the Center’s October survey. But women, and particularly working mothers, are more likely than men to say they feel a great deal of pressure to focus on responsibilities at home.

About half of employed women (48%) report feeling a great deal of pressure to focus on their responsibilities at home, compared with 35% of employed men. Among working mothers with children younger than 18 in the household, two-thirds (67%) say the same, compared with 45% of working dads.

When it comes to supporting their family financially, similar shares of working moms and dads (57% vs. 62%) report they feel a great deal of pressure, but this is driven mainly by the large share of unmarried working mothers who say they feel a great deal of pressure in this regard (77%). Among those who are married, working dads are far more likely than working moms (60% vs. 43%) to say they feel a great deal of pressure to support their family financially. (There were not enough unmarried working fathers in the sample to analyze separately.)

About four-in-ten working parents say they feel a great deal of pressure to be successful at their job or career. These findings don’t differ by gender.

Gender differences in job roles, aspirations

Overall, a quarter of employed U.S. adults say they are currently the boss or one of the top managers where they work, according to the Center’s survey. Another 33% say they are not currently the boss but would like to be in the future, while 41% are not and do not aspire to be the boss or one of the top managers.

Men are more likely than women to be a boss or a top manager where they work (28% vs. 21%). This is especially the case among employed fathers, 35% of whom say they are the boss or one of the top managers where they work. (The varying attitudes between fathers and men without children at least partly reflect differences in marital status and educational attainment between the two groups.)

In addition to being less likely than men to say they are currently the boss or a top manager at work, women are also more likely to say they wouldn’t want to be in this type of position in the future. More than four-in-ten employed women (46%) say this, compared with 37% of men. Similar shares of men (35%) and women (31%) say they are not currently the boss but would like to be one day. These patterns are similar among parents.

Note: This is an update of a post originally published on March 22, 2019. Anna Brown and former Pew Research Center writer/editor Amanda Barroso contributed to an earlier version of this analysis. Here are the questions used in this analysis, along with responses, and its methodology .

What is the gender wage gap in your metropolitan area? Find out with our pay gap calculator

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Women have gained ground in the nation’s highest-paying occupations, but still lag behind men

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Deprecation notice: Reporting, Workgroup Assignment and Position Management will no longer be able available in the CIS application

What this means.

This change will affect all Care Identity Service application users who:

• generate reports
• assign and manage workgroups for users
• create, edit or remove positions

If you are a user who assigns workgroups, creates or manages positions, or runs reports, from 1 May 2024 you must use Care Identity Management to do so.

You will still be able to create, edit and delete workgroups in the old Care Identity Service application until 30 May 2024.

Registration Authorities

Please contact all your teams to let them know that they need to switch to Care Identity Management. If you have a list of email addresses to send this information to, you can copy and paste this text:

From 1 May 2024 the following processes will no longer be possible in the old Care Identity Service application:

• creating, editing and removing positions
• assigning and managing workgroups for users
• running reports

From that date you must use Care Identity Management to do the above tasks.

We encourage all colleagues to use the Care Identity Management service before 1 May 2024, in order to confirm you can access the service.

Care Identity Management is an internet-facing service. Your organisation will need to allow access to our required domains. Read information about:

• configuring access to CIM
• troubleshooting common issue

Why we're doing this

The old Care Identity Service application is being switched off, and users are being moved to the new CIM service.

We have been dual-running both services for more than a year, and will be switching off features gradually until we can retire the old service completely. By moving user groups over in stages, we can reduce the risk of unexpected issues causing disruption to the service.

The following tasks are all possible in Care Identity Management:

• assignment and managing of workgroups for users
• creation and management of positions

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Latest news.

We’re running informal online sessions for those who want to learn more about Apply for Care ID and how to use the service.

From 1 May 2024 sponsors will no longer to be able to create new user profiles or assigns and manages positions in the old Care Identity Service application.

From 17 April 2024 you will no longer to be able to create new user profiles or issue and manage smartcards in the old Care Identity Service application.

You can use the SYSPOS tool to find affected users in your organisation.

The Chrome extension was deprecated on 1 January 2024 and will be retired on 31 May 2024.

Last edited: 22 April 2024 9:55 am

Maui officials push back on some details in Hawaii attorney general report on deadly wildfire

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Days after the Hawaii attorney general’s office released an outside report that flagged communications issues in the response to the deadly August wildfire , Maui County officials pushed back and offered “clarifications” on some of the report’s details.

Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez released a first phase report Wednesday by the Fire Safety Research Institute that said a broad communications breakdown left authorities in the dark and residents without emergency alerts during the deadliest U.S. wildfire in a century.

The report did not answer questions about cause or liability. It also said it is only an initial reckoning and two more reports will follow. Investigators are still trying to get some documents from Maui County.

Late Friday, Maui County issued a statement with clarifications on various details in the report, including when Mayor Richard Bissen issued a county emergency proclamation among other things.

Lopez responded in a statement Monday that the attorney general’s office welcomes Maui “supplementing the facts.”

The Aug. 8 fire killed 101 people and destroyed much of the historic town of Lahaina .

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Europe is the fastest-warming continent, at nearly twice the average global rate, report says

FILE - Burnt trees and a car after yesterday’s fire in Mandra, west of Athens, on Wednesday, July 19, 2023. Europe is the fastest-warming continent and its temperatures are rising at roughly twice the global average, two top climate monitoring organizations reported Monday, April 22, 2024, warning of the consequences for human health, glacier melt and economic activity. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis, File)

FILE - A lake of meltwater has formed on the tongue of the Rhone Glacier near Goms, Switzerland, on June 13, 2023. Europe is the fastest-warming continent and its temperatures are rising at roughly twice the global average, two top climate monitoring organizations reported Monday, April 22, 2024, warning of the consequences for human health, glacier melt and economic activity. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader, File)

FILE - A narrow boat sits in the floods of the river Thames in Oxford, England, Sunday, Jan. 7, 2024. Britain was hit by heavy rainfall last week following storm Henk, which led to flooding in parts of the UK. Europe is the fastest-warming continent and its temperatures are rising at roughly twice the global average, two top climate monitoring organizations reported Monday, April 22, 2024, warning of the consequences for human health, glacier melt and economic activity. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, File)

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NAPLES, Italy (AP) — Europe is the fastest-warming continent and its temperatures are rising at roughly twice the global average, two top climate monitoring organizations reported Monday, warning of the consequences for human health, glacier melt and economic activity.

The U.N.'s World Meteorological Organization and the European Union’s climate agency, Copernicus, said in a joint report that the continent has the opportunity to develop targeted strategies to speed up the transition to renewable resources like wind, solar and hydroelectric power in response to the effects of climate change.

The continent generated 43% of its electricity from renewable resources last year, up from 36% the year before, the agencies say in their European State of the Climate report for last year. More energy in Europe was generated from renewables than from fossil fuels for the second year running.

The latest five-year averages show that temperatures in Europe are now running 2.3 degrees Celsius (4.1 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels, compared to 1.3 degrees Celsius higher globally, the report says — just shy of the targets under the 2015 Paris climate accord to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

“Europe saw yet another year of increasing temperatures and intensifying climate extremes — including heat stress with record temperatures, wildfires, heat waves, glacier ice loss and lack of snowfall,” said Elisabeth Hamdouch, the deputy head of unit for Copernicus at the EU’s executive commission.

The report serves up a continental complement for WMO’s flagship state of the global climate report, which has been published annually for three decades, and this year came with a “red alert” warning that the world isn’t doing enough to fight the consequences of global warming.

Copernicus has reported that March marked the 10th straight month of record monthly temperatures. The average sea-surface temperature for the ocean across Europe hit its highest annual level in 2023, the Europe report said.

The European report focuses this year on the impact of high temperatures on human health, noting that deaths related to heat have risen across the continent. It said more than 150 lives were lost directly last year in connection with storms, floods and wildfires.

The cost of weather- and climate-related economic losses in 2023 were estimated at more than 13.4 billion euros (about $14.3 billion).

“Hundreds of thousands of people were affected by extreme climate events in 2023, which have been responsible for large losses at continental level, estimated to be at least in the tens of billions of euros,” said Copernicus director Carlo Buontempo.

Extreme weather fanned heat waves, wildfires, droughts and flooding, the report said. High temperatures have contributed to a loss of glacier ice on the continent, including in the Alps — which have lost about 10% of their remaining glacier ice over the last two years .

Still, the report’s authors pointed to some exceptions, such as how temperatures were below average in Scandinavia and Iceland even if the mercury was higher than average across much of the continent as a whole.