3) DEFENCE

REPORTING/CONFLICT REPORTING
DEFINITION
Working within range of guns, bomb blasts, mines, violence comes under Conflict Reporting
parameters. Conflict reporting is considered to be the most dangerous form of journalism.
Army or Law Enforcing Agencies seizes control over land or situation while media helps
consolidating it.
There are number of situations comes under Conflict Reporting they are;
War, Civil war, Terrorists attack, Disaster, Bomb blast, Suicide attack, riots, abductions, target
killing, floods, earth quakes.
While working in conflict zones/disaster areas one should be mentally and physically fit and
alert.
From the war zone, reporting is very dangerous and one has to take special care while reporting
the events, or analyzing the facts.
Whenever a reporter covers rallies and mob demonstrates he should be aware of that some time
mob takes out their frustration on the media. In war zone or in mob rallies attack or violence
comes from unexpected directions and reporter should be vigilant to take safety measures.
HISTORY OF CONFLICT REPORTING
The history of conflict reporting is not only interesting but thrilling as well. Before modern
media, history of the war was returned after the end of conflict. The first known war reporter
was Herodotus who wrote accounts of Persian war. He did not participated in the event but
he recorded the accounts of various Military General and produced them in book form.
Among recent war, the Kosovo war received a great deal of coverage as did the Gulf war.
With the development of Modern Media and hi-tech equipment now it is comparatively easy
to cover war/conflict areas and disasters. Instant and live reporting is possible due to satellite
uplink and speedy communication.
WAR ZONES
In various continents of the world there are number of Conflict Zones. The major conflict zones
are Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, Somalia, Sudan, Algeria, Colombia, Philippine,
Bangladesh, Nepal, Russia, Ukraine, Sri Lanka, Chechnya and Pakistan etc.
HOW TO GET FACT
While reporting in Conflict Zones, a reporter found three types of facts:
Sweet facts (People helping each other/human interest angles).
Better facts (Casualty/Looting/Robbery/Killing/Bloodshed/Crying)
Official facts (spokesmen briefing)
From these facts a reporter has to file a story. He has to judge what type of facts he has to take
to balance the story.
SECURITY MEASURES
While working in conflict zone a reporter has to take security measures on priority. The purpose
of reporting in Conflict zone is to fetch news but not at the Cost of ones life.

 A successful war reporter is one who is Ghazi. If a reporter ought to be a Shaheed than how
would he be able to report news.
WHEN TO ENTER
It is advisable for war reporter to enter in war region/blast area after first strike. He will get
exclusive news stories and would be able to get many other humanitarian aspects to report.
HIGH PRESSURE ENVIRONMENT
Only such reporter is able to be a good war reporter who has the experience of working in high
pressure environment. The working in war zone is a challenging job. A person who has no
experience to work in pressure, he would not be able to perform good in war/disaster zones.
SOLO REPORTING
In conflict zone always move as a team. Solo reporting venture in conflict zone is not advisable.
If any accident happens to you than there should be someone who can be helpful in providing
first aid or to inform the situation and call help/rescue.
FIXER
In war zone the reporter is a stranger who has to seek guidance about the routes, geography, and
about the behaviour of the people. For this purpose a war reporter has to hire a fixer.
SAFETY OF JOURNALIST
No set of principles, no training course and no handbook can guarantee safety of a journalist in
conflict zone
In war zone, apart from security measure, a reporter can be targeted if he is in the wrong place at
the wrong time it will be his bad luck.
Or
You are perceived wrongly by the military that you are not a journalist. For safety measures the
journalists should be careful while filming because camera some time appears as a weapon.
Journalist should know safe and unsafe areas and the behaviour patron of local population.
TIPS FOR JOURNALIST
In war and disaster zone journalists must carry First-Aid-Kits with them.
Always wear helmets when you are recovering in the conflict zone area.
Body Armor, also protect the body injury.
Always staying in Touch with your News room.
You must carry required clothing/Dry Food and drinking water with you.
For safety reasons Label prominently all your clothing including helmets that clearly identify
you are press.
You should never carry weapons with you.
Take special measures to protect your valuable things from theft.
STRESS
Stress is a normal reaction to repeated exposure to trauma, especially violence results sleep
disturbances, emotional numbing, or feelings of insecurity, keep in mind that traumatic stress
often affects spouses relationships when you come back must consult the Psychologist and
seek guidance.

4) Business, finance or commerce

reporting /ECONOMY AND
BUSINESS REPORTING
INTRODUCTION
Business and the economy affect lives generally. People are interested in how the
economy is faring, what are the business trends, what is happening at the stock
market and what is generally happening with their investments, inflation, banks,
jobs, and so on. This means the business and economy touch everyones lives in
very unique ways. This also elevates this beat to a serious plane because of its
capacity to influence peoples reaction to other issues. Therefore, the business and
economy beat is a serious beat that requires expertise handling. How this special
area is covered is our focus of this unit.

The Role of a Business and Economy Reporter

Every story in the media performs one function or the other; so are also the
business and economy stories. The following are some of the roles the business and
economy stories are expected to play in a society.
1. Should present economic data to the populace and interpret them appropriately.
2. Should introduce the human interest angle to its reports whenever possible.
3. Should discuss new business policies and labour laws and how the average
person is affected.
4. Should do a thorough analysis of business and economic related issues to the
appreciation of the ordinary and educated audiences.
5. Should give the audience the latest updates on business and economic issues.
6. Should interpret technical terms related to business and the economy to the
audience in a way they will understand the meaning and implications

Qualities of a Business and Economy Reporter

1. A good business and economy reporter must normally possess the qualities of a
reporter, which has been treated in detail earlier. These qualities are basic. The

other ones following these are additional because of the demands of business and
economic reporting.
2. A good business and economy reporter must have passion for business and
economic related issues and go in-depth in its coverage.
3. A good business and economy reporter must have a clear understanding of the
meaning of economy and business related issues. He or she must also have an
understanding of the stock market and give the audience detailed explanation
about the market happenings.
4. The business and economy reporter is a specialist who feels at home with
numbers and is not frightened by lengthy reports and press releases, many of which
contain rates, percentages, business and consumer indexes and the jargon of the
business world.
5. The business and economy reporter must have the skills and attitudes to
recognise the power business exerts and become a tough questioner.
6. He or she must also have a healthy skepticism that keeps him or her from being
awed by the muscle and money that business power generates.
7. Even though the business and economy reporter is a specialist, he or she must
know much more than the world of finance. He or she must be knowledgeable in
related areas and subjects as well.
8. The business and economy reporter should be a corporate raider. He should
approach the money managers and manipulators with the same objectivity and
distance that any reporter takes on an assignment.
9. He or she should have a good knowledge of the working system of the economy
and the business world. He or she should be familiar with market forces and the
nitty-gritty of the financial circle.
10. He or she should have a basic tertiary education in related fields like business
administration, economics, accounting, banking and finance and others.
11. A good business and economy reporter must also be research savvy, very
analytical, detailed and critical in his or her writings.

Sources of Information
Good contacts and sources can be made among the following.
1. Bank officers and tellers
2. Savings and loans officials
3. Chamber of Commerce Secretariats and secretaries
4. Union leaders
5. Securities dealers

6. Financial experts and analysts

7. Real estate brokers
8. Trade organisation officials
9. Teachers of business and economy related disciplines
10. Government ministries and parastatals concerned with business and economy
related issues
11. Employees and former employees of businesses
Tips on How to Cover the Business Beat
The following are some suggestions from Henry Dubroff, a veteran business
editor as cited in Mencher (2010) on how to cover the business beat better.
1. Become a financial news junkie. Pay attention to developments on your beats
even if there is no obvious local or connecting angle to the story
2. Look for hidden hooks in releases and routine earnings announcements. Hint:
Read the last line first.
3. Use your sources for insight, not necessarily quotes.
4. Be comfortable with basic financial terms.
5. Never be afraid to go back to a company or a source two or three times to
get the whole story.
6. The best stories often are the ones that break late on your beat.
7. Learn from reading and rereading major publications like The Wall Street
Journal, Forbes and Barrons not just for content but also for how they
approach a big research project or how they tell a story.
8. It is always better to get off the phone and get on the streets to actually
see what a company looks like up close and personal.

5) Diplomatic and foreign affairs

reporting
DIPLOMATIC BEAT
The reporters who are responsible for covering the diplomatic beat must be aware of the
functioning of foreign office. They must be aware of the confronting issues between the countries.
They know the objectives of foreign policy and also have the knowledge of functioning of various
foreign missions and their interest in the regional and bilateral relations/agreements between two
countries.
DIPLOMATIC REPORTING

 Diplomatic Reporting concerns with the foreign policy and the relationship of a country with
other countries and the activities of various foreign missions and the contours of the foreign
policy.
In diplomatic relations, neither the enemy is eternal nor the friendship is eternal. The only thing
which is eternal is the interest of the nation.
A diplomatic reporter should be aware of the world power games and the interest of various
countries in various regions.
Information highway has changed the traditional role of diplomatic reporting, media
technology, internet, live feeds and instant reporting has a direct influence on the relationship
of countries. Media build or distort the perceptions.
In todays world along with the diplomats, the political scientists and journalists are the main
players of diplomacy. NGOs also provide useful information to Diplomatic Reporters. The
diplomatic reporter must establish contacts with them.
Foreign Missions are also a great source of diplomatic reporting.
Reporters should be aware of international agreements among various countries.
He should also know the international organizations (UNO, OIC, NAM, SAARC, ASEAN, EU,
AFU, NATTO)

6) Investigative Reporting
DEFINITION
Investigative Reporting is an act of discovering the truth and to identify lapses on media such as
Print, Electronic or Web.
Investigative reporting is an alternate interpretation of the public right to know.
Investigative reporting is to uncover what officialdom does not wish to make public.
Investigative reporting highlights the wrong doings and helps to shape the things positively in
future.
Investigative reporting reveals scandals and violations of law and rules.
Investigative reporting exposes unethical, immoral and illegal behavior by individuals,
businessmen or Government agencies.
Investigative reporting is complicated, time consuming and expensive. It requires months of
research, interviews and long-distance travel.
Investigative reporters deeply investigate a topic of crime, political corruption or some other
scandal.
Investigative reporters may take the investigation through his own initiative or have a clue by
some one else.
Investigative journalist is a person who does investigation like a police, lawyer, auditor or a
regulatory body and derives facts for public consumption to present on media.
Investigative reporter has to do the extensive scrutiny of documents, fact finding and physical
efforts to interview a person.
To be a successful investigative reporter, the reporter must have an analytical and incisive mind
with strong motivation.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ANALYTICAL & INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING

 Analytical reporting takes data available and reconfigurate it in different ways while the
investigative reporter has to dig out the data from documents/reports and findings.
Investigative reporting is a watchdog role of the media. He is a person who is supposed to be
alert all the time and to sniff the wrong doings.
He has to focus on the accountability of institutions and individuals.
INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER HAS TO REPORT:
Who is responsible for wrongdoings?
How was it done?
What are the consequences?
What can be done about it?
INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER IS REQUIRED TO HAVE THE QUALITIES OF:
Determination
Patience
Carefulness
and reporting the facts fairly.
PRE-REQUISITS FOR AN INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER
Investigative reporter should be proactive rather than reactive
INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING
Investigative reporting means digging beneath the surface.
Investigative reporting is a process in which a reporter may have lead or tip for the issue being
taken to investigate. He should have the quality to sniff and to start initial investigation.
The reporter has to form an investigative hypothesis to start work.
He has to chase the documents and to analyze the data.
He has to use the crime solving tools and methods to investigate the documents.
For investigative reporting one should have the skill to examine documents.
He has to do the human trial by interviewing the people and to dig-out facts or to verify the
facts.
He has also to do the electronic trial by using computers and internet for research and reporting.
He should have skills of onsite inspections and to testify or derive facts.
For Investigative reporting, he has to develop the qualities of a good reader. Read, read and
read. He must study a lot on the subject.
STRATEGY
An Investigative Reporter must form a strategy. Following acts would be helpful in getting
facts: Observation: Stroll through an unfamiliar neighborhood. Talk the people you meet there. This
exercise will give you many leads/clues.
Personal sources: Keep close contact with family, friends, Bosses and co-workers.
Some time anonymous sources give you valuable information. Never ignore them.
When you analysis the facts/data, it will give further lead
Studying neglected sources, such as archives, phone records, address books, tax record and
license records. These could be very helpful in taking clues and lead to further proceed on the
issue.

 Check every fact, as well as the source of information. Accuracy of facts has a prime
importance.
Know the law. Check the law in your area related to journalism. If you violate the law you may
have to face the consequences.
Work with research librarians. They are trained to track information. If you consult the librarian,
you will save the time in getting the required material.
CAR (computer assisted reporting). In modern journalism the use of computer/Internet will
give you great help.
SKEPTICISM
Develop a healthy skepticism. Do not get caught off because some one seems sympathetic.
Every person has an agenda. Always report the facts by checking credibility.
Investigative Reporters job is to separate facts from fiction. Investigate the truth of every bit of
information you get.
Double check and triple check the facts.
Talk to specialists. If you have some technical information, you must consult the specialists of
that field to verify the real facts and their impact.
When you are interviewing someone for investigative purposes, always know before an
interview which questions are to be answered or which major topics are to be covere
UNDER COVER REPORTING
Investigative Reporting is done by applying various techniques and methods. Under Cover
Reporting is one of the important method. Under cover is a deceptive practice, in this method
a reporter has to misrepresent himself to get the facts or to verify the information. Remember,
the first duty of a reporter assuming another role is to do the job right and not jeopardize any
ones life. Under Cover Reporting requires special care. It should be done in a tightening
circle. He has to use strong thread throughout the story.
Investigative reporter has to dig out information often from hostile sources. This situation
requires special care and security measures.
It is advisable that the reporter must talk off the record sources before going under cover. It
will facilitate him to reach the real sources/documents. Merely for getting the information
Never encourage people to break the law merely to get the story.
The goal of a good investigative story is to inform, educate and keep the interest of the
reader/viewer. When an investigative report published in the print media or aired on
electronic media, its on mpact individuals and the institutions would be multidimensional.
Investigative Reporting has widen the scope of journalistic freedom. It enhances the capacity of
the media to play a watchdog role. By doing investigative reporting an individual do a
National Service. It is a professional reference to him. He may get pride of performance
award.
Sometime the concerned persons are forced to resign or they are fired. In result of investigative
reporting, changes in the law and policies are to be made to avoid such misappropriations in
future.
NEGATIVE IMPACT
If the investigative report proved to be wrong or fake, then the reporter may lose the job and
personal and professional reputation. He may have to pay the fines. Even sometime he might
face indictment and conviction as well.
USEFUL GUIDELINES
Reporter must know the law.
Know the procedure.

 Focus on research.
Follow the lead.
Just keep digging.
Organize the information.
Write the report.
Check facts, Triple Check.
Libel Check, Deformation check.

7) Police and crime reporting

INTRODUCTION
Crime reporting is another unique special area of coverage in the media business. According to
Obe (2005), the public is in dire need of such news, the editors are very eager to provide it but
the lawyers and the police have resolved to limit it. Most newspapers that focus extensively on
crime stories stand a better chance of leading the tabloid. The same is applicable to court stories
that also demand special attention. These two areas will be our focused in this unit

How to Write Crime Stories

A crime reporter should be cautious when writing crime stories to avoid having different story
from the police reports. This is the primary reason crime reporters are encouraged to closely
work with the police in the course of their coverage. This again is supported by the fact that
crime reporters make use of three major sources information in writing their stories thus: police
reports, the people involved and eyewitnesses and account of the event. Before you write the
crime report proper, you should find out what type of crime was committed and the
circumstances surrounding the crime.
This will help determine amongst the three primary sources which to give prominence. However,
you must note that many of the crimes committed do not have eyewitnesses. You need to then
check out those who probably heard a strange sound or movement or person. This could be the
beginning point in writing your story.
You must also be cautious in identifying the arrested in your story. Use special care in doing this
because most of the time, those arrested usually give police fake names and these names may
turn out to be the names of movie stars or celebrities. They could sue if their names appear on
your newspaper as arrested for a crime.
Be sure to understand the classification of crimes and let this reflect in your reports and stories.
Crimes are classified as violations, misdemeanors or felonies. Violations are low-level crimes,
punishable by small fines or short jail terms. Misdemeanors are more serious and can lead to a
jail sentence of less than a year. Felonies are serious crimes punishable by a sentence of more
than a year. A reporter should understand this distinction and reflect it appropriately.

Contents of a Police Reports

Brian Brooks et al. cited in Obe (2005) identify the information contained in police reports thus.
a. A description of what happened

b. The location of the incident

c. The name, age and address of the victim
d. The name, age and address of the suspect, if any
e. The exact offence with which the suspect is charged
f. The extent of injuries, if any
g. The names, age and addresses of the witnesses

Checklist for Writing Crime Stories

Checklists are the information a reporter should have before writing his or her stories.
Checklist for homicide as compiled by Mencher (2010):
1. Victim, identification
2. Time, date, place of death
3. Weapon used
4. Official cause of death or authoritative comment
5. Who discovered the body
6. Clues, any identification of slayer
7. Police comments; motivation for crime
8. Comments from neighbours, friends
9. Any police record for victim; any connection with criminal activity
10. Consequences to victims family, others
Checklist for homicide (arrest) as compiled by Mencher (2010)
1. Name, identification of person arrested
2. Victims name; time, date, place of crime
3. Exact charge
4. Circumstances of arrest
5. Motive
6. Results of tip, investigation
7. Officers involved in investigation, arrest
8. Booking
9. Arraignment; bail, if any
10. Suspects police record

8) SPORTS REPORTING
INTRODUCTION
The sport pages of an average newspaper are amongst the heavily read pages in a
place like Nigeria. In Nigeria for instance, husbands argue with their children over
Premiership clubs. The picture is just crazy. Sport reporting is a core specialised area
of coverage in most nations because of the abundance of fans all over the place in
almost all the sports.

Role of Sport Reporters

Sport reporters occupy a unique place in the society because of the popularity of
the various sporting activities which reporters help convey to the audience and fans
alike. Some other roles of sport writers and reporters as suggested are listed below.
1. A good sport reporter should be able to bring the players, coaches and
administrators closer to the public and fans in particular. Check out the popular
players, coaches and administrators and you will find that their popularity is often
connected to favourable media coverage.
2. Sport reporters could also act as watchdog over the players, administrators and
coaches to avoid and help expose embarrassing behaviour associated with
sportsmen and women.
3. One of the primary roles of sport reporters is to beam their searchlight on
negative boardroom politics that could hamper sport development.
4. Sport reporters must see to the end of a game and make sure accurate and
unbiased account of such games is published timely.
5. It is one of the core roles of sport reporters to analyse game situations before and
after the games to help build excitement and sense of fulfillment respectively in the
fans.

Qualities of a Good Sport Reporter

1. A good sport reporter must normally possess the qualities of a reporter, which
has been treated in detail earlier. These qualities are basic. The other ones following
these are additional because of the demands of sport reporting.
2. A good sport reporter must have a passion for the type of sport he or she is
covering.
3. A good sport reporter must have a clear understanding of the rules of the game
and be able to interpret results of game to his readers.
4. He or she must also be research savvy and a good historian of sport matters.
5. He or she must have adequate knowledge about the players, coaches and
administrators and be able to discuss them comfortably.
6. A good sport reporter must be a good analyst and have a good sense of
judgment.
7. A good sport reporter must always respect the triple news virtues of truth,
objectivity and accuracy in his reports.
8. The good sport reporter must know how to use few words to tell his story.

Sources of Information for the Sport Reporter

The sport reporter has an array of places he/she could go to verify the facts of his
story before going to press. Sources of information for sport reporter include the
following.
1. Venue of the game or meeting
2. Local Organizing Committee of the competition or games
3. The Sports Council
4. The Ministry of Sports
5. The controlling federation of the particular sport
6. Players and coaches hideouts
7. Popular sportsmen, women and administrators
8. Sports library
9. Online resources

Checklist for a Sport Reporter

1. Do I have all the results, the final score, names of teams, type of sport,
championship type?
2. Where and when did the game take place?
3. What was the turning point of the game?
4. Who were the outstanding players?
5. Any effect on record standing?
6. Post-game comments.
7. Any press briefing?
8. Any external factors?
9. What was the crowd size?
10. Any injuries?
11. What is the physical condition of players/athletes?
12. Game Statistics and details
13. Game duration