TLE 9

CAMPUS JOURNALISM
LESSON 2

I. Main Topic: Journalism in General

II. Overview

A. Introduction

In this lesson, the students are going to learn about Journalism in general, specifically, the
functions of the campus paper, the comparison of national and campus newspaper, and the
sections or parts of a campus paper. These topics are important as an overview to students before
the start of the writing proper, so they will be acquainted with their roles and responsibilities as a
journalist.

B. Learners: Grade 9

C. Time Frame: August 22, 2022 – August 26, 2022

D. Objectives/ Intended Outcomes:

At the end of the lesson, the students must have:

a. Determined the basic jobs or functions of a newspaper;

b. Assessed the beneficial functions of a campus paper;
c. Distinguished the similarities and differences between a national paper
and a campus paper; and
d. Evaluated the different items found in each part or section of the
newspaper.

III. Learning Unit: Function of the Campus Paper

Sections or Parts of a Campus Paper
IV. Lesson Proper:

JOURNALISM IN GENERAL

FUNCTIONS OF THE CAMPUS PAPER

A campus paper is a publication, either mimeographed or printed, put out by staff members
whose names appear in the masthead or editorial box.

The campus paper has many functions. The traditional roles of the campus paper were
specified by Harold Spears and C.H. Lawshe Jr. in their book, An Introduction to Journalism.

A. Aids to the students

1. To provide an opportunity for interest writing.
2. To give the students the opportunity to learn how to read the newspapers.
3. To act as stimulus to better work
4. To develop student’s powers of observation and discrimination concerning relative
merits of news articles.
5. To serve as an outlet and motivation for journalistic writing.
6. To offer training in organization, business methods, commercial art, salesmanship,
bookkeeping, and business management.
7. To develop qualities of cooperation, tact accuracy, tolerance, responsibility and
leadership.

B. Aids to the school and community

1. To inform the community as to the work of the school.
2. To publish school news.
3. To create and express school opinion.
4. To make known the achievements of the school.
5. To help unify the school
6. To encourage and stimulate worthwhile activities.
7. To develop right standards of conduct.
8. To provide an outlet for students, suggestions for the betterment of the school.
9. To develop better interschool relationship.
10. To develop the school spirit.
11. To develop cooperation between parents and the school.

The modern campus paper has evolved other functions. Briefly explained, they are:

1. INFORMATION FUNCTION: This is the news functions of the campus paper: to inform. Since
information dissemination is the main purpose of the campus paper, this is the function most
likely performed by any campus paper. It gives the readers information concerning the things
around the community and within the school.
2. OPINION FUNCTION: Through the editorials and editorial columns, the editor has the chance
to post his opinion regarding current events inside the school and the community. The main
purpose for this is to persuade to reader toward a certain point of view.

3. EDUCATION FUNCTION: Tabooed topics such as sex, sex education, family planning and the
like are extensively and intensively discussed by writers of campus papers. This is one of the
most important functions of the campus paper: to educate.

4. WATCHDOG FUNCTION: The school paper serves as an eye for the readers to see what is
happening in the school and to guard the right of the young ones.

5. LABORATORY FUNCTION: It serves as the teaching tool for budding journalists. Neophytes
pattern their new experience from the existing and past papers.

6. DOCUMENTATION FUNCTION: Important school events and worthwhile student

accomplishments and achievements are recorded in the campus paper for posterity’s sake.
Most present day stories are researched from old newspapers.
7. ENTERTAINMENT FUNCTION: The school paper, like an interesting book, keeps the reader
company especially when he is alone. Most human interest stories are stimulating to read.

8. DEVELOPMENTAL FUNCTION: In developing a country like the Philippines, scholastic and

commercial journalism has been given greater and nobler significance. The sources of new
journalists are school also. Journalists in campus publications are most likely to be the
journalists of the future. The young journalist whose news deals with club activities, school
elections and campus activities will eventually become a better one whose news deal with
activities of the nation, national elections and national concerns. The developmental function of
the campus paper doesn't only have implications on the young one himself but also on the
school as a whole. School administrators and staff may reflect their performance on the school
paper and see what improvements must be done.

NATIONAL AND CAMPUS NEWSPAPERS COMPARED

A newspaper is a publication sold and distributed regularly in a fixed interval. It may be

monthly, bi-monthly, weekly, daily, etc. and this is because of the fact that newspapers fall under
the category “periodicals.” Usually, news in newspapers is meant to be persuasive and this is
why some news includes opinions and comments that stimulate reactions from the readers.
Another latent function of newspapers is to entertain by the use of photos, cartoons, quizzes and
other interesting features.
While papers published every day are called dailies, we call those which are published
weekly weeklies. National papers are widely available and easily bought.
National papers fall under two categories: the popular paper and the heavy or quality
papers. Popular papers present their news in a lively fashion with easy-to-read articles and many
photographs. Heavy or quality papers are printed with longer articles stressing on important and
serious events in the country.
 Some newspaper publishers produce Sunday papers sometimes, with the same
nameplate as the daily papers. These are not Sunday editions of the dailies but instead, they are
of different editors and editorial staff. The reason behind this is the availability of more people to
read during Sundays. The price of the Sunday paper tends to be higher than the regular paper
but it contains more news.

SECTIONS OR PARTS OF A CAMPUS PAPER

Traditionally, these are the parts and sections of a campus paper:

A. PARTS OF THE FRONT PAGE

1. Local News: Local News is news that took place inside the country. (This must not be
confused with provincial or regional news. Local News is concerned with what is happening
in the Philippines, for example, as a whole while provincial or regional news usually give news
concerning a more specific area.)

2. Foreign News: Foreign News is news that took place outside the country. (This must not be
confused with Dateline News. Foreign News is that which concerns the global community or
that which happened outside the Philippines, for example, but the information there in
concerns the people in the Philippines – i.e. the release of iPhone 5 or the rocket launch from
North Korea).

3. Dateline News: Dateline news is a news story which is usually out-of-town. This doesn’t
necessarily need to be concerned with the reporting country but they are published for some
informative and entertainment purposes. Dateline News is usually introduce by a dateline
stating the country the place story was taken from, the date and the source of the material if
it wasn't written originally by the newspaper staff (i.e. Tokyo, Japan, October 19 – Tokyo
News…).

4. Weather News: Weather News is usually a boxed forecast/prediction from reliable sources
(usually mentioned). Weather News includes the place where a specific weather activity is
occurring, the temperature, wind directions, velocities, alerts, etc. Deeper news about the
weather (i.e. storm signals and announcements, evacuation, relief operations, retrieval
operations and search and rescue operation coverage and the like) are discussed as news
stories.

5. Index: An Index is a slug line indicating an important inside page story and the page number
where it can be found. Indices usually contain hottest issues and stories in a particular area,
exclusive interviews, exclusive coverage and the like).
6. Other Thing Found in Front Pages:

a. Nameplate: The nameplate is the engraved or printed name or logo/symbol of

the newspaper.

b. Ears: Ears are little boxes in either or both sides of the nameplate. Ears usually
contain advertisements or announcements.

c. Banner (Head): The banner is the principal headline which is usually written in
the boldest and biggest font. It is the title of the most important news of the day
(for dailies). This most important news is called banner news.

d. Running Head: The running head is a type of head having two or more lines.

e. Headline: Headline refers to any title of any news. Thus, the title of any news in
any part of a newspaper is called headline.

f. Deck: A deck is a subordinate headline or head which is immediately placed

below its mother head to give more information about it.

g. Lead: Lead refers to the beginning of a news story. This means that a lead
could be a word, a phrase, a sentence or even a paragraph.

h. News Story: The news story is the whole story or a part of the whole story about
the news which is composed of the lead and the text supporting and elaborating
the lead.

i. Columns: Columns are columns in a newspaper. They are horizontal divisions

of the parts or texts of a newspaper.

j. Column Rules: Column rules are vertical lines that indicate the divisions of the
columns. In modern journalism, these lines are substituted with a space (a
blank column rule). Space column rules or more formally known as sunken
rules are usually one em wide.

k. Fold: Folds are imaginary horizontal lines that divide the paper equally into two.

l. Byline: A byline is the signature, name or pseudonym of the reporter who

prepared the news. They can me seen in various forms: - Mark dela Peña; by
Mark dela Peña; (Mark dela Peña), or; - Mad Pen.

m. Box: Any news material enclosed by line rules is a box. In this case, ears are
special types of boxes because they are specially named because of their
position.

n. Cut (Cliché): The cut is a metal plate bearing the newspaper’s illustration.
 o. Cutline: A cutline is the text accompanying photos or other art works. The
cutline is commonly known as caption. If the text shows above the photo, it is
called overline.

p. Kicker: A kicker is a tagline above but smaller than the headline. It gives
stimulating but small details about the headline and this is why it is also called
teaser.

q. Credit Line: A credit line is a line given as a pay of respect to the source of the
story or illustration printed. This is done usually for stories or illustrations
imported or borrowed from other printed materials or people. The difference of
a byline from a credit line is that a byline is usually a name, signature or
pseudonym of the reporter within the newspaper staff but a credit line is used
for those which are borrowed or imported. Thus, foreign news and dateline
news often have credit lines.

B. Editorial Page

1. Folio – usually written on top of the pages, this is composed of the page number, date
of publication and name of the newspaper.

2. Masthead – this is also called flag. It shows the publication’s name, the volume and
number of release, the names of the staff and their respective positions.

3. Editorial Proper – the article that is considered to be soul of a newspaper or magazine.

A commentary written by any of the editors who comments or gives the opinion of the
staff or of the whole paper in various subjects.

4. Editorial Column – a personal opinion written by the columnist himself. Like the editorial
proper, it may attack, teach, entertain or appeal depending upon its purpose.

5. Editorial Cartoon – also known as political cartoon is a caricature containing a political

or social message that usually relates to current events or personalities.

6. Editorial Liner – a short statement or quoted saying placed at the end of an editorial
column or editorial to drive home a message.

7. Letter to editor – letter to editor sometimes abbreviated LTTE or LTE is a letter sent to
a publication about the issues of concern to its readers.
 C. Sports Page

The sports section of a newspaper features information on local sports events like high
school sports team. Sports stories are classified as news stories; therefore, what may be
found in the news page may also be found in the sports section. Others things to be found in
this section are the sports commentaries and sports features.

D. Special Features

Commonly found in the present-day newspapers are: (a) Life and Leisure (The Arts,
Religion Entertainment, and Comics) and (b) Finance and Business for The Manila Times:
The feature page of The Manila Bulletin contains: Home and Culture, Entertainment, Comics,
Shopping, Classified Ads, Movie, TV and Radio Guides, and the Comics Page.

V. SOURCE
Cruz, C.(2016).Campus journalism and school paper advertising (2nd ed.).Rex Bookstore, Inc.