A Retrospective on Professional Writing - Tony's Take

Good evening, everyone, great to have you guys back!

Recently, as our next unit draws to a close, we've come to reflect on our writing styles, and with the last assignment, our collective got to witness how distinct all of our writings really are. As a closer, we were tasked with reflecting on professional standards, and some key takeaways from it. The following questions are some of my thoughts on the given subject matter, so I hope you enjoy!

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1. As we have learned so far in this text, accuracy, brevity, and clarity are three chief goals of media writing. How do style and language conventions help writers to advance those goals?

The main advantage to adhering to style and language conventions is that they help writers convey information in a clear and concise manner while maintaining the integrity and credibility of the content. Accurate, brief, and clear messages leave a stronger impact on the reader’s mind, letting them absorb more of what a media writer is trying to convey. If someone is struggling to read an article, then it will be of no use to them.

2. Beyond getting the basic facts right, what else does accuracy require the journalist to do?

This entails that you verify sources from wherever they arrive from, pretty much doing extensive research. It’s important that accuracy is checked, since it will ensure that context isn’t fumbled or loses its meaning when broadcasted. It also entails that the material you receive has accurate spelling or titles, and ESPECIALLY if there is any language in it that may be seen as derogatory or slang.

3. Explain how objectivity and balance are related to accuracy. What is the difference between the two?

Objectivity and balance are two components related to accuracy, in that they both make sure any media writing is unbiased and holds no prejudices within it. It’s important to be objective and str
Balance ensures that no sides are taken in a writing, and that a source does not favor one particular stance. Objectivity on the other hand is ensuring that the sources you are given are factually correct, and free of any bias from the get go. 

4. Why should journalists strive to be brief in their writing? Why not just provide all of the details for the readers and let them decide what is important?

Brevity allows for much more of an impact to stay on your mind when you read any source of media. Frivolous wording causes readers to lose concentration while reading, causing the whole narrative to lose meaning.
Although it would be helpful to provide every single detail, most details may hold no stance if they are not important enough to the whole context. Bogging down a reader with countless details will cause them to ignore or be unable to absorb the true meaning.
This is especially important in the news world, where short and snappy stories allow for more to be said in the limited air time studios are given. 

5. What is the connection between clear thinking and clear writing? Why is it sometimes difficult to think clearly? How can you improve your thinking abilities?

Clear thinking and writing are basically linked to each other; if one does not have a clear mindset for what they want to write, then the writing they produce will be as unclear to them as well. There are many reasons we may have an unclear mindset while writing, one of the biggest being known as writer’s block. You are completely lost on what to write, and as a result, details and context are haphazardly thrown around and lost without any set path to tie it all together.
Some ways that I use to help refocus myself are to isolate myself somewhere where I won’t be disturbed. On the complete opposite end of the spectrum, some ambient music helps my mind relax and think clearer.

6. How does strict adherence to AP (or any) style help the reader?

It helps give your reader some sort of consistency to your style of writing, and some may grow comfortable with it as well. It will help readers understand what you are trying to say, since they would be aware of your writing style and what conventions you use to help push your narrative. As long as you follow basic GSP guidelines and assure your writing is free of any mistakes, you’ll be fine.

7. Recall that media writing uses strong verbs and the active voice wherever possible. Discuss the importance of this convention. When is it OK to use the passive voice and linking verbs instead?

Active voice allows for sentences to be seen with a sense of importance. Basically, it allows you to include key details, such as the actor behind an action, and highlight otherwise uninteresting sentences, and overall makes your writing much more impactful.
Passive voice - on the other hand - dulls your writing a bit by bloating it with unnecessary wordings. Although it’s not always seen in a negative connotation, as it allows you to also omit unnecessary details if the actor is unimportant or unknown, so it is useful in some regards. Obviously, in professional journalism and media writing, it’s required to stay in active voice as much as possible.

8. What does it mean to write with sensitivity as a media professional? Describe some of the areas in which you need to be especially careful.

It's important to keep sensitivity in mind when creating any sort of media.
Basically, what it boils down to is retaining a mindset that our cultures have diversified. As such, prejudices and derogatory words that may have been commonplace in the past will not be taken well by those that they deface.
Some areas you may need to be wary about are (but not limited to) anything regarding gender and sexual orientation, race and ethnicity, as well as things like one’s own appearance and status. Things like using the wrong pronouns to describe someone, or pushing a stereotype associated with one’s race/ethnicity, will come off as offensive. Please, do your research first before saying anything that may come off as offensive. A general rule of thumb is asking yourself if something is offensive - if you even have to question it, it may be best not to say it.