Recommendation Report

1. Recommendation Report By:

2. Books to Evaluate • Writing for the Mass Media, fifth edition • By: James Glen Stovall • Reporting for the Media, seventh edition • By: Fred Fedler, John R. Bender, Lucinda Davenport, and Michael Drager

3. Purpose • The purpose of this report is to suggest the best textbook for freshmen journalism students who are entering Journalism 102, Writing for the Mass Media. This class is required for all journalism and public relations students. I will compare two textbooks based on four different criteria to determine which will best suit the students’ needs.

4. Criteria • Readability • How well does the book flow, is it organized in a progressing manner, is the writing fit for a college freshmen course • Basic Concepts • How to write as a journalist, ethics in journalism, how to write for different mediums, and what is the media environment

5. Criteria Continued • Visual Aids • Are the understandable, do they coincide with the chapter concepts, are they clearly labeled • Chapter Exercises • How many exercises are there, do they increase in difficulty, are there answers in the back of the book

6. Writing for Mass Media Good introduction and conclusion Easy to read and understand concepts Chapter flow well with one another A lot of white space on the outer margins Reporting to the media No introduction and conclusion Confusing headings and subheadings Understandable concepts No chapter flow Good amount of white space Readability

7. Writing for the Mass Media Explains writing techniques very well Mentions ethics within other chapters Gives precise explanations about writing for various mediums Explains news core values and explains the interviewing process Reporting to the Media Explains writing techniques very well Has an entire chapter devoted to ethics Gives garrulous explanations about writing for various mediums Explains only news core values Basic Concepts

8. Writing for the Mass Media Has at least 7 visuals in each chapter Reiterate important information Coincide with concepts well Clearly labeled Reporting to the Media Has at least 4 visuals in each chapter Sometimes reiterate important information Sometimes coincide with concepts Never labeled clearly Visuals

9. Writing for the Mass Media Only at the end of the chapter Do not increase in difficulty No answer key Sufficient amount of exercises Reporting to the Media In with the text and at the end of the chapter Do increase in difficulty Answer is in the Appendix Sufficient amount of exercises Chapter Exercises

10. Comparison

11. Recommendation • After performing the analysis on the two books using the criteria, I recommend Writing for the Mass Media fifth edition by James Glen Stovall be used as the textbook for Writing for the Mass Media, Journalism 102 class. Writing for the Mass Media had better criteria in three of the four categories. This book’s readability and flow is better college level students, it has better explanations of each concept and it reiterates those concepts in a more understandable manner, and it has much better visuals for the reader. Although there are fewer end of the chapter exercises, it is the overall clear choice as being the most suitable textbook.