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The 1948 headline "Dewey Defeats Truman" is one wonderful example of a newspaper getting it wrong, and it's fun to laugh at prominent reporters who've stumbled into a big mistake. But it also teaches an essential lesson: you don't ever want to be the reporter who's getting laughed at for wrong facts! Students will definitely enjoy stories about the all-time biggest journalistic mistakes.

There's something empowering about knowing that even CBS's Dan Rather had to retract a story, since it implies a challenge to the new generation: think you can do better? But it also reminds them about the difference between "getting it first" and "getting it right." It's crucial that your teenagers learn to value accuracy, so when reviewing the student's work, always look for any statement that isn't supported by their fact-finding. Confront them over every error, teaching they're responsible for every word that they write - and extrapolate the consequences that could follow from a small mistake!

Identify Impact

All future journalists must know the criteria for newsworthiness. Why is something worth writing about? My first-year journalism textbook identified seven traditional principals, but the first one was simply "value to audience." If your reader isn't affected by a story, then a reporter is better off focusing on another topic. This leads to the biggest factor: a story's impact. Has summer vacation been cancelled? If every student's affected, the event is definitely newsworthy.

Remember that if they're studying journalism, your students are already excited about writing stories and connecting with audiences. Get the students imagining the biggest possible stories - what exciting scenarios can they dream up - but then make them identify why they're newsworthy. Two other criteria are "prominence" and "proximity," so have them list local people who might qualify as important, and imagine local events worth covering. Come prepared with your own list, and choose examples they'll recognize. Was there a local fire, drought or natural disaster that everyone will remember?

Teach Responsibility

Participating in the class exercises will demonstrate that the teacher and students are equals in the conversation. While teaching the principles of newsworthiness, you're also showing it's a personal instinct, almost as natural as finding something that's exciting to talk about. And they'll learn a second valuable lesson in an open "editorial meeting" about newsworthiness. There's lots of possible ideas, and theirs are just as important as yours. Someday your students will have to go it alone, identifying their own stories and being responsible for what they write. So try to eliminate the idea the teacher is the all-knowing authority - when you're a journalist, YOU are.

Cherish Your Heritage

Someone once joked that half the students who entered journalism in the 1980s were inspired by "All the President's Men." Woodward and Bernstein's investigation ultimately led to the resignation of a U.S. President, and it was the single biggest news story of the 20th century. Students who read the entire book should definitely be given extra credit, but as a treat for the class, the class could watch the 1976 movie, which dramatizes newspaper reporters confronting the ultimate set of issues. "Nothing's riding on this," editor Ben Bradlee tells his reporters, " except the first amendment to the Constitution, freedom of the press, and maybe the future of the country... Good night!"

Learn more about this author, Moe Zilla.
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