The Uncommon Type: The Journalist Learder

Abstract

In today's ever-changing media landscape, the definition of quality journalism can be difficult to define. In an era where audiences want news faster, the responsibility of the 21st century journalist is greater. The current news model not only requires speed, but keeps the need for pinpoint accuracy. The purpose of this research is to define what constitutes excellence injournalism. The Louis Harris Award,is given annually by the Augusta West Rotary Club, beginning in 1979. Anaward presented annually to an Augusta journalist who exhibits excellence and provides a starting point for this study. The methodology involves tracking down and interviewing past recipients who are still living. For those who passed, we will find information from survivors, obituaries, papers left behind, and any other materials we can locate. The next step is building an index of traits the recipients exhibit that made them suitable for the award. To bring it all together, discovering what traits these journalists have in common and identifying a pattern, or essentially a common denominator, and whether this pattern has changed over the past 40 years as the practice of journalism has morphed from the objective, mass-society model to more of a political, niche model.