The Two W’s of Journalism: The Why and What of Public Affairs Reporting

This text explores public affairs journalism - a practice that lies at the core of the journalism profession. It goes beyond the journalistic instruction for reporting, presenting news and reflecting on why journalism works the way it does even though other options are available. Probing the foundations of public affairs journalism, the book provides a detailed discussion of journalism’s goals and facilitates understanding of the larger role journalism has in society. The purpose of this book is to probe the foundations of public affairs journalism, to bring to the forefront the core professional question of why do we do it. For newsrooms, the aim is to stimulate the examination of contemporary practice in light of these foundations. In the classroom, the goal is to complement reporting, editing, and news writing textbooks, as well as the essential training in journalistic skills.