Virgil W. Magee is the Deputy Director of Media Analysis for Strategic Communications for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's International Security Assistance Force in Kabul, Afghanistan. In his position he is responsible for the identification and analysis of local, regional and global media trends pertaining to multinational ISAF and North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) alliance missions and strategic objectives for 42 partner nation defense and foreign affairs ministerial-level organizations, NATO and United Nations mandated missions.
The most effective journalism is rooted in facts, connects with the public and educates without having any bias. By definition, it is the act of reporting news. A journalist seeks to spread knowledge, not opinions. This can be accomplished either through the written word, photography or broadcast journalism.
The emergence of new forms of media, such as online news sites and blogs has changed the face of communication and blurred the lines between reporting facts and storytelling. While reporting only the facts may seem a simple goal, many writers find it very difficult to withhold their personal feelings from their writing, and must nurture this skill.
A good journalist finds a topic that is relevant, timely and of interest to their target audience. The next step in effective journalism is to gather facts and information on the topic, from reputable sources. These facts can come from research conducted via the internet or written publications, from interviewing subject matter experts or involved parties or a combination of many different sources.
Once the facts have been gathered, the journalist then needs to compile the information into an article, whose sole purpose is to communicate the information, not to express an opinion. Journalism is a form of strategic communication that is designed simply to inform or educate, so the journalist is like a teacher. As a teacher, the journalist has a responsibility to deliver the facts to his or her students with the hope that those facts will provide a solid base upon which to build an opinion and allow them to make informed decisions in the future.
The journalist serves an important role in our society. With so many different media voices clamoring for our attention, the journalist stands apart as an unbiased source of information. Rather than wanting to have his or her own voice heard, the effective journalist wants only to have the story heard.
The point of journalism is to inform the public of events that are happening around them. If you can shed light on a situation, bring attention to an issue or inform your reader of something relevant without trying to sway them to your opinion, then you are succeeding as a journalist. Effective journalism serves the greater good, in that it allows the general public to have access to information about events that are happening in the world, that they might not otherwise know about.
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Nigeria condemns Minaret Ban in Switzerland
By: Victor Ulasi | 05/12/2009The action of the Swiss authorities to call for a referendum is irrelevant and unnecessary, amidst the myriads of socio – economic and political problems confronting our world, a referendum on minarets are a complete waste of time and clear indication of the lack of focus and ignorance of the Swiss government
Six Chinese citizens sentenced death for importing fake drugs into Nigeria
By: Victor Ulasi | 02/12/2009The Peoples Republic of China for shipping fake anti-malaria drugs into Nigeria, which have claimed mainly lives, has sentenced six people to death.
Nigeria makes HIV/AIDS pre-marriage test mandatory
By: Victor Ulasi | 02/12/2009To make Nigeria a free HIV/AIDS nation and reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS, Kaduna state Aids Control Agency, Christian Association of Nigeria, and Muslim organizations have made HIV/AIDS pre-marriage test compulsory for every couple before they could be joined in holy matrimony.
NRI Broadcaster and Author Honoured in London
By: Kul Bhushan | 28/11/2009A rare honour for an overseas Indian journalist who was awarded a honorary degree by a university in London for his contribution to highlighting concerns and issues affecting the Indians settled in Britain and Europe.
Nigeria celebrates John Lennon’s 40th Anniversary
By: Victor Ulasi | 26/11/2009On November 26th, 1969 John Lennon (1940-1980), British singer and songwriter, the Beatles’ rhythm guitarist and one of the most famous figures in popular music wrote a short letter rejecting the award of MBE conferred on him by Queen Elizabeth II to protest against the British involvement in Nigeria, Biafra and Vietnam war.
Nigerian Government calls for patriotism
By: Victor Ulasi | 25/11/2009“I wonder what kind of patriotic the government wants the people to be when the government itself is not patriotic, Nigeria is just living on past glory, and if you take a good look at Nigerian situation you will discover that there is nothing like democracy in Nigeria. Nigeria is better during the military regime than the civilian regime; the civilian regime is an exploitation of the Nigerian masses by the government.”
Slavery in Nigeria who is to be blamed
By: Victor Ulasi | 23/11/2009Everyone supports the view of holding the white accountable for slavery in Africa as the issue of slave trade causes conflicts in Kaduna state between the traditional rulers and right group as a human right activist organization demands apology before the constitution from the traditional rulers for their involvement in slave trade.
HEIGHT OF ATTACK-- VICTIM MEDIA
By: abhishek singh | 21/11/2009How many times we will tolerate it and what will be our level of tolerance.One should not accept accept the tolerance as a excuse to be a part of civilized society.If at all it is right then indirectly we are questioning our own integrity and education.
ISAF And New Media: Going Social For The Future
By: Virgil Magee | 08/08/2009 | Public RelationsNATO’s International Security Force (ISAF), based in Kabul, Afghanistan recently, launched Twitter, Facebook and YouTube sites with the goal of better communicating the message of its mission and accomplishments to audiences of the 28-member states plus, non-NATO troop contributing nations to ISAF.
Being an Effective Spokesman
By: Virgil Magee | 24/06/2009 | Public RelationsWhen it comes to public affairs and marketing matters within your company, one of the best ways you can spread your message and brand is with a spokesman. One of the most effective ways to use one is to have the leader of the organization serve as spokesman. The reason for this is because it puts a face with the organization. It lets people feel as if they know you on a personal level.
Can the Military Effectively Use Viral Marketing?
By: Virgil Magee | 24/06/2009 | Public RelationsThere are many businesses attempting to use viral marketing as a way to spread their message quickly to a lot of people. This simply is creating a marketing campaign that will make people send it to everyone they know. It just has to be something that spreads faster than you can imagine. Because a lot of businesses are using it, some people are wondering whether the military can take advantage of this marketing technique. The problem with the answer is that it is both yes and no.
Taliban Propaganda - Why Has it Been So Effective?
By: Virgil Magee | 24/06/2009 | Public RelationsIf you are new to the phrase Taliban propaganda, it is easy to understand. What is not so easy to understand is why it has been so effective. Basically, what this means is that the Taliban, as a group (coherent or incoherent), are using words to form their own war with the United States and the international community.
How the Military Could Better Use Facebook, Twitter and MySpace to Inform the Public
By: Virgil Magee | 24/06/2009 | Public RelationsDespite all the fears that the military using social media will pose a security threat to the nation, more and more experts are beginning to believe that not using them will be worse than using them.
Analyzing Media For Marketing Success
By: Virgil Magee | 15/06/2009 | Public RelationsWith so many different media options available to people, it is important that businesses spend ample time analyzing media in order to determine what their best means of communications with their customers may be. When it comes to public relations with your business's customers, not all media is created equal. Businesses need to factor in who their average customer is.
Effective Journalism - Education For the 21st Century
By: Virgil Magee | 15/06/2009 | JournalismThe most effective journalism is rooted in facts, connects with the public and educates without having any bias. By definition, it is the act of reporting news. A journalist seeks to spread knowledge, not opinions. This can be accomplished either through the written word, photography or broadcast journalism.
New Media Versus Traditional Public Relations - The Net is Now
By: Virgil Magee | 15/06/2009 | Public RelationsGood public relations are keys to the success of any business. In today's information driven market, the face of media has changed entirely. Traditional public relations focused on print ads, commercials and radio spots. A good strategic communications plan would focus on things such as articles written in trade magazines and periodicals, commercials run on the television or the radio and carefully organized, closely managed interviews and press conferences.