Preparation

By Maia Irvin  

Preparation for any type of report is important, but it's key for reports on debates. A reporter needs to be knowledgeable of the topics scheduled to be discussed and of the general behaviors of the participants. 

For the presidential debate this Thursday, I would start my preparation by looking up what topics the debate commission announced. After I found out what topics are scheduled to be discussed, I would conduct research on all six of the topics. 

Once I knew the content scheduled to be discussed, I would research each candidate's stance on each topic. This would allow me to prepare for answers that I would expect each candidate to provide to questions. 

After that, I would note everything that I know about the personalities and behaviors that the candidates typically exhibit. This way, if something unexpected happens or is said, I will not be surprised. 

During the debate, I would plan to record the audio on my phone, take notes on my laptop and mark timestamps of when someone says something that is notable. I would also try to continuously check Twitter for updates from other news networks and to see how the public is reacting to the debate. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Misrepresenting Africa...Again

By Maia Irvin  Time and again, western media projects a false and stereotypical image of Africa. This image is generally dominated by underdeveloped cities, governments incapable of helping their citizens and poverty among most of the population of the continent.  Western news organizations have historically reported this image of Africa, and they continue to do so today. Now, though, it can be more subliminal and less outright than in the past. This BBC article from September provides an example of this more subliminal stereotyping of Africa.  The article is about the incredulity and immense surprise that many people had when Africa, specifically South Africa, was reporting such low death rates from COVID-19. Many people expected there to be a severe outbreak in Africa because Africans live in crowded places rife with poverty. So when Africa seemed to be doing much better with COVID-19 numbers than much of the rest of the "developed" world, people started trying to look for
Read more

President Trump expected to withdraw troops from Africa and the Middle East

By Maia Irvin  On Monday, officials reported that President Trump is expected to withdraw thousands of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia before his presidential term is over in January, according to news sources.  The number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan would be halved, according to a draft order at the Pentagon,  The New York Times  reported. The Times also reported that the U.S. would withdraw almost all of the over 700 U.S. troops in Somalia.  Currently, there are 4,500 to 5,000 troops in Afghanistan and over 3,000 troops in Iraq, according to AP News .  National security officials said that withdrawing from these countries could have drastic effects, the Times reported. Republican leaders warned that a hasty exit from Afghanistan could disturb the peace process and current counterterrorism efforts, AP reported.  However, others have said that it is time for the U.S. to withdraw from these countries.  "We met the challenge; we gave it our all," Christopher Mi
Read more

Back to school

By Maia Irvin  New York City, which holds the nation's largest public school system, completed the reopening of all public schools Thursday morning, reported news sources.  Abc7NY reported that middle and high schoolers returned to in-person instruction for the first time in 7 months. According to The New York Times , students will be learning on a hybrid model with in-person instruction taking place 1 to 3 days per week.  There are new health measures for students including wearing a face mask and keeping hand sanitizer in their bags, according to the Times.  NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio said, "We did something that other cities in this country could only dream of," according to acb7NY. This is the first large district in the U.S. to reopen all public schools for in-person instruction, the Times reported. Abc7NY also reported that the teacher's union said there are not enough teachers to fully staff all of the schools. Due to this shortage, some students are in class, b
Read more