Composition-Rhetoric Part 49

What is a journal? What is a journalist? What is journalism? Is it a trade, a commercial business, or a profession? Our word _journal_ comes from the French. It has different forms in the several Romantic languages, and all go back to the Latin _diurnalis_, daily, from _dies_, a day.

Diurnal and diary are derived from the same source. The first journals were in fact diaries, daily records of happenings, compiled often for the pleasure and use of the compiler alone, sometimes for monarchs or statesmen or friends; later to be circulated for the information of a circle of readers, or distributed in copies to subscribers among the public at large. These were the first newspapers. While we still in a specific sense speak of daily newspapers as journals, the term is often enlarged to comprise nearly all publications that are issued periodically and distributed to subscribers.

A journalist is one whose business is publishing a journal (or more than one), or editing a journal, or writing for journals, especially a person who is regularly employed in some responsible directing or creative work on a journal, as a publisher, editor, writer, reporter, critic, etc. This use of the word is comparatively modern, and it is commonly restricted to persons connected with daily or weekly newspapers. Many older newspaper men scout it, preferring to be known as publishers, editors, writers, or contributors. Journalism, however, is a word that is needed for its comprehensiveness. It includes the theory, the business, and the art of producing newspapers in all departments of the work. Hence, any school of professional journalism must be presumed to comprise in its scope and detail of instruction the knowledge that is essential to the making and conduct of newspapers. It must have for its aim the ideal newspaper which is ideally perfect in every department.

Journalism, so far as it is more than mere reporting and mere money making, so far as it undertakes to frame and guide opinion, to educate the thought and instruct the conscience of the community, by editorial comment, interpretation and homily, based on the news, is under obligation to the community to be truthful, sincere, and uncorrupted; to enlighten the understanding, not to darken counsel; to uphold justice and honor with unfailing resolution, to champion morality and the public welfare with intelligent zeal, to expose wrong and antagonize it with unflinching courage. If journalism has any mission in the world besides and beyond the dissemination of news, it is a mission of maintaining a high standard of thought and life in the community it serves, strengthening all its forces that make for righteousness and beauty and fair growth.

This is not solely, nor peculiarly, the office of what is called the editorial page. To be most influential, it must be a consistent expression in all departments, giving the newspaper a totality of power in such aim.

This is the right ideal of journalism whenever it is considered as more than a form of commercialism. No newspaper attains its ideal in completeness. If it steadfastly works toward attainment, it gives proof of its right to be. The advancing newspaper, going on from good to better in the substance of its character and the ability of its endeavor, is the type of journalism which affords hope for the future. And one strong encouragement to fidelity in a high motive is public appreciation.

--_The Boston Herald._

EXERCISES

Give as complete an answer as possible to any two of the following questions:--

1. Why do fish bite better on a cloudy day than on a bright one?

2. Why should we study history?

3. Why does a baseball curve?

4. Why did the American colonies revolt against England?

5. Why did the early settlers of New England persecute the Quakers?

6. Why should trees be planted either in early spring or late autumn?

7. Why do we lose a day in going from America to China?

8. In laying a railroad track, why is there a s.p.a.ce left between the ends of the rails?

+Theme Lx.x.xVI.+--_Choose one of the above or a similar question as a subject for a theme. Write out as complete and exact an explanation as possible._

EXERCISE

Write out a list of subjects the explanation of which would not answer the questions _why_? or _how_? How many of them can you explain?

+Theme Lx.x.xVII.+--_Write out the explanation of one of the subjects in the above list._

(Read what you have written and consider it with reference to clearness, unity, and coherence.)

+153. Importance of Exposition.+--This form of discourse is important because it deals so extensively with important subjects, such as questions of government, facts in science, points in history, methods in education, and processes of manufacture. It enters vitally into our lives, no matter what our occupation may be. Business men make constant use of this kind of discourse. In fact, it would be impossible for business to be transacted with any degree of success without explanations. Loans of money would not be made if men did not understand how they could have security for the sums loaned. A manufacturer cannot expect to have good articles produced if he is unable to give needful explanations concerning their manufacture.

In order that a merchant be successful he must be able to explain the relative merits of his goods to his customers.

Very much of the work done in our schools is of an expository nature.

The text-books used are expositions. When they of themselves are not sufficient for the clear understanding of the subject, it is necessary to consult reference books. Then, if the subject is still lacking in clearness, the teacher is called upon for additional explanation. On the other hand, the greater part of the pupil's recitations consists simply in explaining the subjects under discussion. Much of the cla.s.s-room work in our schools consists of either receiving or giving explanations.

EXERCISES

1. Name anything outside of school work that you have been called upon to explain during the last week or two.

2. Name anything outside of school work that you have recently learned through explanation.

3. Name three topics in each of your studies for to-day that call for explanation.

4. Name some topic in which the text-book did not seem to make the explanation clear.

+Theme Lx.x.xVIII.+--_Write out one of the topics mentioned in number three of the preceding exercise._

(Have you included everything that is necessary to make your explanation clear? Can anything be omitted without affecting the clearness?)

+154. Clear Understanding.+--The first requisite of a good explanation is a clear understanding on the part of the one who is giving the explanation. It is evident that if we do not understand a subject ourselves we cannot make our explanations clear to others. If the ideas in our mind are in a confused state, our explanation will be equally confused. If you do not understand a problem in algebra, your attempt to explain it to others will prove a failure. If you attempt to explain how a ca.n.a.l boat is taken through a lock without thoroughly understanding the process yourself, you will give your listeners only a confused idea of how it is done.

The princ.i.p.al reason why pupils fail in their recitations and examinations is that in preparing their lessons, they do not make themselves thoroughly acquainted with the topics that they are studying. They often go over the lessons hurriedly and carelessly and come to cla.s.s with confused ideas.

Consequently when the pupils attempt to recite, there is, if anything, an additional confusion of ideas, and the recitation proves a failure.

Carelessness in the preparation of daily recitations, negligence in asking for additional explanations, and inattention to the explanations that are given, inevitably cause failure when tests or examinations are called for.

EXERCISES

1. Name five subjects about which you know so little that it would be useless to attempt an explanation.

2. Name five about which you know something, but not enough to give clear explanations of them.

3. Name four about which you know but little, but concerning which you feel sure that you can obtain information.

4. Name six that you think you clearly understand. Report orally on one of them.

+Theme Lx.x.xIV.+--_Write out an explanation of one of the subjects named in number four of the preceding exercise._

(Read your theme and criticise it as to clearness. In listening to the themes read by other members of the cla.s.s consider them as to clearness.

Call for further explanation of any part not perfectly clear to you.)

+155. Selection of Facts--Unity.+--After we have been given a subject for explanation or have chosen one for ourselves, we must decide concerning the facts to be presented. In some kinds of exposition this selection is rather difficult. Since the purpose is to make our meaning clear to the person addressed, we secure unity by including all that is necessary to that purpose and by omitting all that is not necessary. It is evident that selection of facts to secure unity depends to some extent upon the audience. If a child asks us to explain what a trust is, our explanation will differ very much from that which we would give if we were addressing a body of men who were familiar with the term _trusts_, but do not understand the advantages and disadvantages arising from their existence.

Examine the following as to selection of facts. For what cla.s.s of people do you think it was written? What seems to be the purpose of it?