Chris Vick recently wrote in Business Day, “It’s certainly harder to ‘spin’ in a media environment where there is professionalism, integrity, maturity and accountability. And media institutions that strive for quality, pay attention to ethical issues and put real checks and balances in place certainly seem to make fewer mistakes. …the better the journalism, the smaller the chance of errors.
“The higher the ethical standard, the less chance that mistakes will be made. The greater the integration of quality and ethics, the less room for reputation managers with bad intentions to play games – and the less space for brown envelopes to start doing the rounds.”
Now the man who ran Tokyo Sexwale’s communications for many years will teach journalists how to recognise – and counter – the art of spin.
Questions and issues to be covered include:
· What is spin and how do I spot it?
· In what forms can it be delivered?
· When is it good/useful to a journalist; when is it bad?
· What you need to know about ethics
· What’s the correct response when faced with a juicy press release?
· Why fact-checking and reliable resources will save your reputation
· Brown envelope journalism and other no-nos.
Contact Maki Mathe at the IAJ’s writing unit – print@iaj.org.za – to book for the courses that will take you or your staff to the next level. If you can’t find what you’re looking for on our website, please contact our Writing Unit manager Shelagh Foster on 011 484 1765, write@iaj.org.za to discuss your requirements.
