VCC Magazine Winter 2018

College Journalists Cover the Capitol By Jeff South, Associate professor, Virginia Commonwealth University

The 19th-century Prussian statesman Otto von Bismarck famously said, “Laws are like sausages; it is better not to see them being made.” But the messiest sausage factories may be the newsrooms whose journalists report on the legislative process. When you pick up The Washington Post , launch the Richmond Times-Dispatch app on your cellphone or visit the home page of The Virginian-Pilot , the stories look so solid and stolid: 500-600 words of crisp prose summarizing and analyzing a complex issue or bill.

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Little does the reader know that the journalist spent hours seeking comments from recalcitrant sources, reconciling contradictory information, anguishing over every sentence and word, and struggling to present the news as important and interesting. I’m describing the plight of professional journalists—reporters who’ve been in the “news biz” for years and know the players, the process and the context of public policies as well as any legislator. Now consider the newbies: reporters who haven’t set foot in the statehouse yet, who might not know “capital” from “Capitol,” who may confuse “pass” and “passed by indefinitely.” I teach the newbies. I direct the Capital News Service program at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Richard T. Robertson School of Media and Culture. Students in the class cover the General Assembly and other news in state government and around the commonwealth. Assistant Professor Karen McIntyre, Adjunct Professor Tom Kapsidelis and I supervise the students and edit their copy. We send the stories to more than 90 news organizations that subscribe to our feed: daily and weekly papers, TV and radio stations, and web-only publications. In addition, The Associated Press picks up some of our stories and distributes them to news outlets across the country and around the world. It’s a big responsibility. When we send out stories—usually three to five a day—they must be fair, balanced and accurate. There is little margin for error. It’s also incredibly rewarding.When students see their stories in a community newspaper or on a local website, they are happy knowing they may have made a difference. And when a college journalist’s story has been published by The Washington Post or other national news outlet, the student is ecstatic. CNS students get a sense that they can compete with The Post, The Pilot and the Times-Dispatch. VCU started CNS in 1994 primarily to serve weekly newspapers that did not have a presence in Richmond. In the years since, newspapers have been buffeted by technological disruption and financial challenges; many have laid off reporters, closed or cut their Capitol bureaus, and reduced state-government coverage. Many of those news outlets have turned to CNS to help fill the gap. It’s a win-win-win situation: News organizations get carefully crafted stories for free; students get bylines for their portfolios; and readers get news and information on which democracy depends. This semester, we have 28 students in CNS—our largest enrollment ever. The students reported for duty Jan. 8 (before regular classes started at VCU), and they’ll be working through spring break (because sine die isn’t until March 10). After the legislative session, the CNS staff will dial back on daily stories and focus more on long- form enterprise articles. For students, their hard work in CNS pays off. The program boosts their job prospects—many go to work for CNS clients. And we usually end the semester with a celebratory barbecue: grilled sausages.

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Jeff South is an associate professor and director of undergraduate studies in the Robertson School of Media and Culture at Virginia Commonwealth University, where he joined the faculty in 1997 under the mistaken impression he’d have summers off. Before moving into academia, he was a newspaper reporter and editor for 20 years in Texas, Arizona and Virginia. Over the years, South’s students have won more than 30 awards for political reporting and other coverage. V

V irginia C apitol C onnections , W inter 2018

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