JOUR1111 Assessment - Annotated Bibliography

ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY

 

-The Live Export Trade-

 

The issue of the live export trade has found itself a recurring news item throughout the country since early 2011. Initiated by ABC’s ‘Four Corners’ report on Australia’s live cattle exports to Indonesian abattoirs, it has had an enormous amount of media coverage across a multiple number of mediums. This and the fact that it is a debate with two very intense sides makes it both a suitable and interesting topic to analyse in relation to the journalistic articles, reports and interviews that surround it.

 

ABC News Online. (2011, May 30). ‘Doco reveals Australian cattle tortured overseas’. Sydney Australia: Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Accessed 11^th October 2012: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-05-30/doco-reveals-australian-cattle-tortured-overseas/2737644

 

Anne Worthington is an experienced journalist having worked for the ABC on its program ‘Four Corners’. Jointly receiving a Walkley gold award in 2011 for her combined journalistic excellence that went into helping produce the television report titled ‘A Bloody Business’, an investigation into the live export of cattle from Australia to Indonesian abattoirs, Worthington’s credibility is unquestionable. Looking at her written report featured on the ABC News website titled ‘Doco reveals Australian cattle tortured overseas’, a number of journalistic techniques are employed to enhance her piece. The uses of the graphic images of beasts about to be slaughtered are placed among the text to effectively draw in and hold audiences attention. In contrast to this is the Western Australian Country Hour radio segment, which due to its different medium, uses interviewing and presenting techniques including voice modulation, pitch and other sound variations to convey its messages regarding the live export trade. As with the ABC television news report, the decision to include a number of interview quotes and exerts is another extremely significant technique as it provides support for what the journalist is saying from reliable, informative and credible sources. Written with select audiences in mind, the brief nature of the article allows it to get straight to the point and to avoid embellishing the topic so as to provide a clear cut piece which in turn allows for the audience to develop their own feelings towards the live export issue. This is in contrast to the other two forms of media which generally have an affect on people 's opinions, depending upon which side of the debate they feel a stronger association with the motives behind, due to the journalistic vice they both employ of playing on human emotion to make a story a success.

  

ABC Rural. (2012, October 9). WA Country Hour [Radio broadcast]. Perth, Australia: Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Accessed 11^th October: http://www.abc.net.au/rural/wa/content/2012/10/s3607071.htm

 

Western Australian Country Hour radio presenter Belinda Varischetti has worked in the journalism and presenting media industry for nineteen years. Having had stints presenting on regional and national rural programs for the ABC, Varischetti’s experience is enviable, giving her an edge in the field of interview, engaging with diverse audiences and segment compilation, all journalistic techniques a part of the radio medium required to be an effective and engaging presenter. As can be seen in the live exports segment she headed on the 9^th of October 2012, Varischetti uses her knowledge to insight into the topical issue, questioning professional and qualified spokes men and women from both sides of the debate. When comparing the radio segment with the report written by Anne Worthington and Sarah Ferguson’s television report, all include the use of interviewing subjects from both sides of the issue, an important investigative process to ensure bias is minimised and a well rounded coverage is obtained. In contrast to Worthington’s written report wherein only a few lines from each person questioned are able to be included, the mediums of radio and television allow for a much greater scope and depth into the opinions and thoughts of people on the live export issue.

  

ABC Television. (2011, May 30). Four Corners ‘A Bloody Business’. Sydney, Australia. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Accessed 11^th October: http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/special_eds/20110530/cattle/

 

Having worked abroad at the BBC in the UK, for the SBS and ABC in Australia as well as having been awarded numerous accolades for her investigative prowess, Sarah Ferguson with her ‘Four Corners’ report on the live export trade, 'A Bloody Business', is a cut above the rest. The use of explicit imagery by way of extensive film shots of the cruel treatment of the cattle within the Indonesian abattoirs throughout the report makes, as she puts it, ‘even the hardest viewer squirm’ Ferguson’s dry and distasteful tone matched by her horrified expression as she is filmed reporting from within the abattoirs is a powerful technique employed by the ABC crew and effectively captures audiences attention and does not let them go out of sheer weight of the issue at hand. In contrast to this, the simplicity of the text presented in the written report by Anne Worthington and the lack of the visual medium to complement and help portray the story means that it is not as engaging to as large an audience as the television show. Within saying this it does, however, divulge its point a lot faster taking only a few minutes to be read as opposed to the lengthy viewing of the four corners program. This obvious difference is a reflection of the varying audiences each medium is intended for. 

 

Wien, C. (2005). ‘Defining Objectivity within Journalism’. Nordicom Review, 2, 3-15.

 

The article titled ‘Defining Objectivity within Journalism’, written by Charlotte Wien, effectively explores the relationship between the journalism profession and its pursuit for truth and fact amidst opinion and bias. Wien comments on the importance of journalism as being reality, being centred and focused upon what actually happened or is going to happen, as opposed to unrealistic representations and stories. Whilst the embellishment of elements within journalism is inevitable due to the way in which it has the potential to turn a bland bunch of facts into an interesting read and thus engages audiences, it is important to ensure this is not over done and that the truth of situations and occurrences remains at the heart of reports. Wien also makes note of the difficulty associated with operationalising objectivity in the everyday due to inherent bias’ and contextual influences each journalist is unable to escape. Within accepting this, however, Wien reiterates the remaining significance of keeping objectivity as a goal and something that must be continuously strived for so as to allow the audience to make up its own mind regarding those issues and topics being reported on. It is presented in the article by Wien that journalists should try to keep in mind not to be misleading, assert only true and essential things and be thorough in order to write and create a balanced, quality piece of work.