Multimedia Copy Editing & Layout

DMJ 312 (01), CRN 1469, 3 credit hours/week*

SUNY New Paltz, Digital Media & Journalism Dept.
Spring 2015

Nancy M. Heiz
Adjunct Prof., Journalism
nancy.m.heiz@gmail.com
718-208-5561 cell, txt

SYLLABUS
Class meets Wednesdays, 2 4:50 p.m. in CSB 24, The Editing Lab

Nancys Office Hours

Wednesday, 4:505:20 p.m.; Tuesday & Thursday 6:507:20 p.m. in CSB 34 or in our classroom, CSB 24.
*I am available other times by appointment. Please schedule your visit.
**I reply to email heizn@newpaltz.edu and phone/txt 718-208-5561 within 48 hours.

Course Description and Student Learning Outcomes

Welcome to Multimedia Copy Editing and Layout, an intensely practical course that will give you advanced
training in copy and content editing for print and web as well as fundamentals of page layout.
Upon successful completion of this course, youll be able to apply the rules of Associated Press (AP) style and
recognize and correct common errors in grammar, punctuation, spelling and language usage. You will design and
create page elements and magazine style layouts using Adobe InDesign, the publishing industrys standard
design program. You will critique and do hands-on editing of journalistic pieces on deadline for this class and
TheLittleRebellion.com, the Digital Media & Journalism Departments publication, produced by my Advanced
Editing/The Little Rebellion class. Youll create interactive graphic elements such as Google maps, timelines, and
data visualizations for web publication using WordPress and develop full multimedia story packages for the web.

Topics
Copy editors role and responsibilities, news writing basics, story structure, common grammatical errors, quotes
and attribution, macro editing, micro editing, Associated Press style, copyright, libel, legal and ethical issues,
elements of page layout and design (typefaces, headlines and decks, pullquotes, tags, hyperlinks, photos and
captions, sidebars), multimedia features (Google Maps, interactive timelines, data visualizations, infographics,
etc.)

Required Text, Tools

1. The 2014 Associated Press Stylebook: The Journalist's Bible," ISBN 978-0-917360-58-9 (Under $25
w/student discount at Inquiring Minds, Campus Bookstore, etc.) The AP Stylebook is updated every year. I expect
you to purchase the most up-to-date copy published in 2014 (not older than that). Online subscriptions and mobile
apps are also available. *Well have regular assignments and quizzes on AP style and its an essential reference
book to own. BRING IT TO CLASS EACH WEEK.
2. This class uses both a Wordpress.com website and a PBworks wiki for assignments, collaborative editing and
discussions. You will be expected to learn the basics of both platforms. For each, you must set up a free account:
WordPress.com and Pbworks.com (Create a username and password, upload a recent photo of yourself, make
sure your user name is your full name, set your notifications and get accustomed to using them PRIOR to our
second class meeting). Our course website is: http://npmmcelo.wordpress.com/
Our wiki is: http://npmmcelo.pbworks.com/

Required Text, Tools, continued

Multimedia Copy Editing & Layout

DMJ 312 (01), CRN 1469, 3 credit hours/week*
SUNY New Paltz, Digital Media & Journalism Dept.
Spring 2015

Nancy M. Heiz
Adjunct Prof., Journalism
nancy.m.heiz@gmail.com
718-208-5561 cell, txt

3. You will submit assignments via Dropbox.com, a free cloud storage service that is accessible from any device.
Note that you must COPY content into and out of Dropbox; dont just move it, because once it disappears from
the Dropbox its no longer accessible. Read, watch the video and understand how to use it PRIOR to our second
class meeting. Download it onto your home computer: (https://www.dropbox.com/).
4. Periodically you will buy or obtain print publications for editing, analysis or other work.

Class Details
This class will be run as a newsroom and youre expected to be on duty as a copy editor or page designer when
youre here. Tardiness is not tolerated. Attendance is mandatory, as you are needed for in-class and online
discussions, as well as group editing all of which accounts for a big percentage of your grade. Any absence
requires advance notification and valid reason. More than one unexcused absence will result in an F for
the course. You are responsible for getting class notes and assignments from classmates to learn what you may
have missed. Please do not ask me what you missed.
This class adheres strictly to the SUNY New Paltz policy concerning Standards of Academic Integrity.
In this class, as in the journalism business, deadlines are sacred; therefore I will not accept late work. I do not
give makeup quizzes, exams or homework. Period. Please do not ask.
In this computer lab, computers are for class work ONLY. Additionally, silence and put away your mobile
devices. That means NO Facebook, IM, txting, games, etc. For each instance your non-classwork
computer or phone use distracts me or the class, your final grade will be reduced by a half letter grade.
We are here for a very short time. Do your personal business elsewhere and at a different time.
Additionally, do not save your work to the lab computer desktops, as they are used by many others and when you
log off your data may be lost. You are responsible for submitting your work before class each week. Use your
portable media storage thumb drive, or Dropbox.com to back up your data.
You will learn the basics of Adobe InDesign in this class, but you will be expected to practice InDesign outside of
our class meetings. This lab has Adobe Creative Suite 6 (CS6). In addition to this lab, there are other campus
computer labs with InDesign next door in CSB29, across the hall in CSB55, on the CSB first floor Mac lab and
other places on campus (try the Old Library). Youll find many free InDesign tutorials online, including Layers
Magazine, About.com, AdobeTV and the HELP function in the InDesign program itself. I will also post video
tutorials on our class wiki.
Class Cancellations: In the event of an instructor emergency, I will email the class, post an announcement on
our wiki, and attempt to have a sign placed on our classroom door to alert you. It is your responsibility to sign up
for campus-wide email/text alerts for campus closings (i.e. weather emergencies). Either way, you are responsible
for having completed all your work and for being prepared for a pop quiz or online discussion if class does not
meet. May 5 and 6, 2015 are the official make-up days for any missed classes this semester.
Special Accommodations: Students with documented physical, learning, psychological and other disabilities are
entitled to receive reasonable accommodations. If you need classroom or testing accommodations, please
contact the Disability Resource Center, Student Union, Room 210, 257-3020. The DRC will provide forms
verifying the need for accommodation. As soon as the instructor receives the form, you will be provided with the

Multimedia Copy Editing & Layout

DMJ 312 (01), CRN 1469, 3 credit hours/week*
SUNY New Paltz, Digital Media & Journalism Dept.
Spring 2015

Nancy M. Heiz
Adjunct Prof., Journalism
nancy.m.heiz@gmail.com
718-208-5561 cell, txt

appropriate accommodations. Students are encouraged to request accommodations as close to the beginning of
the semester as possible.
Course Grading: I will do my best to present the material in ways that are easy to understand. If you dont
understand a concept, it is your responsibility to ask and I will find ways to explain it differently. I believe that
you learn as much from a course as the effort you put into it meaning that you must take responsibility for your
learning. In this course you will be expected to practice InDesign and complete your InDesign assignments on
your own time.
You will be graded on editing and design homework, a quiz, a midterm exam/project, a final exam/project and
periodic class discussions of assigned readings. Each carries a certain weight (see percentages below). At the
end of the semester, the points are tallied to determine your final grade.
Note: Grades on assignments will be adjusted downward for style errors as well as errors in spelling, grammar,
punctuation and other mechanics. This is, after all, a course in editing. This applies to text in layouts. Doublecheck your work prior to submitting it to me. Certain projects may be revised and resubmitted to improve your
grade. The professor will explain how that will work.
CELO Grading is as follows:
Editing:

30 percent (approx. 5 assignments)

AP Style Quiz

5 percent

Layouts/Multimedia: 25 percent (approx. 5 assignments)

Midterm:

10 percent

Final:

20 percent

Online Discussions:

10 percent (approx. 5 discussions)

**Class Participation counts: (You can earn a half letter grade by actively participating in discussions,
volunteering examples and bringing to class interesting editing issues from current news
and events. However, a half letter grade can be deducted from a students final course
grade for disruptions such as repeated tardiness, excessive absences and non-classwork
phone/txt/web usage.)
A: 90-100
B: 80-89
C: 70-79
D: 65-70* The SUNY New Paltz Digital Media & Journalism Dept. does not recognize grades below C- in major
courses (which means youd have to repeat the course if your grade is below 70.)
You are responsible for completing the Student Evaluation of Instruction (SEI) for this course and for all your
courses with an enrollment of three or more students. I value your feedback and use it to improve my teaching
and planning. Please complete the form online at the end of the semester, April 23 to May 6, 2015.
*Credit Hours
According to SUNYs credit hour policy, A semester credit hour is an academic unit earned for fifteen 50-minute
sessions of classroom instruction with a normal expectation of two hours of outside study for each class

Multimedia Copy Editing & Layout

DMJ 312 (01), CRN 1469, 3 credit hours/week*
SUNY New Paltz, Digital Media & Journalism Dept.
Spring 2015

Nancy M. Heiz
Adjunct Prof., Journalism
nancy.m.heiz@gmail.com
718-208-5561 cell, txt

session. In this course, we meet once per week for 2 hours and 50 minutes and you are expected to work 4 to
6 hours per week outside of class to earn the 3 credits.

Academic Policies and Procedures Academic Integrity

Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of honesty in their college work. Cheating, forgery, and plagiarism are serious
offenses, and students found guilty of any form of academic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary action.
Cheating is defined as giving or obtaining information by improper means in meeting any academic requirements. The use for academic
credit of the same work in more than one course without knowledge or consent of the instructor(s) is a form of cheating and is a serious
violation of academic integrity.
Forgery is defined as the alteration of college forms, documents, or records, or the signing of such forms or documents by someone other
than the proper designee.
Plagiarism is the representation, intentional or unintentional, of someone else's words or ideas as one's own. Since words in print are the
property of an author or publisher, plagiarizing is a form of larceny punishable by fine. When using another person's words in a paper,
students must place them within quotation marks or clearly set them off in the text and give them appropriate footnoting. When students
use only the ideas and change the words, they must clearly identify the source of the ideas. Plagiarism, whether intentional or
unintentional, is a violation of the property rights of the author plagiarized and of the implied assurance by the students when they hand in
work that the work is their own.
Faculty members are responsible for making the initial determination of the academic penalty to be imposed in cases of cheating,
plagiarism, or forgery and for informing the department chair, the dean and the student in writing of the alleged violation and proposed
penalty. The academic penalty may range, for instance, from a reprimand accompanied by guidance about how to avoid plagiarism in
the future to failure for the course. The academic dean may request that the Dean of Students send a follow-up letter to the student
indicating that they have also been notified of the academic integrity violation and that subsequent violations will lead to judicial action.
If a student has any question about what constitutes a violation of academic integrity, it is that student's responsibility to clarify the matter
by conferring with the instructor and to seek out other resources available on the campus. The link regarding plagiarism on the Sojourner
Truth Library's website is an excellent beginning, http://lib.newpaltz.edu/assistance/plag.html.