Defining and Analyzing the Academic Journalism Blog

Determining the genre that I wanted my final project to adhere to was not as easy as I had anticipated. I
looked through various blogs on journalism, but none seemed quite right for my project which will focus
on the sustainability issues within a college newspaper. College newspapers often had blogs where they
posted actual news about campus, and what I was looking for would include not only current events, but
also personal narrative and to instruct and advise an audience interested in sustainability issues within
collegiate newspapers and publications. Therefore, I have shaped my own genre and I will continue to
define it throughout the body of this text. The resources for this genre includes a blogs about teaching
journalism in the digital age, a student journalist interest group, an age old lit mag blog with posts written
by students, and an academic blog that ties current events in the journalism community with teaching
better journalistic practices. While this genre appears broad, it can be simplified into a few elements. The
first element of this genre is that t is published by an academic organization. The second element of the
genre relates to the first, as the audience is expected to be a student or someone concerned with
journalism education. The third is the element of sustainability. All of these resources are concerned with
the longevity and improved practice of journalism in either college or professional field. The third and
final element is current events. Each source uses current events as a rhetorical placeholder for instruction
or communication between academically affiliated parties. In this work, I will explore how the sources I
have collected use the five rhetorical modes to communicate with the academic audience.
1. Society for Collegiate Journalists
This resource is a blog that
posts current events about
for college level
journalism. It acts as a hub
for both student media
organizations and
professors who want to
stay afloat with the tide of
collegiate journalism. It
includes the elements of
academic author, academic
audience, and current
events, so it is a good source for my project.
The source is a WordPress site so the designers were confronted with some of the decisions I will face. It
doesnt say what theme it uses, but I do appreciate the transparent organizational choices. The title is the
topmost image, and a red navigation panel is just below with ten tabs. There is limited text on the home
page and besides a (heading image and the logo) limited images; this eliminates the noise and helps me
decide which tab to choose.
The color pallet is muted. The images have warm light; the background is grey, the navigation bar is a
dull red, and the text is either a light grey or white. Nothing is jarring or calls attention to itself. Because
the audience is an academic journalism organization, they are trusted to know what they are looking for.
The modes seem to blend together, and this eliminates noise in the page.
I will compare The News section which with the other sources. The page works like a blog. It uses
infinite Scroll which is commands one to skim each article. The posts have a white background and grey
text. The headers are several font sizes larger than the body text which uses bullet points and short

paragraphs. Images are usually several paragraphs in, and they use low contrast and are aligned like a
collage. The logo and salutary message from SCJ follows each post.
What I like about this source is the cohesion. All visuals and texts seem to bled together, but the spatial
and organization choices create origination, so that it is easy to find what I am looking for.
2. Teaching Online Journalism
The source is University of Florida Professor Dr.
Mindy McAdams brainchild. The title suggests it
includes posts on tips on teaching online journalism,
but the posts are of interest to students of journalism as
well. As it teaches the actual practice of professional
journalism; for example, some of the posts describe
narrative techniques. It critiques news articles and
stories and includes current events to teach the
audience. This source is the most like the project I will
work on.
Im noticing a trend with visuals and text. The headers arent
flashy, just a grey and most images appear in the body. The
most vibrant icon is the site title- a large hand scribble against a
red background. Like the SCJ blog colors are muted and the
background color is a muted teal.
McAdam does change it up with the text and creates block
quotes, or excerpts of the article which are larger and bolded.
One article called, Journalism Education: There is no Spoon
includes bolded block quotes and bullet points which, by ratio,
take up more of the post than the body.
The layout of the project is simple: infinite scroll. Each post is short and some include bullet points.
This blog differs from the Society for Collegiate Journalists, because there is less macro
organization. All the organization is within the actual posts, and I find it hard to find what I am
looking for.

3.

The Columbia Review

The resource is the only
student-made project in my
analysis. It includes posts
about current events and
issues that concern
students from Columbia
University in New York.
According to its tag line,
The Columbia review is
the oldest college Lit Mag
in the nation; this tagline
implicitly adheres to
rhetoric along the lines of
sustainability.

The source doesnt have to say how it is sustainable, because everything about the blogs says, Fresh. It
uses mostly the textual mode, but small visuals accentuate and liven the page. The posts are staggered and
not perfectly aligned. This adds visual interest as do the graphics. Not all posts have graphic icons, and
this enhances the overall look of the page, as the text it emphasizes. The blogs title is very large and
centered, and this makes the page look like an actual newspaper or magazine. The page is playful, and in
my opinion the most visually appealing of all the resources I have collected.
The source has the freshness of a student publication, and in a way, completes the genre that I am trying
to define. My genre must be student made, and so keeping a fresh and youthful tone maybe be an element
to consider in my project--it seems to work for The Columbia Review.
4. Online Journalism
Reviews.
In context of the rhetorical
triangle, this source is most
like the SCJs blog. It is a
blog that presents updates
on the journalism
community and analyzes
these changes for a student
audience. It is hosted by
the University of Southern
Californias newspaper.
Like the Columbia Review, the
blogs appearance is simple. It refrains from using too much color and focuses on the textual mode. It
implements logos and colored tabs which add visual interest to the page. The Headers are also colored
red, and each post has a small picture. A list of articles is aligned in a left column while only the entirety
of the most recent article is displayed on the page. Below this article in the center, there are two other
more recent articles with large headers to attract attention.
This simple layout is effective, because it limits competition and noise on the page, but the organization is
clear.

This source directly addresses issues of sustainability in certain posts. The issue presented in context of
current events within the journalism community. The idea that professional journalism is endangered
appears to be implied in all the texts, but in a post about The Texas Tribune, it addresses the how a
nonprofit journalism blog got readership.
Specificity is what distinguishes this source, as it provides tips for reporting and how organizations might
stay afloat in very specific contexts, like in the Galapagos.
Conclusion
As I have conducted this research, I have found that the genre I have been attempting to define is not so
obscure after all. In a term, it is called the academic journalism blog. This phrase encompasses the student
and didactic elements, and includes current events is just the language and currency of journalism.
Sustainability appears to be an implied element of any academic journalism blog, because the nature of
the profession is changing rapidly, so sustainability is a current event in the community. Still, the context
of that sustainability does differ from case to case, so something I must distinguish the threats to The
Globes sustainability in my project.
This genre of academic journalism blogs includes a measure of variety that I will consider in my project.
Still one thing is clear abut the genre. Textual, spatial, and visual modes must blend to accentuate the text.
Simplicity appears to be key in this area. Visuals should create cohesion on macro level, so that the
viewer can easily navigate the site.
What I gather from these sources is that organization is vital on a macro level as well as a micro level.
The entire blog needs to be navigable. Consequently, I need to make sure that all the modes blend and
create cohesion. This is an item that may not be unique to academic journalism blogs, but in this context,
applies to how each post should be created.