The face of journalism has changed. The evening news is rife with personality, commentary, and political polarization. Blogs are doubling as news sites, and anybody with a cell phone thinks he's a journalist. Citizens say they can no longer tell fake news from real news, fact from opinion. As a result, trust in the media has plummeted at a time when the world needs more and better information than ever before. 

In The Journalist's Primer: A No-Nonsense Guide to Getting and Reporting the News, Mark Hanebutt gets back to basics. He explains why we have a free press and what it has to do with a free nation. Then he notes simply and clearly what news is, how ot get it, write it up and deliver it factually and accurately. As such, the text is a concise guide and desk reference for students of mass communication who wish to master the essentials of news reporting.