Carroll Hall 253
Thursday, 2 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.

Instructor: Assistant Professor Chris Roush, 215 Carroll Hall

Phone: 962-4092 (office); 932-3690 (home); 593-3921 (cell)

E-mail: croush@email.unc.edu

Office Hours: 9 a.m. to noon, Monday, Wednesday and Friday; 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Thursday.

Objectives: To discuss and understand the role of the media in American society and how it affects the public’s perception of business. Relationship of business press and Corporate America through review of Ida Tarbell’s reporting on monopolies and Upton Sinclair and the food industry up to current coverage of Enron, WorldCom and other financial scandals, and how those have shaped public opinion of the corporate world. Also review of current issues in business journalism.

Course requirements: Students are expected to attend class and actively participate in class discussions. Class lectures will discuss specific topics related to the business community and the media. You will be expected to argue your point for or against a specific issue. Each class is scheduled to last 2 hours and 45 minutes. I expect the discussions to take up most of that time.

Grading:

35% -- Midterm
35% -- Final project
15% -- Class participation
15% -- Book reports

Books: “The Jungle: The Uncensored Original Edition.” By Upton Sinclair. See Sharp Press: 2003.

            “The History of the Standard Oil Company: Briefer Version.” By Ida Tarbell. (David Chalmers, Ed.) Dover Publications: 2003.

            “High and Mighty: The Dangerous Rise of the SUV.” By Keith Bradsher. Public Affairs: 2004.

            “Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron.” By Bethany McLean and Peter Elkind. Portfolio: 2003.

            “Profits and Losses: Business Journalism and its role in Society.” By Chris Roush. Marion Street Press: 2006

The class has a working Web site at http://www.bizjournalismhistory.org that should be looked at frequently. There are interviews with famous business journalists on this Web site, and there are also details about important events in business journalism.

Students in the class are also required to read Talking Biz News, a blog about business journalism, and post their opinions about issues on the blog. The blog can be found at http://weblogs.jomc.unc.edu/talkingbiznews/.

Final project: Your final project will be a 2,000-word story on a current issue related to the Latino community in North Carolina and the business world. These stories will be used as the major business news component of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication’s “Latino Project” slated for 2008 that will include a web site, a magazine and other media. The School will also provide funding for each of you to travel to be able to conduct your reporting for this final project story. Please inquire with the instructor about the funding.

Your final paper topic needs to be selected by Jan. 24 and approved by the professor. Please write a typed, single-spaced explanation of your final project and turn it in on that date. I expect these final projects to incorporate major in-field reporting about the topic and to be magazine quality.

Final project ideas:

1. Farm workers: A thorough examination of the North Carolina farm worker population and related issues. Comparison between demand and supply of labor force in the area? What kinds of products are demanding more labor force? What is the policy of the Latin American governments toward the Latinos emigrating to the United States? What is the relation between emigration and the import of money from Latino workers in the United States to their countries? Are the farmers an economic burden or an economic benefit for the North Carolina economy? The angles of health, housing, consumption, taxes, etc. will help to describe the pros and cons.
2. Labor: The increasing use of Latinos in the North Carolina labor movement and what it means to their future employment. The angle of the unions and labor organization in the state to the reform of the immigration laws. Is the Latino worker a benefit for the labor movement in the state? How the increase in labor movement will affect the political and economical landscape in the state?
3. A look at the job market to see what kinds of jobs Latinos have been able to obtain in North Carolina – and what kinds of jobs still remain closed to them. Explore why are close to them. English barriers? Education? Skills? Compare the kind of jobs and industries available in the state with the current situation (skills, education, language) of the Latino labor force in the area.
4. Mainstream media vs. Hispanic media in North Carolina: How and why have the traditional media failed the Latino community. What is the Latino media doing differently than the mainstream media?
5. Ethical issues in Hispanic media: Latino newspapers have different ethical standards. Does this help or hurt the Latino population in North Carolina? Is there any code of ethics in the Hispanic media when they cover business and financial reporting? How does the code of ethics apply in the business reporting? Is there any independence between business editorial and commercial interest of the company? Is their any lack of training in journalist covering business and financial issues? Is the potential lack of understanding creating conflict of interest?
6. Banking and the Latino community: Hispanic use banking services in North Carolina less than other demographics. Why is that the case, and what are banks doing to attract more Latino customers? The case of Bank of America and the use of other identification can be a good example for this story. The influence of non-profit organizations and small and independent business taking active roles in the Latino market. The problems of payday loan. The angle of the mistrust in the banking system in their countries of origin is affecting their perception here.
7. Latinos and home ownership: Fewer Hispanics own homes than Anglo-Saxons. What are the barriers to Hispanic home ownership, and what can be done to overcome those issues? The angle of low income relative to home price. Underwriting standards? Multiple income and difficulty to probe the income source? Kind of jobs and seasonal work (like construction, farm, etc.) makes more sense to rent than buy? Education?
8. The downturn in the mortgage industry in 2007 affected Hispanics more than other demographics because as they were targeted by sub-prime lenders. A look at what went wrong, with examples of Latinos who lost their homes. One angle of this story is how involved was the Latino business and political leaders in pushing the homeownership using non-conventional loans in the Latino community for political and economical gains and power. Was this influence positive or negative? What is the influence of nonprofit organization like consumer credit association and others in the increase in demand of non-conventional loans among Latinos? The necessity to increase homeownership and political involvement push the force toward non-conventional loans?
9. The issue of multiple jobs being held by Latinos makes it difficult for many to obtain credit. What needs to change to address this issue? The angle of the relation between education, skills and legal status related to multiple jobs.
10. Latinos in the United States are likely to have more debt than other demographics, according to the Center for American Progress. What factors into this looming issue for the Hispanic community? Leasing vs. owning, renting vs. owning, etc.
11. Although fewer Latinos have credit cards in the United States than Anglo-Saxons, they are more likely to have reached their limit on their cards. This story will assess the credit card market for Latinos. Could be the use of other documentations to open an account like ITIN? What is the role of a documentation consular? How does this affect their access to types of financing?
12. What are the hurdles for small, Latino-owned businesses that similar companies don’t have to face? Examining everything from worker’s comp insurance to incorporation to convincing Anglo-Saxons to work for them.
13. The Federal Trade Commission says that Hispanics are twice as likely to be victims of consumer fraud than others. Many don’t know where to go when they are a victim of fraud. An examination of recent cases in North Carolina and what is being done on the state level.
14. According to the Census Bureau, Hispanics are the least likely to have health insurance. The lack of coverage is not due to ignorance, but the fact that many Hispanics work for companies that don’t offer health care. An examination of this issue, and what health insurers are doing.
15. Hispanics buy life insurance based on price, but many of them overestimate what it would cost them, and therefore don’t have coverage, according to studies. Why is life insurance is foreign to many Latinos in North Carolina?
16. The topic of long-term care insurance and nursing homes is taboo in many Latino households because of the tradition of taking care of the elderly. But this is changing among second- and third-generations in North Carolina.
17. Hispanic workers are less likely than whites and blacks to participate in a retirement plan, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute. What are the societal – and other issues – that are causing this phenomenon? Many Hispanics distrust the Social Security system, according to surveys. Is their lack of retirement plan among business? Low income and “remesas” could be a factor in their low saving rates.
18. The facts about “Las remesas” (money sent by Latinos in the United States to their homeland): almost $50 billion is sent to Latin America every year. Almost 70 percent of that amount comes from the United States. This is a burden in their financial wealth being transferred (average of $300 every month). Follow the money from North Carolina to there. What they do with the money in their homeland?

You are also free to come up with your own idea for your final project. However, it must still be approved by the instructor. Please note that the instructor, as well as other instructors in the School involved in the “Latino Project,” are available to discuss any of these issues.

Honor Code: It shall be the responsibility of every student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to obey and to support the enforcement of the Honor Code, which prohibits lying, cheating or stealing when these actions involve academic processes or University, student or academic personnel acting in an official capacity. We all are expected to adhere to the Honor Code at all times. This prohibits plagiarism.

Schedule:

Jan. 10: Introduction. In the beginning media was created for business purposes. History of business journalism and its role in shaping journalism overall during the past 40 years. Chapter 1 of “Profits and Losses.”
Jan. 17: Business media through the 19th century and up to the Muckrakers. Chapter 2 of “Profits and Losses.”
Jan. 24: The muckrakers. Please read Tarbell and Sinclair by this class. Final project idea due this class. Must be at least one page, double-spaced and typed. Chapter 3 of “Profits and Losses.”
Jan. 31: The muckrakers. Robert Korchersberger, associate professor of English, N.C. State University, and an expert on Ida Tarbell, will join us. rckeg@unity.ncsu.edu Book report due on Tarbell and Sinclair.
Feb. 7: The rise of public relations and advertising and its influence on business media. Bernays and Lee in PR and how they shaped business coverage. How ads helped business publications flourish. Dulcie Straughan, senior associate dean, will join us. dulcie@email.unc.edu Chapter 5 of “Profits and Losses.”
Feb. 14: The business magazine: Fortune, Forbes and BusinessWeek, and how they spawned a new genre of business reporting. We will also take a look at recent new biz magazines Conde Nast Portfolio and The American.
Feb. 21: Business media and society. What do readers and Corporate America think about business journalism? Chapter 15 of “Profits and Losses.” Beth Hunt, manager of editorial operations at American City Business Journals, will join us. bzhunt@bizjournals.com.
Feb. 28: How the Wall Street Journal became America’s business newspaper. Barney Kilgore and Dow Jones’ rise to prominence. Read Wall Street Journal articles by this class. Chapter 7 of “Profits and Losses.”
March 6: Midterm. Essay questions.
March 13: SPRING BREAK. No class.
March 20: The evolution of how business is covered in media. From puff piece to adversarial to CEO as celebrity to the crime log. Chapter 9 in “Profits and Losses.”
March 27: Business reporting’s evolution in daily newspapers. From the back sheet to the front page. How business reporting has become more important as society changes. Chapter 10 in “Profits and Losses.”
April 3 The business media and the auto industry. Read Bradsher by this class. Book report due. Chapter 11 of “Profits and Losses.”
April 10 Enron, WorldCom, Adelphia, HealthSouth, etc.: Where was the business media? Why were these huge stories missed? What could have been done to prevent it? Read McLean and Elkind by this class. Book report on McLean and Elkind due. Chapter 13 of “Profits and Losses.”
April 17 Business journalism and TV: From Irving R. Levine and inflation to CNBC, CNNfn and the increase in business news at 6 o’clock. Chapter 8 of “Profits and Losses.”
April 24 The future of business journalism: Where is it headed?

Final project due: Wednesday, April 30, 2008, noon.

You are also free to come up with your own idea for your final project. However, it must still be approved by the instructor.

Honor Code: It shall be the responsibility of every student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to obey and to support the enforcement of the Honor Code, which prohibits lying, cheating or stealing when these actions involve academic processes or University, student or academic personnel acting in an official capacity. We all are expected to adhere to the Honor Code at all times. This prohibits plagiarism.

Schedule:

Jan. 11: Introduction. In the beginning media was created for business purposes. History of business journalism and its role in shaping journalism overall during the past 40 years.
Jan. 18: Business media through the 19th century and up to the muckrakers.
Jan. 25: The muckrakers. Please read Tarbell and Sinclair by this class. Final project idea due this class. Must be at least one page, double-spaced and typed.
Feb. 1: The muckrakers. Robert Korchersberger, associate professor of English, N.C. State University, and an expert on Ida Tarbell, will join us. rckeg@unity.ncsu.edu Book report due on Tarbell and Sinclair.
Feb. 8: The rise of public relations and advertising and its influence on business media. Bernays and Lee in PR and how they shaped business coverage. How ads helped business publications flourish. Dulcie Straughan, associate dean for undergraduate students and head of the PR sequence, will join us. dulcie@email.unc.edu.
Feb. 15: The business magazine: Fortune, Forbes and BusinessWeek, and how they spawned a new genre of business reporting. Wyndham Robertson, a former assistant managing editor of Fortune, will join us. wyndhamr@aol.com.
Feb. 22: How the Wall Street Journal became America’s business newspaper. Barney Kilgore and Dow Jones’ rise to prominence. Read Wall Street Journal articles by this class. Ray Shaw, former Dow Jones president.
March 1: Business media and society. What do readers and Corporate America think about business journalism?
March 8: Midterm. Essay questions.
March 15: SPRING BREAK. No class.
March 22: The evolution of how business is covered in media. From puff piece to adversarial to CEO as celebrity to the crime log. Read Surowiecki by this class. Book report due.
March 29: Business reporting’s evolution in daily newspapers. From the back sheet to the front page. How business reporting has become more important as society changes. Selected readings from Leckey and Loeb.
April 5: The business media and the auto industry. Read Bradsher by this class. Book report due.
April 12: Enron, WorldCom, Adelphia, HealthSouth, etc.: Where was the business media? Why were these huge stories missed? What could have been done to prevent it? Read McLean and Elkind by this class. Book report on McLean and Elkind due.
April 19: Business journalism and TV: From Irving R. Levine and inflation to CNBC, CNNfn and the increase in business news at 6 o’clock.
April 26: The future of business journalism: Where is it headed?

Final project due: Thursday, May 3, 2007, noon.