GRADE THE NEWS
THE SCORECARD
News Scorecard (This represents one day on one news source.):
Date: ____________________ News Provider:___________________
If broadcast or online, time checked or watched: ________________________
List names for all of the stories being analyzed (Up to ten):
Core stories:
Count the number of core stories and multiply by 3: _____________________
Peripheral stories:
Count the number of peripheral stories. Each peripheral story gets 1 point: ____________________
For this section, tally core stories only (4 is the best, 1 is the worst on this scale):
1. Story has impact or consequences for 10 percent or more of the community.
4-Story has high emotional appeal and potentially life-changing implications for a large percentage of the community.
3-Story has some implications for a large percentage of the community, although those implications may not be life-changing, and it has high emotional appeal.
2-Story has some emotional appeal but does not materially impact the majority of the community.
1-Story isn’t consequential or doesn’t explain its community impact
Points: ___________________
2. Story uses several credible, named sources.
4-Story uses several credible, named sources. The naming is specific with directions to where the reporter got his or her information (i.e., a foundation’s web site, another news source, directly from the person) and there are more than 5 different sources in the story.
3-Story uses several credible, named sources, but there are fewer than five different sources. The sources are named, but there may not be directions to where the source was derived every time a source is named (i.e., web site, another news source, directly from the person)
2-Story uses a few credible named sources.
1-Story has one or no sources and/or sources that are used are unnamed.
0-Story has no sources.
Points: ____________________
EXTRA DEDUCTION: If the story uses an unnamed source, take off a point. The story loses two points for each unnamed source.
Deductions: ________________
3. If the story involves controversy, two or more sides are presented evenly and fairly.
4-The story presents several sides to an issue and presents all sides in an even and fair light.
3-The story presents a few perspectives on an issue, although one is perhaps favored a little more than others.
2-The story presents two sides to a controversial issue, but one side is clearly favored.
1-The story could be construed as possibly presenting two sides, but one side is so overlooked as to be practically missing.
0-The story doesn’t even try to present multiple perspectives on an issue.
Points: ___________________
4. Diverse sources are represented. (Both gender and racial diversity are counted here.)
4-The author has made an effort to include a variety of voices, and it is clear that multiple genders and races are present.
3. The author has included one or two diverse voices.
2-The author included a token person to add diversity on an issue.
1-The author refers to diverse populations that may be affected by an issue but doesn’t cite anyone directly from those communities.
0-There is no diversity at all in the voices. Every single person quoted in the article is a single gender or race.
Points:____________________
EXTRA CREDIT:
2 points: The story is in depth, which means that it is 40 paragraphs or longer, if it is a print story, or 4 minutes or longer if it is a video.
2 point: The story is an original investigative piece of journalism.
Points: ____________________
Your final grade will be a percentage. Here is the basic equation to get the percentage if you did not have ten stories. If you analyzed ten stories, I’ve given the points breakdown below.
For scorecards that do not have ten stories:
Total number of points from the scorecard / (Core story points +peripheral story points) + (# of core stories * 16)= final percentage.
Percentage breakdown:
A: 90-100%
B: 80-89.9%
C: 70-79.9%
D: 60-69.9%
F: 59.9% and below.
Final grade: _________________________
IF YOUR SCORECARD HAS TEN STORIES, HERE’S THE MATH ALREADY DONE FOR YOU:
Total points possible: 190 (Ten stories, all core for 30 points. All of the core stories earn top points for each of the categories across the grid.)
Grades:
A: 171-190
B: 152-170
C: 133-151
D: 114-132
F: 113 and below