A Journalist's Guide to the Internet   

Navigating the Internet can be a daunting task, even for journalists who don't suffer from technophobia. But all you really need to get started is electronic mail.

It's daunting. It's crowded. It's hyped. But the Internet also has plenty of valuable resources for journalists. It's getting to them that can be tricky.

Ask any journalist who knows his or her way around the much-heralded 'Net for a quick intro and you'll get an earful of terms like telnet, gopher and World Wide Web. But all you need to get started is something much more familiar – electronic mail. Once you've mastered sending and receiving messages outside of your interoffice system, jumping around the computer system of computer systems may seem a bit less foreboding.

To use the E-mail discussion groups and other resources described in the next few pages, you'll need to get connected. If your employer doesn't provide access to the Internet, there are inexpensive ways to establish your own electronic address via commercial services such as America Online. If you plan to work from your home computer, make sure your modem is at least a 9600 baud transfer rate.

This guide is not comprehensive by any means – nothing written about the Internet can be. If you'd like an overview of resources beyond E-mail, check out one of the dozens of books that explain the 'Net in greater detail. For those journalists who spend many hours online, hopefully we can point out some resources you haven't discovered yet.

How Do I Get Connected?

Although this sort of advice is considered heresy by many online veterans (who tend to be a rather snooty bunch), the simplest way for journalists who don't have Internet access through their jobs to get acquainted with E-mail resources may be through a ýommercial provider. Online services such as America Online or Delphi allow you to dial in with your computer modem and access a menu- or icon-driven interface. Not only does that save you a lot of typing, but you don't have to know the inner workings of the 'Net to get started.

America Online (800-827-6364)

Cost: $9.95/month for five hours online; $2.95/each additional hour

The software you need is provided free and, unlike rival CompuServe, you aren't charged extra for sending or receiving messages from outside the service. AOL also includes material for news junkies from Time, U.S. News & World Report, the Chicago Tribune, the San Jose Mercury News, Knight-Ridder, the New York Times, several public affairs programs, C-SPAN, Newspaper Enterprise Association columnists, CNN, Court TV along with Army Times, Navy Times and Air Force Times.

CompuServe (800-848-8199)

Cost: $8.95/month for basic services, plus $4.80 to $9.60 an hour for premium areas depending on modem speed

CompuServe's initial membership kit costs $40, but includes a $25 credit. A major difference, however, and one of the reasons the service is known derisively on the 'Net as Compu$erve, is that users are charged additional fees if they send or receive more than about 60 outside messages each month (some of the journalism discussion groups explained on the following pages generate that many messages in a matter of days). Media residents include Reuters, the Associated Press, Florida Today, U.S. News & Wárld Report, CNN, the Detroit Free Press, Gannett Suburban Newspapers, and Australian, French and German newswires. Premium forums include those dedicated to journalism, desktop publishing, broadcasting and public relations.

Delphi (800-695-4005)

Cost: $13 for 10 evening and weekend hours online monthly, or $23 for 20 hours

Owned by media baron Rupert Murdoch, Delphi offers more advanced and wider ranging Internet access and doesn't require any special software. The service includes resources from newspapers such as the Orange County Register and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and offers stories from Reuters, Variety, Billboard and the Hollywood Reporter. If you're after more complete Internet access and can do without the bells and whistles, Delphi is the place.

Prodigy (800-776-3499)

Cost: $9.95 per month minimum for five hours, $2.95 each additional hour. Software: free with $4.95 shipping fee

Although the interface will remind you of the earlier days of computer technology, Newsweek has just signed with Prodigy and the service doesn't charge to send or receive Internet mail. If the news magazine's mastery of CD-ROM technology is any indication, its foray here promises to be very active and colorful. Prodigy also has AP wire stories and photos, editorial cartoons, Newsday, the Los Angeles Times, the Atlanta Journal and Constitution, the Tampa Tribune, Sports Illustrated for Kids, and affiliations with some 30 TV networks, including HBO, ESPN and CBS.

Great, I'm Connected. Now What Do I Do?

Now that you've got an E-mail address, you can send messages, receive messages and reach out and grab some background info. A popular and relatively painless way to introduce yourself to the types of messages that are exchanged on the 'Net is to join "discussion groups" that cover any number of topics. We'll focus on those related to journalism, but there are thousands of others covering everything from rock 'n' roll to Mark Twain to public transportation.

With most E-mail discussion groups, everything you write is sent to every person on the list, and everything they write comes to you. There's usually a "list owner" or "moderator" who makes sure the operation runs smoothly.

How Do I Get Started?

You have to be careful to follow instructions, or you'll attract the scorn of fellow group members and immediately brand yourself as a "newbie."

To subscribe (free) to a group, you need to send a simple E-mail message to a computer program (think of it as a robot) that keeps track of members and distributes the group's E-mail. Let's use the Society of Professional Journalists' discussion group as an example. Say your name is John Smith, and that your E-mail address is smith@aol.com. Your E-mail message would look like this:

To : listserv@netcom.com

Subject: [Leave this line blank]

Message: Subscribe SPJ-Online

In this case, listserv@netcom.com is the robot that SPJ uses to distribute the group mail. The message Subscribe SPJ-Online is the command telling the robot to add your name to the subscription list and send you any E-mail messages that are posted. There should be nothing else in the message. Note: You may encounter discussion groups that use other mailing programs such as "majordomo" or "mailserv." Their commands are slightly different (some may require you to include your name, for example), so be precise.

Soon after you send your message (in some cases, your request is forwarded to the list owner, who must approve your subscription), you should receive a message confirming that you have been added to the list. For SPJ, this welcome message begins like this:

Be sure to save this message. It also includes instructions on how to post messages to the members of the group and how to get help.

There are other commands you can send to the robot. To get a file that outlines the commands the robot can understand, John Smith would send this message:

To: listserv@netcom.com

Subject: [Again, leave this line blank]

Message: Help

Be careful about where you direct your commands. A common mistake is to send commands meant for the robot to every member of the list. The robot address and the list address are always different.

I'm Ready To Rock. What Do You Suggest?

There are dozens of discussion groups of interest to journalists. Here are two to get started with:

Society of Professional Journalists: General discussion of journalism issues, research tips, current events and research resources.

Subscribers: 414

Address: listserv@netcom.com

Message: Subscribe SPJ-Online

GInvestigative Reporters and Editors: General discussion of investigative reporting techniques, although the conversation gets sidetracked occasionally with ethical debates.

Subscribers : 413 in 14 countries

Address : listserv@mizzou1.missouri.edu

Message: Subscribe IRE-L your name

Got Those. How About Some More?

BEHIND THE CAMERA

National Press Photographers Association: For print and electronic news photographers, editors and students. Discussions range from general photojournalism to ethics to digital imaging software.

Subscribers: 537 in 20 countries

Address : listserv@cmuvm.csv.cmich.edu

Message: Subscribe NPPA-L your name

JUST FOR FUN

BONG (Burned-Out Newspapercreatures Guild) Bull Newsletter: A weekly newsletter compiled by Charles Stough of the Dayton Daily News and filled with topics such as pejoratives given to newspapers (the Boregonian) and arcane skills of newspapering (cropping photos with grease pencils).

Subscribers: 680

Address : listserv@netcom.com

Message: Subscribe Bong-L

GThis Just In: A weekly collection of odd news from the major wire services and other sources compiled and annotated with wry comments by humor writer Randy Cassingham.

Subscribers: several thousand in 51 countries

Address : listserv@netcom.com

Message: Subscribe This-Just-In

BROADCAST NEWS

Broadcast Media: A newsletter compiled by consultant and headhunter Don Fitzpatrick. Includes clippings about the network and local broadcast news industry from major newspapers, news and gossip about reporters and producers, and occasional job postings.

Subscribers: 750

Address: listserv@gitvm1.gatech.edu

Message: Subscribe Shoptalk your name

Radio Media: A daily copy of the Airwaves Radio Journal, which includes discussions and articles about U.S. radio news and broadcasting.

Subscribers: 1,500

Address: subscribe@airwaves.chi.il.us

Message: Place the word "subscribe" in the subject line of your message and leave the body of the message blank.

LOOKING AHEAD

New Information Technologies: Mostly re-posts by list owner Joe Abernathy (senior editor/news at PC World) of new and rediscovered 'Net resources for reporters.

Subscribers: 275

Robot Address: nit-request@chron.com

Message: Subscribe nit 1our E-mail address (your name your affiliation)

Online News: Discussion of online newspapers and magazines, as well as electronic publishing.

Subscribers: 800

Address: majordomo@marketplace.com

Message: Subscribe Online-News your E-mail address

REFINING THE CRAFT

Literary Journalism:  oderated by two-time Pulitzer-winner Jon Franklin, this group includes discussions about teaching the craft and writing longer pieces that draw the reader in.

Subscribers: 200

Address: mailserv@oregon.uoregon.edu

Message: Subscribe Writer-L

Copy Editing: The list is "for copy editors and other defenders of the English language." Recent discussions: shall vs. will, impact vs. affect, compose vs. comprise.

Subscribers: 700

Address : listserv@cornell.edu

Message: Subscribe Copyediting-L your name

Magazines: Discussions about magazine publishing, from editorial practices to technological advances.

Subscribers: 211 in 23 countries

Address: comserve@vm.its.rpi.edu

Message: Subscribe Magazine your name

INVESTIGATORS

Government Resources: Similar to New Information Technologies. Notices of new or rediscovered resources of value to reporters or editors covering various aspects of government.

Subscribers: 1,200 to 1,300

Address: jwarren@well.com

Message: Ask owner Jim Warren, a columnist at MicroTimes and veteran online journalist, to add you to the discussion.

News Research: Discussions among librarians, reporters and editors about news research and resources.

Subscribers: 320

Address: listserv@gibbs.oit.unc.edu

Message: Subscribe newslib your name

Freedom of Information: Started by the National Freedom of Information Coalition for persons working on FOIA issues.

Subscribers: 263

Address: listserv@suvm.syr.edu

Message: Subscribe FOI-L your name

COMPUTER-ASSISTED

REPORTING

Computer-Assisted Reporting and Research: One of the more popular of all the journalism lists, CARR-L includes both academics and working journalists talking about how to find electronic data, what to do with the data, and how to mold it all into a readable story.

Subscribers: 1,720 in 39 countries

Address: listserv@ulkyvm.louisville.edu

Message: Subscribe CARR-L your name

National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting: Based at the University of Missouri, NICAR focuses more narrowly on computer-assisted reporting than CARR-L but isn't as active.

Subscribers: 285 in 14 countries

Address: listserv@mizzou1.missouri.edu

Message: Subscribe NICAR-L your name

JOURNALISM EDUCATION

Student Media: Issues of importance to beginning journalists, mostly at the high school and college levels.

Subscribers: 330 in 11 countries

Address: listserv@uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu

Message: Subscribe Stumedia your name

Journalism Education: Aimed at journalism academics, this list covers just about everything.

Subscribers: 820

Address: listserv@qucdn.queensu.ca

Message: Subscribe Journet your name

Journalism History: Journalists, $istorians and other academics remember the past.

Subscribers: 175

Address: listserv@acfcluster.nyu.edu

Message: Subscribe Jhistory your name

Freedom of Speech: A discussion of the First Amendment and free speech traditions moderated by the American Communication Association.

Subscribers: 330

Address: listserv@uafsysb.uark.edu

Message: Subscribe Amend1-L your name

Hard Copy

l The Online Journalist: Using the Internet and Other Electronic Resources , by Randy Reddick (Harcourt Brace, $16). Instructions and advice aimed at reporters.

l The Internet for Dummies , by John R. Levine and Carol Baroudi (IDG Books, $19.95). A bestselling, plain-English guide to navigating the 'Net.

l Point & Click Internet, by Seth Godin (Peachpit Press, $12.95). A guide to using the Internet via America Online.

Get Me An Expert!

Many reporters use E-mail to track down experts. Two groups offer PR services that connect journalists to sources via electronic mail:

ProfNet: Organized by the State University of New York at Stony Brook, this service links more than 1,200 public relations officers from 660 universities as well as government, medical, business, scientific and nonprofit groups in 16 countries. Reporters looking for experts can send an E-mail request (including your name, organization, address, phone number, deadline and what you're looking for) to profnet@ sunysb.edu.

MediaNet: Similar to ProfNet, although most of its 1,000 subscribers are public relations firms. Journalists' queries are forwarded each day. Send a request that includes your name, organization, a description of what you're after and deadline to Amy Plummer at 71344.2761@compuserve.com.