Information Strategies for Communicators (Hansen and Paul)

The definitive text for the information search and evaluation process as practiced by news and strategic communication message producers. Currently used at the University of Minnesota School of Journalism and Mass Communication; JOUR 3004W/V, Information for Mass Communication.

Team Membership Skills

Mass communication professionals almost always work in teams. Different members of the group bring their particular skill sets and competencies to the overall task. Employers expect that each individual understands the role s/he plays and understands how to work collaboratively to accomplish the goals set by supervisors and clients. You will almost certainly begin your career as one member of a larger team and as someone who is responsible for working with a variety of colleagues who have different expertise and different responsibilities. You will be successful if you understand how your contributions to the overall effort fits with others contributions. Your ability to both “manage laterally” and “manage up” will help your colleagues and superiors understand and acknowledge the role you are playing in the team effort.

Values for Success

Another list of what employers look for comes from About.com’s article on internships. This is oriented a bit differently from the previous lists in that it identifies “values” that employees possess that are of importance to employers. It includes:

• Strong work ethic
• Dependability and responsibility
• Possessing a positive attitude
• Adaptability
• Self motivation
• Self confidence

Two other personal attributes are vital to maintaining the ethical and legal standards in your communications work. They are:

• Honesty and integrity
• Professionalism

In Lesson 7 we will be discussing how to evaluate the ethical and legal considerations you must keep in mind as you begin your information strategy work.

As for the personality traits and attitudes discussed in this lesson, it is important for you to do an honest self-assessment of where your own strengths lie, and where there might be the need for an attitude adjustment. Learning now which personality skills you have and which you need to work on will help ensure your success both in the classroom and on the job.

Information for Messages

Communicators perform two basic tasks: they gather and evaluate information, and they create messages. This course focuses on the information strategy skills communicators must hone to find the information they need to form effective messages.

Media messages take myriad forms and serve different functions. In this lesson we will discuss the variety of media message types.

To get started, answer this – which of the following is not a media message?