Michael Higgins
I'm a Senior Lecturer in Journalism and English at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, UK.
Location Glasgow, UK
Activity
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Michael Higgins replied to Alice Tucker
I have just one. Always thank and be courteous and fair to your contacts, and they will recommend you to those they know.
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Michael Higgins replied to Stefan Danisovsky
If they ask, and there is no reason to withhold the questions, then send them if you wish. Always retain the right to ask supplementary questions though.
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Michael Higgins replied to Opio Isaac
Thank you, Opio, on behalf of myself and my colleagues.
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Michael Higgins replied to Pat Davies
Yes, it will remain for you to access, Pat.
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Michael Higgins replied to Owera Dan Fred
Thank you, Owera. We really appreciate that.
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Michael Higgins replied to Viktoria Lymar
No question is a wasted question. I think FutureLearn are the best people to respond to that though.
As to Google replacing Professors... Google provides the answers, but education teaches us the questions to ask, and then helps us to use the answers properly. :-)
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Michael Higgins replied to Nicholas Rossiter
Journalists, quite understandably, can be reluctant to get into long discussions with those who are simply dead-set against their take on a story. It is not always because the journalists do not have the answers, but simply that they do not have the time.
I agree with you, journalists must often be tempted to respond (and some do).
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Michael Higgins replied to Joana Taborda
Hi Joana. We'll be looking at style later. Looking forward to your contribution.
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Michael Higgins replied to Pascale Privey
That is why it is such a difficult job at times!
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Michael Higgins replied to Ange white
Hello Ange. In formal terms and in the UK setting, journalists are subject to the law in the same way as the rest of us. For example, the hacking of phones is contrary to communications legislation, and any alleged offender would be subject to prosecution irrespective of their profession. (See...
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Michael Higgins replied to Jemma Byrne
Start by emailing or phoning politely and asking for an interview. You'll be surprised at how many yeses you'll get.
And if you see someone, say hello and give them your card.
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Michael Higgins replied to Roxanne levy
Start in the middle rather than at the beginning. Start with the one sentence you know needs to go in there. That's how I begin an academic piece.
Others might have other tips. I'd like to know them myself, sometimes!
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Michael Higgins replied to Peter Fluck
Ideally, yes.
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Michael Higgins replied to David The'Second
It's an interesting question, David. Content analyses of news content, starting with a classic study by Galtung and Ruge in the early sixties, have always found "negative news" to be more attractive than positive. We can see how that might be justifiable, such that we need to know about threats in order to preserve our well-being, but it is a worthwhile...
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Michael Higgins replied to Melissa Chambers
Blogging has an important role. And I can tell you that is a GREAT course!
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Michael Higgins replied to Philip Brain
[contd]
3. In some national settings, this is also manifest as the confrontational interviewer. I've called this type "the public inquisitor" and my friend and colleague at UCLA Steven Clayman describes them as "tribunes of the people". -
Michael Higgins replied to Philip Brain
I spoke about avoiding bias above. It is true to say that the "national interest" is a bias in itself. Some time ago, I wrote about the criticisms that Kate Adie's excellent reports from Tripoli, after the US bombing of the city, received on the basis that they were not sufficiently attentive to the national interest: extraordinarily, attacked for not being...
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Michael Higgins replied to Elizabeth Hawkins
We are doing interviewing in the course, Elizabeth, so I don't want to steal my colleague's thunder. There is rarely an obligation, unless agreed in advance, to show the subject of an interview a copy of the article for approval. The words of the interviewee should always be dealt with truthfully and placed in context in order that no complaint should arise.
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Michael Higgins replied to Israel Flores
These are extremely important matters, Israel and Christopher. My colleague Dr Sallyann Duncan has particular expertise in this area, so I'll ask her to say more on this later.
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Michael Higgins replied to Siarhei Vishneuski
You make a very important point, Siarhei. A free press is the cornerstone of a democracy.
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Michael Higgins replied to Sophie Buchan
Digital media is the new thing, and will have a great influence over the direction of news. But it is not yet the only thing: and we will always need great journalists whatever the platform happens to be.
We will also need to pay them, if we want them to perform to their full capacity.
News organisations haven't quite mastered the art of drawing...
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Michael Higgins replied to [Learner left FutureLearn]
[contd]
As to how journalists should respond to serious accusations of bias: with the facts, and with a demonstrable commitment to balance where appropriate.As to less serious accusations of bias, most journalists are only too willing to engage in constructive discussion over the direction of their work. They also know that they will never please...
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Michael Higgins replied to [Learner left FutureLearn]
Thanks Yumonosan and Trevor for bringing up this most interesting of questions!
I'm not sure there is quite the level of "dislike" of "mainstream media" that is commonly supposed. There is occasional frustration at what it is labelled as poor, irresponsible or, and this is a word we should use advisedly, "biased" news content. More often than not,...
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Michael Higgins replied to Mary Mckeown
Hello Mary. That very much depends on whether you are working exclusively for an news organisation when you put the story together. Inevitably stories get "spiked" (or otherwise not used) for various reasons. Law differs from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and this relates to Dominique's point, but it is always best to explicitly assert your copyright and...
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Thank you for taking part, Nikita.
Michael
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And we are glad you did as well, Gabriel!
Michael
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Michael Higgins replied to gef ferry
Thank, Gef.
Michael
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Thank you, Caitlyn. Your teenage years are an ideal time to get started. Good luck!
Michael
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Thanks, Sandra. I hope we've inspired you to keep writing!
Michael
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Thanks, Kirsty. And very good luck with your studies!
Michael
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Thanks, Alberto. We enjoyed it too.
Michael
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Thanks, Darren. That interaction is exactly what we set out to achieve, so I'm glad you thought that worked well. And we enjoyed putting the material together and working with the participants, while maintaining an appropriate standard of work, so I'm glad that came across so well.
Michael
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That's very kind, Emily. We have our brilliant web and IT team to thank for that.
Michael
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Thank you, Hocine. :-)
Michael
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Michael Higgins replied to Julie C
Thank you, Julie. We appreciate that.
Michael
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Thank you, Cheryl. And thanks to you and the other participants for making it such a rewarding experience for everyone.
Michael
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That is very kind, Sunday. Thank you.
Michael
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We're glad you participated, Kemoh.
Michael
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And thank you, Chris.
Michael
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Thank you, Janet. And that is wonderfully put.
Michael
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Michael Higgins replied to Md Yasin
Thanks, Md. We feel much the same. It is a real privilege.
Michael
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Thanks, Ann. And I think the consensus is: never too old to start enlightening others.
Michael
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Michael Higgins replied to Jan S
And thanks to you for participating, Janet.
Michael
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Thank you, Judith.
Michael
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Thanks, Christopher. There are some great courses out there. I would recommend Strathclyde's Forensic Science course. It was enormously popular the first time around, and is about to be released for the second edition.
And perhaps you might even think about how you would cover their unfolding scenario as a journalist!
Michael
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Thank you, Tchinhoula.
Michael
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And thanks from us, Glenda.
Michael
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Thanks, Marc. I'd glad you were able to navigate the Scottish accent. We are very proud of it, but it can be a challenge at times.
Michael
