NEWS 409 Lecture 31: What does off the record really mean notes
26 Feb 2019
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What does off the record really mean notes. Politicians who insisted an on-the-record comment was actually off the record. (it was not. ) Politicians who acknowledged that, yes, they"d said the thing they said, but what if we pretended they hadn"t? (not how this works. ) Politicians who promised unspecified future scoops, if only i"d convert their ill-advised comments from on the record to off the record. (no deal. ) As a general principle, a reporter"s best course of action is to establish jargon-free parameters in plain english at the start: But among those who have long dealt with the news media, like politicians and their charges, there is occasionally a sort of shorthand for these questions. Below, you"ll find a brief primer on the kinds of conversations journalists have with sources and the kinds of conversations we have about those conversations. On the record: this is the easy one and a journalist"s strong preference at all times.
