TRABAJO PRCTICO N 5

TEXTO: NIBLOCK, SARAH (2007). What is Reflective Practice in Journalism. From

Knowing How to Being Able. Journalism Practice, Vol. 1:1 Publisher: Routledge,
London, pp.24-26.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17512780601078829

1-Lea el ttulo, los datos bibliogrficos y la primera oracin de cada uno de los prrafos.
Reflexione sobre el posible contenido del texto.

2-Desarrolle las perspectivas de Ryle, Anscombe y Aristteles al abordar el conocimiento

prctico.

3-Interprete la cita de Sheridan Burns en el primer prrafo.

4-Cul es la propuesta de Burns? Por qu se afirma que su trabajo representa una

importante contribucin a los estudios de periodismo?

5-Cules son los dos conceptos planteados por Schn? Qu implican los mismos cuando
se aplican al periodismo?

6-Qu se propusieron Machin y Niblock con su libro?

7- Descubra el referente de lo subrayado en el tercer prrafo.

8-De qu manera se determinan los cargos jerrquicos en las salas de redaccin?

9-Qu argumentan Schn y Burns?

10-La reflexin implcita en la accin presenta aspectos positivos y negativos.

Desarrllelos.

11-Explique las ideas vinculadas por But en el cuarto prrafo.

12-Interprete la cita de Burns en el quinto prrafo.

13-Explique las ideas vinculadas por Rather en el quinto prrafo.

14-Descubra el referente de lo subrayado en el sexto prrafo.

15-Explique las ideas vinculadas por Consequently en el sexto prrafo.

16-Identifique los ncleos temticos y elabore un resumen del texto en no ms de 300

palabras.
What is Reflective Practice in Journalism?
1
Discussions of practical knowledge which seek to illuminate the intelligence inherent in
action have their roots in philosophical traditions originating in Aristotle, and more recently
in the work of the Austrian philosopher Wittgenstein. More recently, the British
philosophers of the mind Gilbert Ryle (1949) and G. E. M. Anscombe (1963) both, in
separate ways, sought to contest the prevalent notion that intention, action and reasoning
must be consequential to a body of knowledge. Their contention was with the dominance of
knowledge-based epistemologies and logical models rooted in theory. Aristotle envisioned
practical knowledge as a form of insight inherent in what we do, as opposed to theoretical
knowledge, which is insight about the world (Carr, 1978, p. 8). Utilising this model, Ryle
(1949) rejected the dualism between mind and body, explaining that knowing how to
perform an action skillfully is about thinking logically and practically rather than as a
consequence of theoretical reasoning. According to Ryle (1949, p. 30): Efficient practice
precedes the theory of it; methodologies presuppose the application of the methods, of the
critical investigation of which they are the products. To apply this model to journalism, it
can be argued that the trainee knows how to repeat the procedures that are customary in the
newsroom. For Ryle, the state of being able to fulfill a task, such as being a news reporter,
is the next stage of knowledge whereby the seasoned practitioner has the scope to select
appropriate strategies from the benefit of experience. Or as, more recently, journalist and
academic Lynette Sheridan Burns has pointed out specifically in relation to journalism
practice, a journalist who is conscious of and understands the active decisions that make
up daily practice is best prepared to negotiate the challenges involved (2003, p. 11).
2
Sheridan Burns proposes that each journalist has some power to act responsibly and
thoughtfully, through careful decision-making (2003, p. 11). Her work has made an
important contribution to journalism studies by encapsulating the practice first notion
without in any way detracting from the power of the thought processes that go into that
practice. In undertaking her study, which sets out to illuminate reflective strategies implicit
in everyday newsgathering scenarios, she is mindful of Donald Schns attempts to bring
reflection into the centre of an understanding of what practitioners do. The introduction to
Schns book, The Reflective Practitioner (1983), states that he is wishing to explore
decision-making in a new way, so that knowledge inherent in practice can be recognized
and understood. He distinguishes between two concepts: reflection-in-action and reflection-
on-action. If we apply these concepts to news journalism, the first notion could denote
thinking on our feet, including our hunches about story angle, choice of picture, and
which sources will best interpret events. Schn explained:

The practitioner allows himself to experience surprise, puzzlement, or confusion in

a situation which he finds uncertain or unique. He reflects on the phenomenon
before him, and on the prior understandings which have been implicit in his
behaviour. He carries out an experiment which serves to generate both a new
understanding of the phenomenon and a change in the situation. (1983, p. 68)
3
Reflection-on-action is performed after the event, perhaps through a reporter reading back
his own story after it has been subbed. This allows the journalist to develop a set of internal
questions and new strategies that might be applied to improve their performance next time.
This process was very apparent when the author was undertaking research for a new book.
The theme of the book, News Production: theory and practice (Machin and Niblock, 2006)
is to encourage journalists to reflect upon their actions within the news-making process to
ascertain to what extent they confirm or contradict prominent theories about journalism. It
became apparent that while news journalists have a remit to look forward and anticipate the
next news cycle, a good deal of their previous experience is brought to bear upon
subsequent judgements. Hierarchical ranks of seniority in most mainstream newsrooms are
based on longevity of experience; being able to do good journalism as opposed to
simply knowing how develops through immersion in experience rather than by
possessing a body of pre-existing knowledge about how journalism should be. Schn
(1983, p. 36) argues that it is wrong to separate thinking from doing because reflection is
complementary to action and part of it. In this way, critical reflection should not be seen as
a threat to journalistic immediacy and rigour, according to Sheridan Burns:

Instead of relying on theoretical knowledge to explain everything, the reflective

practitioner is constantly testing ideas against practical experience. Instead of
making problems fit existing categories, the reflective practitioner constructs the
categories that will enable him or her to find a suitable response. (2003, p. 13)
4
This practice-led approach, whereby reflection is implicit in action, is helpful in exposing
how the practical act of thinking on your feet in a journalism setting is in fact the
enactment of a sophisticated process of judgement borne out of experience. It assists by
countering any suggestion that the journalist does not think, they just do. But of itself
the acknowledgement that there is reflection-in-action taking place editorially does not
automatically assist the journalism researcher. One of the problems with models of
reflection is that they do not always specify clearly enough the nature or the depth of
reflection. Furthermore, to downplay or reject the presence of a pre-existing body of
knowledge even in a pragmatic field such as journalism presents contradictions. White
(1982), for instance, disputes that simply because the rules for the practice may not be
overtly visible, it does not mean necessarily that they are not in existence. The authors own
research into reflective practice shows that the development of trainees skills in the
newsroom tends to centre on direct and indirect verbal cues from senior staff, rather than
through formal briefing and instruction (Machin and Niblock, 2006, p. 172). But, best
practice methods for news reporting could not have been devised unless someone had first
learned to report successfully.
5
Sheridan Burns takes the notion of reflective practitioner a step further by positing that
journalists need to be cognisant of the wider context within which they report: Reflection
is also the process by which journalists learn to recognize their own assumptions and
understand their place in the wider social context (2003, p. 33). As a journalist and
academic, Sheridan Burns work on journalism and pedagogy is very helpful in attempting
to synthesise theoretical with practical considerations to enable effective editorial decision-
making. She provides a critical overview of reflection-in-action in journalism before
guiding the practitioner through methods to apply careful decisionmaking in everyday
journalism scenarios. Actions are not endowed with theoretical explanations in Sheridan
Burns work, though she does remind the reader of some critical concerns particularly in
relation to ethics. Rather, it serves to demonstrate the notion that practice is in itself the
embodiment and manifestation of research and its outcome, as long as it is done
thoughtfully.
6
In this way, it can be deduced that reflection-in-action and being able is, for the journalist,
less about gut instinct than a more complex, internalised process informed by a range of
factors, both external and internal (Machin and Niblock, 2006, pp. 5_8). This is not to say
that being conscious of those factors precludes split-second editorial decisionmaking.
Rather, it enables it. The crux of this approach is that a reflective journalist is one who can
make confident editorial judgements that are informed by a strong awareness of their role in
society. Consequently, they can anticipate and effectively negotiate a dynamic and
evolving context for journalism production and reception.