Logo

Synopsis From 1832 to 1866 journalism and the wider culture had moved from a religious and philosophical paradigm to one of 'naive empiricism' and scientific method. But the infinite nuances that words allow keep journalism as much an art as a science, much like cartography in the age of exploration. Journalism is our modern cartography. It creates a map for citizens to navigate society. That is its utility and its economic reason for being. Replace journalism with technical communication and the sentence still holds true. Journalists, like technical communicators, must adapt their writing to various audiences. Most newspapers assume readers have at least an eighth grade education and never assume that readers know the background of the day's news. Freelance magazine writers must stay nimble, changing their style, tone, and vocabulary for whatever audience her or she is presenting