Stringer (journalism)
Injournalism,astringeris afreelancejournalist,photographer,orvideographerwho contributes reports, photos, or videos to anews organizationon an ongoing basis but is paid individually for each piece of published or broadcast work.[2][3]
Asfreelancers,stringers do not receive a regular salary and the amount and type of work is typically at their discretion. However, stringers often have an ongoing relationship with one or more news organizations, to which they provide content on particular topics or locations when the opportunities arise.[4]
Etymology and use
[edit]In a journalistic context, the etymology of the word is uncertain. It is said that newspapers once paid such freelancer journalists per inch of printed text they generated, and that they used string to measure and bill their work. The theory given in theOxford English Dictionaryis that a stringer is a person who strings words together.[5]
The term is typically confined to news industryjargon.In print or in broadcast terms, stringers are sometimes referred to ascorrespondentsor contributors. At other times, they may not receive any public recognition for the work they have contributed.
Areporteror photographer can "string" for anews organizationin a number of different capacities and with varying degrees of regularity, so that the relationship between the organization and the stringer is typically very loose. When it is difficult for a staff reporter or photographer to reach a location quickly for breaking news stories, larger news organizations often rely on local stringers to provide rapid scene descriptions, quotations or photos.[2]In this capacity, stringers are used heavily by most television news organizations and some print publications for video footage, photos, and interviews.
Portrayal in popular media
[edit]- Peter Parker (Spider-Man) is depicted in comics, movies, and various other media as a stringer who captures and sells the pictures to local news, most notably theDaily Bugle.
- Joe Pesciplays Leon Bernstein, a stringer for tabloids in New York, in the 1992 filmThe Public Eye.[6]
- Conner Foster plays Eric Hayes, a stringer who discovers gruesome atrocities, in the 2003 filmThe Ghouls.[6]
- Lou Bloom, played byJake Gyllenhaalin the 2014 filmNightcrawler,is a stringer.[6]
- The 2017Netflixseries,Shot in the Dark,follows a group of stringers in Los Angeles, California.[6]
- The 2021BBCdocumentaryWhirlybird: Live Above LA.[7]
- Clark Kent (Superman) at the end ofMan of Steel(2013). Clark (Henry Cavill) is introduced to the staff of theDaily Planetby editor Perry White, "This is Clark Kent, our new stringer, show him the ropes."
See also
[edit]
References
[edit]- ^"Portrait Of American Bank Robbers And Lovers Clyde Barrow… News Photo | Getty Images | 3248806".Getty Images. 1933-01-01.Retrieved2013-11-22.
- ^ab"Handbook of Journalism: Dealing with stringers".Reuters.Retrieved2012-09-07.
- ^Kent, Ruth Kimball (1971).The Language of Journalism: A Glossary of Print-communications Terms.Kent State University Press.ISBN978-0-87338-091-1.
- ^Bank, David; Peter Leyden (October 1991)."Be A Stringer See The World".American Journalism Review.Retrieved2012-09-07.
- ^Sterling, Christopher H. (2009-09-25).Encyclopedia of journalism. 6. Appendices.SAGE.ISBN978-0-7619-2957-4.
- ^abcdLindahl, Chris (August 20, 2019)."'Nightcrawler' Lawsuit: Judge Says There's Too Many Stringer Films For Copyright Claim ".
- ^"Whirlybird: Live Above LA".www.bbc.co.uk.Retrieved2021-05-02.
