Welcome to Birks' Classes

Monster jpg

 

This website is for students of Professor Chris Birks at Benedictine University.
This site contains information students need to complete their work.

Chris Birks is an Associate Professor of Communication Arts at Benedictine University where he teaches classes in page/web design, photojournalism and reporting. Before acdemia, Chris was a journalist for 20 years with newspapers in MI., KY., FL. and IL. He's a staunch believer visual storytelling and also that there's no comma before the word "and".

A portfolio of his journalism work can be found at: birksland.com 

 

Reporting

-- COMM 2209 --

AP Style basic help: click here

Background report: Sam Bankman-Fried

Ethics (all): SPJ code

Is this news?: M and M's | Cuoco

Invert pyramid example: click here

Lead and 5wh example: click here

Police report story assignment: click here

Sidebar example: click here

Whistle-blowers: click here

Worksheet: Ethics questions


-- COMM 3337 --

Background report: Rod Blagojevich

The Candor Handbook: click here

Google News Initiative: Jurno main doc | Investigating stories with A.I. | Jurno assignment doc

List of important websites for reporters: click here

How to build an investigative story: Online version | .pdf version

Practice story info: click here

Scripts, Screenplay: Rick and Morty script | Video clip

Scripts, News satire: News stories | Headlines | Comedy: Adopt a dog

Textbook, Investigative Journalist manual: click here

Write a headline, practice: click here

Write a color story, practice: click here

Google Drive Sites

COMM 2208 - Page Design

COMM 2235 - Photojournalism

COMM 2264 - Sports Journalism

COMM 3337 - Investigative Reporting

Artificial Intelligence

A.I. and journalism doc: click here | how to start, doc

A.I. fabricated story: Me story | Watergate

Sports, future of coverage: click here

Goggle: Pinpoint | Bard

OpenAI - ChatGPT4, DALL-E 3: click here

Prompt examples book (class use only): click here

SPJ journalist toolbox, list of AI sources: click here | Media Party handout

Design | Web & Print

Audio clip, Falling: right click here

CSS examples: Floats | Boxer page | Responsive site | Whole page example

Photos that can be used in Photoshop: set 1 | set 2

Photoshop, How to Do Basics video: click here

Website design, examples: COMM 2208

Website design, examples: COMM 3381

-- Sites/books that teach and have code (3381)

Good sites: HTML Dog | W3Schools

Textbooks, Ours: Ours | Another option

Stories

-- COMM 2209 --

Car crash story example (2209): click here

CB stories, Honduras stories (2209): Main bar | Side bar

CB stories, Alex Lowe climber (2209): Alex Lowe

Features example: (2209) Paddelwheel

Full story, Domestic (2209): Story | Doc 1 | Doc 2 | Doc 3


-- COMM 3337 ---

CB stories, color (3337): Chris can | Brodie

Features examples: (3337) Screenwriter | (3337) Horse Rescue

Harvard sexual harass (3337): Story | Lawsuit | Statement | Open letter I | Open letter II

Spotlight original story, (3337): click here

Student final story, red light cameras (3337): click here

Student final story, sex offender (3337): click here


-- COMM 2264 --

Ethics, sports (2264): Social Media

Sox gamer story: click here

The Candor stories

Candor, (2209) racial slur, coach: Main bar | Follow-up

Candor, (2209) student's comments to speaker: click here

Candor, (2209) Abbot Austin releases statement: click here

Candor, (either), adjunct arrested: click here

Candor, (3337) ISIS story: Main bar | Public doc

Candor, (3337) lawsuit: Monk lawsuit

Candor, (3337) monk abuse: story | documents file

Candor, (3337) racial slur, professor: click here

Candor, (3337) budget: click here

Candor, (2264) coach and student: click here

Candor, (2264) Men's Volleyball game story: click here

Candor, (2264) Men's Volleyball preview: click here

Candor, (2264) DII transition: Apply for DII | Move Conferences | Return to DIII

 

 

Public Documents

-- Birks Library of Public Docs --


Fire report, DuPage Co. (2209): click here

Lawsuit, Pepe the Frog (2209): click here

Police report, Drug arrest (2209): click here

Police report (CO)., Argument (2209): click here

 

Aurora Lawsuit (3337): Lawsuit | Story1 | Story II

FOIA letter, OHare (3337): Example | Approved

Jan 6 arrests (3337): Criminal complaint | Supporting docs

Lawsuit, Groupon (3337): click here

People search report (3337): Rod R Blagojevich

Police report, Fake crime assignment (3337): click here

Police report, Car Crash (3337): click here

Police report, Stalking (3337): click here

Police report, Assault (3337): click here

Photography

Adobe Animate, pigeon: Background | Tree | Final video

Photo essays - Final Salute | Flint Jaguars

Photos that can be used in Photoshop: set 1 | set 2

Photoshop, How to Do Basics video: click here

Script Example: click here

Student photo essay examples - Life of a tutor | Day of a Table | Roadblocks to access

Student video (Simple Story I) examples: Track | Playing Pool | Day in the Life

Solutions Journalism: Peace photo story

Textbook, Silk Road book: click here

Video, Dog trainer: click here

 

Jobs, Internships, Etc.

Resume, cover letter and jobs (IMPORTANT): click here

LinkedIn career guide: click here

Student Portfolio examples I: click here

Student Portfolio examples II: click here

 

Monsters courtesy of The Oatmeal

Misc.

Resources II page

Pulitzer Poster info: click here

Where I am From poem (4393): click here