Procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in the Vietnamese editorial offices today

lism operational methods and skills; role playing, collecting materials in investigative journalism activities; ethical issues, legal corridors related to investigative journalists, steps to conduct the investigative articles... The overall research results are the process of searching and analyzing information related to the topic "Procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in Vietnamese editorial offices today" to give the overview of the values that previous works achieved, as well as the starting point to define research tasks and research orientations for the PhD thesis. Based on the study of the above typical scientific works, it can be affirmed that so far, there has not been any scientific work that clarifies the issue of the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in Vietnamese editorial offices today. Based on the systematization of theory and analysis of practical factors influencing on /affecting to procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in press agencies, the PhD thesis builds a theoretical framework for research issues, which focus on clarifying the theory of procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in the press agencies in our country today. Chapter 1 THEORETICAL BASIS AND PRACTICAL BASIS MATTER OF PROCEDURE OF ORGANIZING AND IMPLEMENTING THE LINE OF INVESTIGATIVE ARTICLES IN EDITORIAL OFFICES 11 Conducting research in chapter 1, the PhD thesis focuses on two major issues: Theoretical basis for procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in editorial offices and Practical basis for procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in editorial offices in which details include: 1.1. Theoretical basis for procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in editorial offices The research on the theoretical basis of the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in editorial offices, the PhD thesis clarified the related research concepts such as investigation, investigative journalism, investigative articles, line of investigative articles ... (pages 39, 45, 46). In particular, in terms of the concept of "line of investigative articles", the author argues that the line of investigative articles will include at least 2 investigative journalistic works and may be accompanied with another categories, linked according to a specific characteristics on content, focus around an issue, a topic, an audience, and often appear on one or more issues in one or more consecutive issues of newspaper, maybe for a number of days or for weekly, monthly or yearly period. These works reflect the facts, phenomena, people in "problematic situations", the information has a lot of contradictions, many contradictions, through analysis, explanation, evidence, journalists clarifying the causes, results or development directions of that incidents, phenomena and persons. Regarding the concept of editorial offices, and subjects participating in the investigation procedure, the PhD thesis has clarified that the editorial office is another way of the press agency. According to Article 16 of the Press Law 2016, press agencies are the mouthpiece of agencies and organizations prescribed in Article 14 of this Law, implementing one or some types of press, having one or several press products (print, radio, television and electronic press). Subjects participating in the investigative journalism procedure include: (1). Authors, groups of authors of investigative journalistic works; (2). Editorial board, especially the head of the editorial board of a newspaper / television / radio station; (3). The general secretary of the editorial office and the editorial office 12 secretariat; (4). The reader or department is responsible for receiving and responding to public feedback (5). The professional department that manages the investigative projects (if any) or the head of the management department of the investigative reporters (6). Legal advice and professional consultancy department Besides, the PhD thesis also clarified the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles. Accordingly, the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in the editorial offices is an official and compulsory regulation of the Editorial Board of the the editorial office about the corresponding steps, stages, jobs and job position; order and coordination between subjects when organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in order to meet the objectives of the editorial offices. In essence, this is the procedure of organizing and implementing the investigative projects with the output of the line of investigative articles published to the public. In addition, in this content, the PhD thesis also clarifies related issues such as content, method, steps in the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles. In addition, in order to clarify issues related to the theoretical basis of the research issue, the PhD thesis has pointed out the following issues: The role of investigative journalism, the line of investigative articles and the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles; Content, issues of formulating, implementing, and monitoring the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles; Principles and requirements for procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in the editorial offices. These are all core concepts and issues for the PhD thesis to conduct a survey of the next steps. 1.2. Practical basis of the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in editorial offices Researching on the practical basis of the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in editorial offices, the PhD thesis has pointed out the main issues such as: Factors affecting the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in editorial offices; Investigative 13 journalism in the world; Investigative journalism in Vietnam. Among the factors affecting the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in editorial offices, the PhD thesis has clearly defined the contents such as: The Party's views and guidelines related to investigative journalism. ; Vietnam's legal system related to investigative journalism; Political, economic and social factors; Strategy, awareness, capacity, mechanism and resources of the editorial offices. These are important factors for the PhD thesis to organize the survey in the following sections. In addition, under this part, the thesis also shows the practical basis of editorial offices in Vietnam and the world. These contents have strengthened good bases for the thesis to survey and evaluate the research results more favorable. Sub-conclusion of chapter 1 In summary, in chapter 1, in order to implement well the research case, the PhD thesis presented the theoretical and practical basis of the research issue. In particular, on the theoretical basis, the PhD thesis has explored the basic theoretical systems directly related to the research topic, clarified the content, the scope of some basic concepts as well as the way of using the concept in research issue. At the same time, the PhD thesis considers the role of investigative journalism in social life as well as the role of the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in editorial offices, as well as the requirements in the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in all aspects is to provide basic knowledge about the Party's views and guilines, the legal system related to the press. Practical basis for raising and solving practical issues of the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in present Vietnamese press agencies. Factors affecting the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles include: the legal undertakings and policies of the Party and the State on investigative journalism, the legal system related to the investigative journalism (Press Law, Civil Law, Criminal Law, Economic Law, etc.); The appearance of investigative journalism in the world as well as in Vietnam. The above theoretical and practice basis requires a specific, detailed and 14 complete procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles that will support and create a frame for the investigative journalists to implement tasks more conveniently to minimize operational difficulties. On the other hand, these are the basis for conducting research and analyzing survey data on the actual situation of posting the line of investigative articles, the current status of the procedure of organization and implementation and withdrawing conclusions, proposing solutions for research issues given in the next chapters. Chapter 2 CURRENT STATUS OF LINE OF INVESTIGATIVE ARTICLES IN VIETNAMESE EDITORIAL OFFICES TODAY Conducting research in chapter 2, the PhD thesis focuses on four major issues: Introduction of newspapers surveyed; Contents of the line of investigative articles; Methods for posting the line of investigative articles; Evaluating the status of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles according to the survey field. 2.1. Giới thiệu các tờ báo thuộc diện khảo sát Introducing the newspapers surveyed In this part, the PhD thesis has introduced the following contents: the year of establishment, organizational structure, number of publications, pages, categories, issues, and generalizing the strengths of conducting the line of investigative articles of Nhan Dan Newspaper, Hanoimoi Newspaper, Tuoi Tre Newspaper, Ho Chi Minh City Law Newspaper, Tien Phong Newspaper, Dan Tri Newspaper. 2.2. Introducing the newspapers surveyed Among the 5 basic content groups of the investigative journalism, the line of investigative articles in 7 newspapers mentioned the most about the topic of investigating social-life crimes. Anti-corruption investigations and investigations of economic crimes and trade frauds are similar rate. The lowest rate belongs to the content of investigating historical secrets or important figures of public interest. Regarding the theme and topic of the line of investigative articles (section 2.2.1), the PhD thesis has specific evidence. Table 2.1: Comparison of themes/ topics of the line of investigative articles among 7 newspapers (%) 15 Content Newspaper A Newspaper B Newspaper C Newspaper D Newspaper E Newspaper G Newspaper H 1. Anti-corruption investigations 16.7 23.1 22.2 16.7 28.5 33.3 14.3 2. Investigations of economic crimes and trade frauds 25 15.3 22.2 16.7 16.7 33.3 14.3 3. Investigations to detect environmental violations 8.3 7.6 11.1 0 16.7 0 14.3 4. Investigations of social-life crimes 33.3 30.7 33.4 50 38.1 33.3 57.1 5. Investigations of historical secrets or important figures of public interest 0 7.6 0 0 0 0 0 6. Other themes/ topics 16.7 15.7 11.1 16.6 0 0 0 Source: Survey by the author in 2017 In addition, the system of data and evidence (section 2.2.2) has been surveyed, synthesized and confirmed by the PhD thesis, the use of materials and data in the line of investigative articles is extremely important. They act as evidence, contributing to the persuasion of the arguments, reasoning and opinion of the press. According to the survey, the highest rate of using photographs of the scene, providing witnesses or figures and statistics. Legal documents are the basis for making opinions, conclusions on the level of violations, or confirming the seriousness of the issue to be reflected at a lower proportion. Table 2.2: Comparison of evidence factors in the line of investigative articles between 7 newspapers (%) Newspaper A Newspaper B Newspaper C Newspaper D Newspaper E Newspaper G Newspaper H 1. Photos taken at the scene of the incident 14.3 26.1 27.6 16.7 22.2 13.2 20.9 2. Numbers, statistics 11.1 10.9 21.0 17.8 22.7 9.3 19.1 3. Legal documents 10.6 15.2 11.7 0 16.4 0 13.4 4. Declaration of witnesses 12.7 21.7 21.0 16.7 28.9 12.5 18.2 5. Other factors 51.3 26.1 25.3 48.8 9.8 65 28.4 Source: Survey by the author in 2017 The statistics in the investigative articles are often studied and verified carefully to identify the true figures behind the virtual figures. Figure 2.1: Source of information supply for all investigative articles (%) 16 Source: Survey by the author in 2017 2.3. Methods for posting the line of investigative articles Regarding the method of posting the line of investigative articles, the PhD thesis has conducted surveys of two contents: quantity (section 2.3.1) and frequency (section 2.3.2): - Quantity: Table 2.3: Number of investigative articles in 7 newspapers surveyed Editorial offices Newspaper A Newspaper B Newspaper C Newspaper D Newspaper E Newspaper G Newspaper H investigative articles 63 46 29 29 45 7 49 Line of investigative articles 14 16 11 7 9 4 7 Percentage of the line of investigative articles / investigative articles 22.2% 34.8% 37.9% 24.1% 20% 57.1% 14.3% Source: Survey by the author in 2017 - Frequency: Figure 2.1: Number of posting issues of line of investigative articles (%) No clear basis Series 1, from the complaint letter of the person affected by the misconduct, 25.6 Series 1, from private sources, the general public, interested people, 20.5 Series 1, from detailed legal document, 2.6 Series 1, from the misleading statistics and reports of organizations ,0 17 Source: Survey by the author in 2017 Table 2.3: Comparison of number of posting issues of the line of investigative articles among 7 newspapers Newspaper A Newspaper B Newspaper C Newspaper D Newspaper E Newspaper G Newspaper H All 7 newspapers 1. Two issues 58.3 61.5 55.6 100 57.1 100 57.1 61.5 2. Three issues 16.7 30.8 22.2 0 42.9 0 28.6 23.1 3. Four issues or more 25.0 7.7 22.2 0 0 0 14.3 15.4 Source: Survey by the author in 2017 The results show that the frequency of the line of investigative articles has increased at some time points when the society has more pressing issues. About 60% of the line of investigative articles lasts the two posting issues. Especially, 15.4% lasts from four issues or more. - Categories: Table 2.4: Categories used in the line of investigative articles Newspaper A Newspaper B Newspaper C Newspaper D Newspaper E Newspaper G Newspaper H Analysis, commentary articles 16.3 8.7 17.9 5.3 Reportage articles 3.8 27.2 10.8 6.6 28.5 Series1, 4 issues or more, 15.4, 15% Series1, 3 issues, 23.1, 23% Series1, 2 issues, 61.5, 62% 18 Investigative articles 70.4 59.9 53.6 67.7 47.8 67.7 42.8 Investigative reportage articles 5.4 2.0 15.7 33.3 25.6 33.3 10.7 Other categories 4.1 2.2 20 14.7 18 Source: Survey by the author in 2017 - The author's role is shown in the line of investigative articles: Table 2.5: Comparison of author information presented in the line of investigative articles among 7 newspapers (%) Newspaper A Newspaper B Newspaper C Newspaper D Newspaper E Newspaper G Newspaper H All 7 newspapers a- About the individual and collective roles 1. An author 16.7 7.7 33.3 100 28.6 66.7 55.6 41.0 2. Group of authors 83.3 92.3 55.6 0 57.1 33.3 33.3 53.8 3. Unknown 0 0 11.1 0 14.3 0 11.1 5.2 b- About using names and pseudonyms 1. Personal pseudonyms 91.7 53.8 88.9 100 57.1 100 53.8 79.5 2. Refer collectively to as the group of reporters 8.3 46.2 11.1 0 42.9 0 46.2 20.5 Source: Survey by the author in 2017 2.4. Evaluating the current status of organization and implementation of the line of investigative articles according to the survey field 2.4.1. Evaluating the current status of organization of the line of investigative articles according to the survey field To be able to analyze the organization activities of the line of investigative 19 articles only through content analysis is not easy. Based on the objective factors shown in each line of investigative articles and each article, the author analyzes the organization of the the line of investigative articles through criteria on the ability and quality of the line of investigative articles achieved in all 7 newspapers. The results are obtained at a relative level. All 17 evaluation indicators have a low score being 5 scores. These scores are calculated and aggregated through SPSS data processing software that the author uses to analyze quantitative data sets with the help of sociologists. In terms of: Skills in using newspaper language, Logic of dividing the issues of the line of investigative articles, Language of investigative journalistic works. Most of the 7 newspapers have pretty good quality or the best quality. These are factors that evaluate the operation of the line of investigative articles. The groups of criteria shown lowest is to meet the legal requirements of investigative journalistic works. Figure 2.2: Evaluation of organization of the line of investigative articles (%) Source: Survey by the author in 2017 Skills in using journalistic language Logic of dividing the issues of the line of investigative articles Language of investigative journalistic works Satisfy the requirements of newspaper ethics and accountability of investigative journalism Content: discovery, ground, fact, theoretical point Interactivity with sources of information, characters Labor quality of investigate journalists Outline of investigated newspaper works Select the appropriate category Theme, topic Satisfy the requirements of objectivity, multi- dimension in identification and analysis, evaluation of events Impact effectiveness of line of investigate articles Quality and reasonableness of evidence in the investigation Satisfy the in-depth requirements identifying, analyzing, evaluating events, issues Satisfy requirements on source of information and safety of source of information supplied to investigative newspaper Interactive ability to public newspaper Satisfy requirements on the legality of the investigative journalism work 20 2.4.2. Evaluating the current status of implementation of the line of investigative articles according to the survey field Table 2.6: Evaluating the implementation of the line of investigative articles according to the survey field(%) No. Evaluation content Newspaper A Newspaper B Newspaper C Newspaper D Newspaper E Newspaper G Newspaper H 1. Themes, topics 5.0 4.7 4.5 4.0 4.75 3.8 4.3 2. Content: discoverability, arguments, demonstration, points 5.0 4.25 4.75 4.0 5.0 3.8 4.1 3. Meeting the requirements of objectivity, multi- dimensional in identifying and analyzing, evaluating events, characters, issues 4.92 4.78 4.38 4.0 5.0 3.9 4.2 4. Meeting the requirements of the in-depth of identifying and analyzing, evaluating events, characters, issues 5.0 3.48 4.13 4.0 4.75 3.9 4.7 5. Labor quality of investigative journalists 4.92 4.86 4.75 4.0 5.0 3.9 4.3 6. Quality and validity of evidence cited in the investigation 4.92 3.2 4.5 3.0 4.75 3.1 4.2 7. Meeting the legal requirements of investigative journalistic works 4.83 3.52 3.88 3.0 5.0 3.0 3.7 8. Meeting the requirements of journalistic ethics and social 5.0 4.95 4.75 4.0 5.0 3.8 4.4 21 responsibility of investigative journalism 9. Meeting the requirements of information sources and the safety of the information source provided to the investigative journalism 4.92 3.14 4.0 3.0 4.75 2.9 3.1 10. Interoperability with information sources and characters 4.92 3.37 4.75 4.0 5.0 3.8 4.2 11. Choosing the right categories 5.0 3.58 4.5 4.0 5.0 3.5 4.1 12. Interoperability with the press public 5.0 3.68 3.88 4.0 4.75 3.8 3.5 13. Skills in using journalistic language 4.83 5.0 4.88 4.0 5.0 3.9 3.9 14. Layout of investigative journalistic works 5.0 5.0 4.63 4.0 4.75 3.8 4.0 15. Language of investigative journalistic works 4.92 4.63 4.88 4.0 5.0 3.8 4.1 16. Logic of dividing the issues of the line of investigative articles 5.0 5.0 4.63 5.0 5.0 4.3 4.5 17. Effective impact of the line of investigative articles 4.17 4.12 4.14 4.0 4.38 3.4 4.1 Source: Survey by the author in 2017 2.4.3. Evaluating the current situation to meet the requirements of the procedure of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in editorial offices Figure 2.3: Evaluating journalistic skills shown in the line of investigative articles (%) 22 Source: Survey by the author in 2017 When comparing between 7 newspapers, newspaper E is still recognized for the highest professional capacity in the line of investigative articles. Table 2.7: Comparison of evaluating journalism skills as shown in the line of investigative articles between 7 newspapers (%) No. Professional skills of investigative journalism Newspaper A Newspaper B Newspaper C Newspaper D Newspaper E Newspaper G Newspaper H 1 Skills of topic selection and detection 5.0 4.26 4.44 4.0 4.75 4.0 4.6 2 Skills of setting up and running an investigation team 4.92 2.11 2.11 2.0 2.0 4.0 2.1 3 Professional skills of investigative journalists 4.24 4.44 4.44 4.0 5.0 4.0 4.3 4 Information 4.92 3.44 3.44 3.0 4.5 4.0 3.7 Skills of arranging the issues and the line of investigative articles Skills of exploiting and collecting information Professional skills of investigative journalists Content organization skills of the line of investigative articles Skills of topic selection and detection Communication security skills Information source access and protection skills Skills in analyzing records and documents Skills in using legal means in the investigation Skills of setting up and running an investigation team Teamwork skills Skills of role-playing and handling special situations Skills of big data usage and multimedia applications in surveys Skills in using social networking in the investigation 23 source access and protection skills 5 Skills of exploiting and collecting information 4.92 4.56 4.56 4.0 5.0 4.0 4.2 6 Skills in analyzing records and documents 4.67 2.78 2.78 4.0 4.75 4.0 2.8 7 Skills in using legal means in the investigation 4.91 2.44 2.44 3.0 5.0 3.0 2.3 8 Skills of role- playing and handling special situations 2.53 1.89 1.89 3.0 1.75 2.6 2.8 9 Skills in using social networking in the investigation 5.0 2.44 2.44 4.0 2.0 1.7 2.5 10 Skills of big data usage and multimedia applications in surveys 3.0 1.56 1.56 2.0 3.2 1.1 1.6 11 Communication security skills 5.0 4.67 4.67 4.0 5.0 4.1 4.7 12 Content organization skills of the line of investigative articles 4.82 4.67 4.67 3.0 5.0 3.3 4.6 13 Skills of arranging the issues and the line of investigative articles 5.0 4.67 4.67 3.0 5.0 4.8 4.1 14 Teamwork skills 4.0 2.11 2.11 2.0 4.33 2.0 3.4 Source: Survey by the author in 2017 Sub-conclusion of chapter 2 Chapter 2 of the PhD thesis has conducted a survey of the current situation of the line of investigative articles in editorial offices in 2017, through the investigation data of the anket questionnaire survey, to produce specific quantitative figures, 24 factors demonstrated in the line of investigative articles, from the categories, the role of the author, to the evaluation of organizing and implementing the line of investigative articles in each separate editorial office surveyed. In this chapter 2, the author has focused on thoroughly exploiting the data of the anket questionnaire survey, in order to produce speci