Class4

Raw materials in journalism: Data and Information

Data and information are the raw materials of journalism.

information is data that has been processed, refined and placed in context.

Knowledge is the result of further refining of information and further placing in context, into a form that readers and viewers find even more useful or that saves them time and money.

He defines knowledge as the ‘cu- mulative stock of information and skills derived from the use of informa- tion’ (my italics). The value and meaning we ascribe to knowledge in- creases in relation to the thinking and acting involved to create it and place it in context (Burton-Jones, 1999: 5–6)]

knowledge management is important for media groups because they must become information-based organizations to compete in the information age.