Recording devices. Yea or nay?
The book tells us not to use them. Well, it tells us not to rely on them, at least. I have to admit, when I'm sitting there and I scramble to get all the words down, I am definitely thinking about a voice recorder.
The textbook also refers to a few journalists who expressed their opinions about recorders. One guy said he started to depend on them too much when he first started out. Another guy mentioned that his voice recorder would always die at the most inconvenient moment.
Another person said that voice recorders are fine if they're back up.
Well, to be honest, I kinda like the last opinion. Fine, I'll scribble down notes in my notebook. My shorthand is awful (I don't even know where to begin with shorthand). My chicken scratch is even better!
But to have a back up? Yeah, that sounds good to me.
Recently, I did an interview with VOX at the same time as Brittany Schaefer. At the beginning, Brittany asked the girls if she could record the conversation. She took out her phone and we began the questioning.
As I was putting the last touches on my article today, I realized I missed something: I forgot to put a name down next to a quote I used in my notes. Or I didn't realize who said it after I was done writing because they were all jumping around. Either way.
A voice recorder looked real good to me at that moment.
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