BS in Journalism

The curriculum of the Department of Journalism seeks to achieve these goals:

To assure that students complete a broad-based core of liberal arts courses that will give them a foundation of understanding in, and the curiosity to learn more about, the world in which they live.
To ground students in the ethical, legal and historical traditions of journalism and to help them explore contemporary challenges to those traditions.
To teach students how to gather and analyze information accurately, efficiently and intelligently in an increasingly technological world.
To teach students how to think critically and to write about events and issues clearly, succinctly, and in context.
To teach students the value of revision and the craft of story-telling.
To develop students' respect for diversity and individuality in order that their reporting can reflect understanding of a society of varied lifestyles and cultures.

Program Requirements

Students pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in journalism must complete 44 credit hours. Although students choose a specialty in either print or broadcast journalism, all students must complete a core of common courses. These are:

Course Code	Course Information
JR101	Discovering Journalism 4.00 Credits Students explore the role of news in United States history, from its raucous beginnings at the time of the American Revolution to its tumultuous present in a world of "all news all the time." The course gives students the tools to analyze and understand how print, broadcast and online news organizations have evolved over time. Students study the First Amendment, examine parallels between issues raised by the explosion of online journalism and earlier periods in journalistic evolution, and explore other issues confronting the contemporary journalist. In looking at how news has evolved, the class also visits some of the ethical dilemmas faced by those practicing the journalists' craft.
JR102	The Newsgathering Process 4.00 Credits In order to write or deliver the news, journalists need a sound, focused idea and specific, authoritative information. Students in this class learn how to do the legwork to report stories that make a difference. Through discussion, critique and reporting in the city, students learn how to identify, focus and find news; how to ferret out and make sense of records, both online and in the library; and how to select sources and measure their reliability and authoritativeness. Students also learn how to interview effectively, both for print and broadcast, and are introduced to writing leads and structuring stories for print, broadcast and online news. Journalistic standards such as accuracy and fairness are emphasized. Prerequisite: JR 101 for freshmen. (This is a co-requisite for transfers.)
JR200	The Images of News: Words, Pictures and Sound 4.00 Credits This class provides students with a framework for understanding the power of images, still and moving, and of sound, and of how all are used in conveying the news. Students study the history, aesthetics, content and context of visual story telling. They also rotate through labs that provide an introduction to still photography, audio recording, videography and html as they relate to the presentation of news. Working in teams, students develop multimedia stories that help them understand differences in reporting news in different media.They also examine ethical challenges in a digital age when manipulation of images and sound can distort reality and compromise journalistic integrity. Prerequisite: JR 102. Students are encouraged to take JR 200 concurrently with JR 204 or JR 205.
JR290	Journalism Law and Ethics 4.00 Credits A critical examination of the American legal system and its relationship to the press. Students will gain an understanding of journalists' rights and their ethical responsibilities. The class will provide students with a foundation of case law that defines what journalists are allowed to do and the means for reaching ethical decisions in gray areas outside the boundaries of law. Students also will be introduced to the structure and processes of federal and state courts. Prerequisite: JR 101.
PL225	American Government and Politics 4.00 Credits The American political system including national, state and local government, Constitutional foundation, citizenship, civil liberties, public opinion, political parties, the electoral system and the legislative process. The course will examine in detail the judicial history of these issues. In particular, the role of the Supreme Court will be studied in-depth. Fulfills the Historical Perspective of the General Education requirements.

(Journalism majors are required to take PL225 to satisfy one of their general education requirements in History, Social and Behavioral Sciences. It does not count toward the 44 credit hours required in the major.)

Students specializing in Print Journalism must also complete these courses:

Course Code	Course Information
JR204	Print Journalism: Covering the Day's News 4.00 Credits The course emphasizes the skills needed to report and write basic print stories on deadline. Class discussion stresses the fundamentals of writing for a print medium with significant critique of such things as story organization, leads, attribution and issues of style. As the semester progresses, students are assigned to cover a variety of events in the city and on the Emerson campus. Prerequisite: JR 102, recommended that it be taken concurrently with JR200.
JR304	Beat Reporting in a New Century 4.00 Credits This course emphasizes the skills needed to define and originate news in a specific, geographic or subject "beat" area and to report and write/produce those stories in forms suitable for print and online news readers. Class discussion will focus on means of finding and developing original "enterprise" stories in the context of a beat, of reporting them with authority and impact, and of writing them, using a variety of story structures. Students are strongly encouraged to publish stories through the Journalism Students' Online News Service, in community newspapers and in the Berkeley Beacon. Prerequisite: JR 204 or JR 205.
JR404	News Editing and Design 4.00 Credits Putting out a newspaper or web site takes a lot more than reporting and writing stories. This course emphasizes the craft of editing: of refining news copy and choosing how and where it will run in a newspaper or on a web site. Students edit stories for content, structure, word usage and story flow. They also write headlines and design pages. The class will explore issues of style, bias, stereotyping, fairness and taste. Students also learn appropriate software needed to design pages. Prerequisite: JR 304.

Students are required to take one of two courses that satisfy the Print Program's Capstone requirement.

Course Code

Course Information

JR590

Online Publishing

JR592

Public Affairs Reporting

Print students also must take 12 credits of electives offered by the department. At least four of these must be in a craft or skills offering and at least four in a conceptual offering that emphasizes theory over practice.

Students specializing in Broadcast Journalism must also complete these courses:

Course Code	Course Information
JR205	Broadcast Journalism 4.00 Credits This class is devoted to developing and sharpening student skills in writing for radio and TV news. Students also are introduced to radio beat reporting and further develop interviewing skills for the broadcast media. Students critically evaluate newscasts and are introduced to the components of producing them. Prerequisite, JR 102, recommended that it be taken concurrently with JR200.
JR305	Radio Producing 4.00 Credits In this intensive course, students produce, write and anchor radio newscasts on deadline, building them in part on original reporting. They conduct in-depth analyses of writing, story selection, agenda setting and the gate-keeping processes. They also learn how to format, to include sound in newscasts and to manage time. Prerequisite: JR 205.
JR418	TV News Producing 4.00 Credits This lab course gives students the real-time experience of a deadline-driven television newsroom. In producing newscasts on deadline, students rotate through newsroom jobs such as tape editor, writer, producer, anchor, reporter and videographer. Students learn to write news scripts, edit video to tell a news story, organize and produce a newscast, coordinate video elements for a newscast and work together as a broadcast news team. Prerequisites: JR 305 or permission of the instructor.
JR419	Electronic News Gathering/Reporting 4.00 Credits Working in the field, students research, shoot, write and edit television news stories. Special emphasis is placed on developing reporting and interviewing skills, visual acuity, writing for the eye and ear, and general TV performance abilities. Students also learn the technical aspects of ENG shooting and reporting. Prerequisite: JR 305 and JR 418/518. Can be taken concurrently with JR 418/518.

Students are required to take one of three courses that satisfy the Broadcast Program's Capstone requirement.

Course Code	Course Information
JR590	Online Publishing 4.00 Credits Students choose, edit, produce and post stories to an ongoing journalism news web site of their design. The course weds issues of law, ethics, content, style, depth and breadth as students grapple with ways of presenting news in different layers online and of involving audience in interactive dialogue. Participants in the course do original reporting but also work with broadcast, print and online students in other classes to improve their stories and to present them in a manner suitable for the Web. Prerequisite: JR 408 or JR 419.
JR591	Broadcast Journalism Practicum 4.00 Credits Students are given the opportunity to develop ENG or producing skills at an advanced level with the goal of putting together a professional portfolio by semester's end. In addition to completing a body of work, students are expected to engage in depth research and critical analysis. Prerequisite: JR 419.
JR592	Public Affairs Reporting 4.00 Credits This class exposes students to the challenges of depth reporting about issues of government and civic life. Students will prepare print, online or radio news reports related to Massachusetts state government and Boston city government for outlets throughout the state. In addition to preparing a portfolio of their best work, students will keep a journal, critique professional coverage in their area of interest, and, through reading, lectures and field trips, gain some expertise in the workings of state and city government. Prerequisite: JR 404 or JR 419.

Broadcast journalism students also must take eight credits from among the elective courses offered by the department.