Journalism as a Profession

Catalog description

Credits 3. 3 Lecture Hours. COURSE OVERVIEW. Serves as an exit-level seminar for students completing advanced coursework in journalism. Synthesizes prior training in reporting, writing, editing, media law and ethics by requiring production of publication-quality work alongside critical reflection on journalism as a profession. Combines workshop-based writing development with discussion of contemporary issues facing news media, including questions of credibility, labor, technology and/or public trust. RELEVANCE AND APPLICATION. Strengthens readiness for careers in journalism, media production, strategic communication and public information by refining writing portfolios, pitching skills, professional presentation and editorial collaboration. Provides preparation for workplaces that value initiative, ethical decision-making and long-form project management. Supports civic literacy by deepening understanding of journalism’s role in public accountability, information access and democratic culture. DEEPENING UNDERSTANDINGS. Highlights journalism not only as a set of skills but as an evolving institution shaped by economic pressures, technological change, audience behavior and ethical norms. Encourages recognition of the practical and moral challenges journalists face when balancing accuracy with speed, objectivity with transparency and access with independence. Reinforces that credibility emerges through verification, sourcing, clarity and sustained commitment to public responsibility. TOPICS AND THEMES. May include discussions of media credibility, fact-checking in high-risk environments, newsroom labor and diversity, long-form storytelling, press freedom, branding and career sustainability and journalistic responses to misinformation. May contain real-world reporting cases involving political conflict, legal disputes or sensitive human experiences, examined for purposes of professional analysis. Prerequisites: JOUR 203 ; junior or senior classification; enrollment in JOUR major or JOUR minor; and approval of instructor.