Journalism (2022 - 2024)
Journalism Concentration: Required Lecture Course
Investigating Journalism: Ethics and Practice
JOUR-UA 50 Formerly Foundations of Journalism (JOUR-UA 501). Prerequisite: completion of the College’s expository writing requirement. Introductory lecture course required for the journalism major. Counts as an elective for both journalism minors. Offered every semester. 4 points.
An introduction to issues in journalistic writing and reporting, such as the choices journalists face in method, style, and form; the political impact of the news media; questions of sensationalism, bias, and diversity, and the current digital upheaval. Students are also introduced to a selection of outstanding journalism.
Journalism Concentration: Required Skills Courses
Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word
JOUR-UA 101 Prerequisite: completion of the College’s expository writing requirement. Introductory skills course required for the journalism major and both journalism minors. Offered every semester. 4 points.
Reporting- and writing-based. Emphasizes in-depth research techniques and exposure to many journalistic forms, including news writing, magazine and feature article writing, reported essays, and commentary for both print and online, and what distinguishes one form from the other. Issues of ethical conduct, bias, and fairness.
Journalistic Inquiry: Multimedia
JOUR-UA 102 Prerequisite: Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word (JOUR-UA 101). Introductory multimedia skills course required for the journalism major and the minor in broadcast and multimedia journalism. Counts as an elective for the minor in print and online journalism. Offered every semester. 4 points.
How to report news and feature stories using photographs, video, and audio, with an emphasis on story-telling techniques. Development of ideas, reporting techniques using audio and video (including how they differ from written pieces), scripting, audio and visual digital editing, and structuring of broadcast story-telling.
The Beat
JOUR-UA 201 Prerequisite for print/online sections: Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word (JOUR-UA 101); prerequisites for broadcast sections: both Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word (JOUR-UA 101) and Journalistic Inquiry: Multimedia (JOUR-UA 102). Intermediate skills course required for the journalism major and both journalism minors. Offered every semester. 4 points.
Hones the student journalist’s ability to research and report deeply and imagine and develop fresh ideas. Reporting, research, and writing. Different sections are offered for students pursuing the print/online track of the journalism major and the minor in print and online journalism as well as the broadcast track of the journalism major and the minor in broadcast and multimedia journalism.
Advanced Reporting
JOUR-UA 301 Prerequisite: The Beat (JOUR-UA 201). Advanced skills course required for the journalism major. Counts as an elective for both journalism minors. Offered every semester. 4 points.
The undergraduate journalism capstone. Emphasis on producing publishable reporting in print, online, or broadcast form with sophisticated story structures. Different sections are offered for students pursuing the print/online track of the journalism major and the minor in print and online journalism as well as the broadcast track of the journalism major and the minor in broadcast and multimedia journalism.
Journalism Concentration: Electives
Methods and Practice
JOUR-UA 202 Prerequisite: Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word (JOUR-UA 101), or permission of the instructor. Counts as an elective for the journalism major and both journalism minors. Offered every semester. 4 points.
Deeper experimentation with journalistic skills, from podcasting to blogging, both print and broadcast. Offerings include: Point of View; Audio Storytelling; and Writing for Reporters.
Methods and Practice: Visual Reporting
JOUR-UA 203 Prerequisite: None. Counts as an elective for the journalism major and both journalism minors. Offered every semester. 4 points.
Offerings include Photojournalism and Opinion and Advocacy Video.
Elective Reporting Topics
JOUR-UA 204 Prerequisite: Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word (JOUR-UA 101), or permission of the instructor. Counts as an elective for the journalism major and both journalism minors. Offered every semester. 4 points.
“Back-of-the-book” reporting topics. Offerings include: Reporting Racial Justice; Profiles and Biography; Coding for Journalists; and News Analysis.
Production and Publication
JOUR-UA 302 Prerequisite: Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word (JOUR-UA 101), or permission of the instructor. Counts as an elective for the journalism major and both journalism minors. Offered every fall. 4 points.
Creating finished products, both print and broadcast. Offerings include: TV Newscast; Travel Writing; and Multimedia Storytelling.
Seminar
JOUR-UA 401 Prerequisite: Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word (JOUR-UA 101), or permission of the instructor. Counts as an elective for the journalism major and both journalism minors. Offered every other year. 4 points.
Topics vary. Past offerings include: Ethnography for Journalists and The Art of Opinion Writing and Polemic.
Journalism Ethics and First Amendment Law
JOUR-UA 502 No prerequisites unless indicated. Counts as an elective for the journalism major and both journalism minors. Offered every spring. 4 points.
Considers the various ethical and legal issues surrounding the field of journalism and instills a clear sense of the role of the journalist in society and the issues that affect that mission today.
Journalism and Society
JOUR-UA 503 Prerequisite: None. Counts as an elective for the journalism major and both journalism minors. Offered every semester. 4 points.
Offerings include: Women and the Media; Minorities in the Media; Covering the Earth; and The Search for a Nation: From Obama to Trump.
Journalism as Literature
JOUR-UA 504 Prerequisite: None unless indicated. Counts as an elective for the journalism major and both journalism minors. Offered every semester. 4 points.
Offerings include: History and the Novel; Storied New York; Journalism and the American Road; and Writing the City.
Issues and Ideas
JOUR-UA 505 Prerequisite: Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word (JOUR-UA 101), or permission of the instructor. Counts as an elective for the journalism major and both journalism minors. Offered every semester. 4 points.
New controversies and ideas. Offerings include: Covering the Middle East; Covering Sub-Saharan Africa; and Writing the Body.
Journalism Concentration: Honors Courses
Honors is a two-course research, reporting, and writing or video sequence for juniors or seniors. Students choose and develop a thesis subject in the fall (JOUR-UA 351) and complete the project in the spring (JOUR-UA 352).
Honors: Advanced Reporting
JOUR-UA 351 Prerequisite: The Beat (JOUR-UA 201). Open to juniors and seniors with a 3.65 overall GPA and a 3.65 GPA in the journalism major. Offered in the fall. 4 points.
Requires deeper reporting and more polished writing or video work than non-honors sections. Student build a portfolio of two or three high-quality pieces (1,200 to 1,500 words, or videos of two to three minutes) and do significant preliminary reporting and research necessary for completion of the capstone project.
Honors: Senior Seminar
JOUR-UA 352 Prerequisite: Honors: Advanced Reporting (JOUR-UA 351). Offered in the spring. 4 points.
Students complete a capstone project, which consists of a large feature (6,000 to 8,000 words, or a 15- to 20-minute multimedia or broadcast piece). Requires defense before at least two members of the full-time faculty and possibly a member of the profession.
Media Criticism Concentration: Required Lecture Courses
The concentration in media criticism is open only to students who declared it on or before May 19, 2020 (the end of the spring 2020 term).
Investigating Journalism: Ethics and Practice
JOUR-UA 50 Formerly Foundations of Journalism (JOUR-UA 501). Prerequisite: completion of the College’s expository writing requirement. Offered every semester. 4 points.
See description above.
Media Past and Future
JOUR-UA 610 Students may substitute an appropriate course with advice and permission of the institute. 4 points.
Examines previous communication revolutions: spoken language, images, writing, printing, photography, film, radio, and television. How were they initially used or misused? What were their effects upon social patterns, politics, and thought? How did innovations occur? What can that tell us about the potential of today’s digital communication revolution? Students undertake innovative experiments of their own in forms of new media.
Media Criticism Concentration: Required Skills Courses
The concentration in media criticism is open only to students who declared it on or before May 19, 2020 (the end of the spring 2020 term).
Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word
JOUR-UA 101 Prerequisite: completion of the College’s expository writing requirement. Offered every semester. 4 points.
See description above.
Journalistic Inquiry: Multimedia
JOUR-UA 102 Prerequisite: Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word (JOUR-UA 101). Offered every semester. 4 points.
See description above.
The Beat
JOUR-UA 201 Prerequisite for print/online sections: Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word (JOUR-UA 101); prerequisites for broadcast sections: both Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word (JOUR-UA 101) and Journalistic Inquiry: Multimedia (JOUR-UA 102). Intermediate skills course required for the journalism major and both journalism minors. Offered every semester. 4 points.
See description above.
Advanced Reporting
JOUR-UA 301 Prerequisite: The Beat (JOUR-UA 201). Offered every semester. 4 points.
See description above.
Media Criticism Concentration: Seminars
The concentration in media criticism is open only to students who declared it on or before May 19, 2020 (the end of the spring 2020 term).
Students in the media criticism concentration must choose one seminar from the following:
Seminar
JOUR-UA 401 Prerequisite: Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word (JOUR-UA 101), or permission of the instructor. Offered every semester. 4 points.
See description above.
Journalism Ethics and First Amendment Law
JOUR-UA 502 Offered every spring. 4 points.
See description above.
Journalism and Society
JOUR-UA 503 Prerequisite: none. Offered every semester. 4 points.
See description above.
Issues and Ideas
JOUR-UA 505 Prerequisite: Journalistic Inquiry: The Written Word (JOUR-UA 101), or permission of the instructor. Offered every semester. 4 points.
See description above.
Internship and Independent Study
Internship
JOUR-UA 980 Restricted to declared majors. Offered every semester. 1 to 4 points.
An opportunity to work 10 to 16 hours a week with cooperating metropolitan New York publications and broadcast stations. Work is edited and evaluated by staff supervisors of the participating media, as well as by the institute. Students may take more than once, but are limited to a total of 4 points in JOUR-UA internships. As a Pass/Fail course, does not count toward the journalism major.
Advanced Individual Study
JOUR-UA 997 May be repeated for credit, but for no more than 4 points total. Offered every semester. 1 to 4 points.
Students who, in the opinion of the department, possess intellectual independence and ability are permitted to carry on individual work in a field of study selected in conference with members of the faculty. To register, a student must have the written approval of the director of undergraduate studies.