Not for the fainthearted

As we come to the end of the year, we recall the many journalists who have risked, and lost, their lives as they attempted to carry out their responsibilities to their communities. Journalism has never been a profession for the faint-hearted, or for those who lack committment to the truth. Elizabeth Castro's murder is but the latest.

http://us2.campaign-archive2.com/?u=de9f45d125dffa47919a18815&id=31568e9896

Facebook tips for journalists, from Facebook

via Cyberjournalist

Vadim Lavrusik, Facebook’s new journalism program coordinator, has starting talking to journalists publicly about how they can better use Facebook. Here are some highlights from a presentation that he gave at Columbia’s Social Media Weekend. Check out the full presentation here.

Digital heretics

At a time when the traditional doesn't seem to be working, what's required may be a healthy dose of heresy. In support of the process Google has sponsored a Digital heresy competition. In this video, we learn about the winners of the 2011 competition, the women of WAVE (Women Aloud Videoblogging for Empowerment) from India.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7gq8CF7Kcc

Changing practice......

Practice re-defined and re-structured in response to changing contexts. How are we in the Caribbean adapting? (Are we adapting at all?)

http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/romenesko/146943/seattle-times-digital-first-newsroom-roles-creation-curation-community-kathy-best/

Watch it!

http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/romenesko/146764/to-be-sure-blog-highlighting-unnecessary-journalism-phrases-is-absolutely-necessary/

Another step into No-Man's Land

http://www.briansolis.com/2011/07/dispelling-the-darkness-with-brand-journalism/

But.... are we ready?

In Trinidad and Tobago, our own press affirm their right to self-regulation.......but are we ready?
http://www.theage.com.au/news/opinion/press-must-lift-its-game-on-selfregulation/2005/12/14/1134500913904.html

The "lowest form" of journalism?

http://jayrosen.tumblr.com/post/9958251666/journalists-washing-their-hands-of-the-truth

Featured Video TEDxThessaloniki: Paul Lewis on Citizen Journalism

In this Tedx video, journalist Paul Lewis talks about new media, citizen journalism. and how he has used social media to investigate two murders. He also talks about the new level of transparency and accountability new media offer in public life.

Think about it.

Something for aspiring journalists to think about.

http://www.cjr.org/behind_the_news/eight_simple_rules_for_doing_a.php

What price press freedom?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/sep/16/threat-press-freedom

'Depressing' about covers this!

http://www.economist.com/blogs/bagehot/2011/09/unethical-journalism

Do journalism students enjoy freedom of the press?

http://knightcenter.utexas.edu/blog/chicago-judge-rules-journalism-students-involved-innocence-project-not-protected-under-shield-l

The shape of things to come?

How's that?
http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/top-stories/110111/why-the-new-york-times-eliminated-its-social-media-editor-position/

Doing more with mobile

via NewsLab

Many journalists already use their smartphones as news gathering and publishing tools, but Mark Briggs of KING5.com in Seattle and the blog Journalism 2.0 says mobile devices can do so much more.


“Few reporters use smartphones as a research device,” Briggs says–a missed opportunity, in his opinion, because smartphones are “location aware.”

As an example, Briggs described how he might use a smartphone as the “Internet in your pocket” to cover a hypothetical breaking news story involving the evacuation of a Las Vegas hotel.

9/11: Trying to understand

Ten years later, the enormity of 9/11 has in no way diminished, even for people who lived outside of the United States. The attempt to make sense of what happened persists. This report on Osama bin Laden was done at the start of 2001, months before the attack.

http://www.nytimes.com/2001/01/14/world/one-man-and-a-global-web-of-violence.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm

Does this cross a line?

So - when does 'citizen journalism' become 'exploitation?' Read this and see what you think:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffbercovici/2011/09/09/huffpo-and-patch-recruiting-bloggers-as-young-as-13/

The Class

http://www.flickr.com/photos/theuwi/6124330309/

Making Tomorrow's News

It's a start!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/theuwi/sets/72157627617902602

Computational journalism?

I hadn't heard of this one before.

http://jonathanstray.com/a-computational-journalism-reading-list

Excitement! Pressure!

Okay, so today, finally, we met the programme donors. It's a good feeling to know that there are people and organisations that believe in the future of journalism enough to want to invest in the education of journalists.An even better feeling to look out from the head table at our students and to think - so much potential, and it's been put in our hands!

A tremendously exciting thought, that, but a humbling thought as well. It's a tremendous opportunity, but an equally large responsibility we've taken on.

Well......I have faith in our students. I'm seeing a lot of young people with all sorts of power in their hands to make a positive change. I figure, my job is just to do my job and give all of them space to grow.

And I can do that!

Academic Support for UWI Certificate in Journalism

So you've joined us! We want you to feel very welocme in our programme, and we want you to succeed brilliantly. Critical to your success in this programme will be the level of academic support you will receive. We recognize that for many of you enrolled in the Certificate in Journalism programme, this will be your first experience of post-secondary education. As you've been told, this  programme is quite intensive. So, to help you do your best, we have a faculty consisting of members of the academic community, and also of persons with extensive and varied experience in the media. Many of our lecturers have worked in the field as journalists; some have run newsrooms and been responsible for training staff here in Trinidad and Tobago and in other countries outside the Caribbean. Other lecturers have worked in the communication departments of businesses and for the state. These are people who understand the demands made on professional journalists, and the expectations they must satisfy. They also understand the challenges of bringing novices up to scratch. And you will be able to access their expertise and experience to help you navigate the challenges of the programme, and to advise you, when advice becomes necessary.

Off-campus, from wherever you may happen to be based, you will continue to have access to lecturers, and to each other, on the internet, through our campus learning management system, myeLearning. We have adopted a blended learning approach to course delivery. That is to say, some components of many of our courses are up online, so that you can continue to access resource materials at your own convenience to enhance your classroom experiences. MyeLearning also allows you to contact staff via email. What is more, the programme’s online discussion forums  will make it possible for you and your colleagues to continue exploring issues even after your scheduled classes have ended.

Finally, as enrolled students, you will have access to our University library with its journalism and communications collection. Each of you will be able to borrow books from the library, to read the journals, and to access ejournals off-campus as you need them.

As the programme’s academic coordinator, my own role is to be a liaison between our staff and you,  and between you and our administrative units in the university, to ensure that you receive the orientation to the programme, as well as the academic advice, you need, so as to ensure that you progress smoothly.

In short, there is no reason why you will not be able to do well in this programme. The opportunities are there. Seize them.

Evolution of the UWI Certificate in Journalism programme

One of the exciting features of this programme is that it has been developed, from the outset, in collaboration with representatives of the media industry. When we, at The University of the West Indies here in St. Augustine, were first approached by these representatives, we responded to the sense of urgency expressed. We understood that the industry is taking its own steps towards greater professionalization. And of course, we believe that a professional standard of journalistic practice is essential for any country or region that wants to become more developed. At the UWI, a significant part of our mission is to promote national and regional development in the Caribbean.  So we were only too happy to work with the industry to develop this programme.

At every step of the way, we worked together. Our programme development committee included media representatives, as well as academic staff from the UWI who are trained in curriculum development. So we knew that at every step of the journey our programme had to stand up to scrutiny as to whether it was INDEED providing an experience that professionals in the industry saw as being desirable and useful for journalists. It also had to meet the university’s standards for quality academic programmes. And I think, all in all, that we HAVE met both those requirements.

But we have no intention of stopping here. We know that one of the challenges we must now address is how to make the programme accessible to journalists across the Caribbean who have expressed interest in enrolling. Another step forward that we are already planning, is deciding how best to take this programme to another level.  This is the pilot stage for this certificate programme. However, we are continually monitoring its progress to ensure that it will be even further refined. WE expect that it will continue to evolve to meet the needs of the industry and also, to contribute to the growth of knowledge about the field.