Provisional University Bulletin (2026-2027)

• Minor

The Journalism Program examines the purpose and influence of the news media on society. The program offers students a liberal arts approach to the study of journalism, emphasizing the importance of media literacy in modern, democratic societies and challenging students to consider the historical contexts in which our contemporary understandings of the news media’s responsibilities and obligations evolved. Scholars and journalism professionals from eclectic, diverse backgrounds teach students about the vital role that credible, reliable, and substantive journalism plays in democratic societies. These faculty also help students acquire the traditional and digital research, writing and production skills that are necessary for the accomplished practice of journalism.

In class and in professional environments, students wrestle with the practical and pedagogical challenges of communicating the causes and consequences of issues and events to diverse audiences in print, broadcast, and internet-based formats. The larger, liberal arts curriculum in which the Journalism Program exists provides students with an opportunity to explore the political, economic, social, religious, and historical roots of the news stories they consume. This approach helps prepare students  to dissect news events as they are happening, and distill and communicate them in ways that are useful, meaningful, and accessible to media audiences.

The program is part of the university's larger effort to train students to be critical thinkers and forceful writers and nonfiction storytellers. In the core courses and electives, students study the history and organization of media institutions; examine the ethical responsibilities of media practitioners; analyze the relationships among the media and other social, political, and corporate institutions; and learn the reporting, writing, and editing skills required for success in the media world.

Although some of our graduates advance directly to graduate programs in journalism and communications, and others take jobs in media venues including public relations and advertising, many go on to other vocational areas where the skills and learning affected by the program are found to be highly valuable, such as law and education.

Knowledge

Students completing the minor in Journalism will be able to:

1. Explain the vital role that free, active, and critical news media outlets play in sustaining democracies
2. Interrogate the leaders and issues that affect the communities to which they belong
3. Recognize the variety of communities to which they belong
4. Identify the economic, cultural, and political factors that influence the creation and dissemination of news, both positively and negatively
5. Articulate the challenges and opportunities presented to the journalism industry by the internet (and realize that new technologies have always presented journalists with challenges and opportunities)
6. Understand the strengths and limitations of the various media platforms

Skills

Students completing the Journalism minor will, ideally, be able to:

1. Recognize and formulate sharp, concise, and attention-grabbing lead sentences
2. Articulate the “news value” of a story in a single, concise paragraph
3. Critically analyze the news value of the stories they consume
4. Formulate meaningful and accessible angles on events and on-going issues and pitch those angles to potential editors
5. Identify relevant interview subjects and conduct concise, directed, and fruitful interviews
6. Recognize quotes and sound-bites that advance and substantiate a story angle and incorporate those quotes and sound-bites seamlessly into the body of a story
7. Adjust their writing styles to meet the needs of daily and long-form journalism, particularly with regard to the differences between news and feature stories
8. Internalize the Code of Ethics that has been formulated by the Society of Professional Journalists and recognize violations of that code when they occur

Social Justice Statement

We certainly believe that anyone graduating from Brandeis University’s Journalism Program has the potential to identify, explore, challenge, and explain issues with the same clarity and insight that characterize the dossiers of award-winning journalists. Our goal for the program, however, goes beyond just creating journalists. We seek to create a cadre of news producers and consumers who will demand that journalists fulfill their obligations to society – and insist that society provide journalists the tools and the freedom they need to meet those obligations. Journalists are obliged to be disinterested but engaged public witnesses who focus light on the hidden and forgotten corners of society and engender a sense of community ownership among the citizens who make up their audiences. In doing this, they are obliged to avoid hyperbole, speculation, and gossip. We hope that some of our graduates will become journalists who meet these obligations. We hope that all of our graduates will become citizens who work to ensure that these obligations are met – and are able to be met – by journalists.

After Brandeis

Many of the students minoring in Journalism choose either to pursue careers in the field immediately after graduation, or else to attend graduate school at places that include  Columbia and Northwestern, where they pursue Master’s degrees in Journalism or journalism-related subjects. The remaining Journalism minors tend to pursue careers in all manner of fields, from education and law to management consulting and tech. In these fields, professionals are expected to dissect and understand complicated arguments, make clear and concise written and oral statements about those arguments, and take complex ideas or issues and package them in ways that make them accessible and interesting to broad, mainstream audiences. Moreover, they are expected to make sound judgment calls under stressful conditions, something for which they receive rigorous training in the Journalism Program.

This minor is open to all Brandeis undergraduates, subject to limitations on appropriate class size. Students who complete the requirements of the program receive notations on their transcripts.

Neil Swidey, Director
(Journalism)

Josh Wolk, Undergraduate Advising Head
(Journalism)

Maura Farrelly
(American Studies)

Adriana Lacy
(Journalism)

Janet McIntosh
(Anthropology)

Ann Silvio
(Journalism)

Students are expected to complete a minimum of six courses for the minor.

1. One core course in the area of History/Culture: JOUR 15a, JOUR 114b, JOUR 120a, AMST 137b, or HIST/JOUR 163a
2. One core course in area of Writing: JOUR 25a, JOUR 101a, JOUR 109b, JOUR 113a, JOUR 130b, or JOUR 138b.
3. Journalism Ethics: All students are required to take JOUR 110b.
4. Internship/Thesis: Students are required to complete an internship in Journalism/Media to satisfy this requirement. Students serve in an outside internship and then take JOUR 89a: Contemporary Media: Internship and Analysis, typically immediately following the conclusion of their internship. They must discuss this ahead of time with the Assistant Director or Director. Students who successfully complete AMST/JOUR 109B Reinventing Journalism for the Local Level, which involves producing stories for publication by a professional local news organization, may count this coursework in lieu of completing an outside internship in journalism. However, those students must also successfully complete JOUR 89A. In rare circumstances and with the permission of the Journalism Director, students may fulfill this requirement through an independent study. 
5. Two Electives: Students must take two electives from the electives listed below and are strongly encouraged to choose their electives from two different groups from the five special areas of study:
   • Media Innovation (Students are recommended to take at least one of their electives from this category, such as JOUR 112B)
   • History, Principles, and Practice (If they did not take JOUR 101A as their core Writing course, students are strongly recommended to take it as one of their electives.)
   • Politics, Law, and Ethics
   • Science Communications/Analytical and Research Methods
   • Communications Theory
6. No grade below a C- will be given credit toward the minor.
7.  No course taken pass/fail may count toward the minor requirements.

JOUR 13a Multimedia Storytelling Lab

Yields half-course credit. Formerly offered as EL 13a.

Students at both beginning and intermediate levels of experience pursue projects in photography, podcasting, and video to develop their skills as multimedia journalists. This lab course provides instruction on best practices with equipment and software as well as a forum for workshop and critique. Usually offered every year.

JOUR 15a Documentary Journalism: Reporting and Storytelling for Broadcast
[ ss wi ]

 Studies a wide range of documentary journalism, examining the genre with a critical eye. We'll assess scripts and visuals for their journalistic value, underscoring the power of rigorous reporting methods and compelling storytelling choices.  Usually offered every year.

JOUR 25a The Art of the Interview
[ ss ]

JOUR 45a Sports Journalism and Innovation
[ ss wi ]

Innovative journalists have found new, impactful ways to cover sports. In this course, students will practice the skills needed to craft meaningful stories across platforms, examine the role of the sportswriter in modern culture, and discuss how the sports media industry has evolved to include new niches and business models. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 89a Contemporary Media: Internship and Analysis

Brings together students who have held a summer internship in journalism or are interning concurrently with the course. The instructor will work with students one-on-one and in group settings to sharpen the skills they developed as interns and advance to a higher level of producing professional journalism. This course is required for an internship to count toward the journalism minor. Usually offered every year.

JOUR 92b Contemporary Media Internship

Prerequisite: JOUR 15a or 138b. Enrollment by Program Director permission only.

A directed reading designed for students who are unable to complete JOUR 89a in the fall. Permission must be obtained from the program director a full semester in advance. Usually offered every year.

JOUR 98a Independent Study

Prerequisite: Permission of the program director.

Offered upon request when approved by the program director.

JOUR 98b Independent Study

Prerequisite: Permission of the program director. Yields half-course credit.

Offered upon request when approved by the program director.

AMST/JOUR 109b Reinventing Journalism on the Local Level
[ dl ss wi ]

This fast-paced, experiential course examines media innovation at work, from digital storytelling to data visualization, at both start-up and legacy media outlets. Students will then put what they learn into action: reporting and producing multimedia news stories and participating in weekly workshops to sharpen their work so it can be published in a respected, professional local-news outlet. Students will be required to travel to Brookline for this course (BranVan provided). Students may use this course, in combination with JOUR 89A, to fulfill the JOUR minor’s internship requirement (instead of completing an outside internship). Usually offered every year.

AMST/JOUR 113a Long-form Journalism: Storytelling for Magazines and Podcasts
[ dl oc ss ]

What makes for a great story? This course will examine the hallmarks of successful narrative nonfiction, in both written and audio form. Students will analyze award-winning magazine stories as well as reporting-based podcasts that have injected new energy and financial success into the journalism world. They will learn story structure and techniques to capture and hold the audience's attention. And they will learn by doing, producing their own podcasts and written pieces. his course fulfills the Reporting requirement of the Journalism minor. Usually offered every year.

AMST/JOUR 137b Journalism in Modern America
[ ss ]

May not be taken for credit by students who took AMST 137b in prior years.

Examines what journalists have done, how their enterprise has in fact conformed with their ideals, and what some of the consequences have been for the republic historically. Usually offered every year.

HIST/JOUR 163a The Road to September 11th and Beyond: History and Media
[ djw oc ss ]

The September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center ushered in two U.S. wars in Afghanistan and Iraq that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives and drained the U.S. Treasury of at least $8 trillion. 9/11 radically changed the dynamics between the U.S. and the Middle East, along with those between the press and military and government officials. Co-taught by a historian of modern Middle East and a journalist who extensively covered these events, this course aims to give students a fresh lens for examining the history and the aftermath of this crucial event from both a Middle Eastern and American perspective. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 101a The Fundamentals of Journalism
[ ss wi ]

Provides students with a grounding in the fundamentals of news reporting and writing, linking theory to practice. Equips them with the foundational skills to address the demands of today’s rapidly changing media world. Counts toward Writing requirement for Journalism minor. Usually offered every year.

JOUR 104a Political Packaging in America
[ ss ]

Examines the history of political marketing, image making in presidential campaigns, the relationship between news and ads, and the growth of public-policy advertising by special-interest groups to influence legislation. Usually offered every fourth year.

JOUR 107b Media and Public Policy
[ ss wi ]

Examines the intersection of the media and politics, the ways in which each influences the other, and the consequences of that intersection for a democracy. Through analytic texts, handouts, and contemporaneous newspaper and magazine articles, explores the relationship between policy decisions and public discourse. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 110b Ethics in Journalism
[ deis-us ss wi ]

Should reporters ever misrepresent themselves? Is it ever acceptable to break the law in pursuit of a story? What kind of news footage is too graphic to share? By wrestling with difficult decisions in journalism, this course is designed to strengthen students’ critical thinking and news judgment. Usually offered every year.

JOUR 111b Advanced Multimedia Storytelling Workshop
[ dl oc ]

Prior experience with multimedia editing software is recommended but not required.

Invites students to produce multiple episodes of narrative non-fiction as multimedia pieces. Students interested in podcasting may choose to make a long-form podcast; students interested in video may choose to make a video docuseries; students may also choose to create a series that moves between these two formats. A key theme of the course is how documentary films have influenced podcasts and vice versa; part of the coursework involves close looking and listening as we analyze podcasts and documentary films that show a high level of craft in their sound and visual design and dramatic construction. We will place special emphasis on sound design, exploring advanced sound recording and mixing techniques to design dramatic scenes from a combination of voices, ambiences, and music. Usually offered every spring.

JOUR 112b Social Journalism: The Art of Engaging Audiences
[ dl ss wi ]

Students will learn how to use social media storytelling to develop their own voices, sharpen their reporting skills, and reach new communities and platforms. They will also learn the art of tracking and building audiences through engagement tools and will critique the work of professionals and colleagues. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 114b Arts Journalism, Pop Culture, and Digital Innovation
[ ss wi ]

How do journalists cover the arts in a world of ever-expanding online options, and where artists are increasingly telling their own stories through social media? This course explores the evolution of arts and entertainment coverage, from its earliest days to its current digital incarnation. Students will develop skills using new tools and innovative approaches to deliver meaningful pop culture coverage and cultural criticism. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 115b Storytelling with Data
[ qr ss ]

Teaches students how to use data to reveal the invisible narratives around us. We will explore how journalists, designers, and scientists have leveraged this powerful tool, and it will give students the tools of data visualization to leverage data for themselves. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 116a Oral Histories in Journalism: Changemakers in Profile
[ ss ]

Prerequisite: Instructor permission. Previous experience with journalistic audio storytelling or one of the following courses is recommended: JOUR 130b, JOUR 114b, JOUR 113a, JOUR 111b, JOUR 15a, JOUR 13a, or JOUR 12b.

The oral storytelling tradition has been with us since the beginning of time, but it is enjoying a popular resurgence now, prompted in part by the popularity of storytelling platforms such as podcasts, and the ability to share audio online. The oldest form of historical documentation is now taking advantage of current digital technologies.

However, producing lasting, rigorous oral histories requires the journalist to do much more than simply place a microphone in front of a subject and press “record.” It takes a deep knowledge of journalistic interviewing techniques and research methods as well as sophisticated approaches to production and editing to yield rich, lasting audio narratives.

With a thematic focus on changemakers, this course will equip students to produce high-quality, documentary-style oral histories. Students will examine the lives of important activists and other changemakers who are fighting for democracy, equity, and human and civil rights. The students will research and interview their subjects, as well as key people in their lives, in preparation for producing audio documentaries that capture the truth and meaning of their lives. Students will produce nuanced audio profiles that will then be assembled to form a multi-part series. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 118a AI in Journalism
[ qr ss ]

Explores the burgeoning role of artificial intelligence, especially generative AI, in news media. Students will learn how modern AI tools like large language models (LLMs) (e.g., ChatGPT, Claude) and diffusion image generators (e.g., Midjourney) work under the hood, and how these tools can be practically applied in journalistic workflows for tasks such as news writing, summarization, transcription, research assistance, and image creation. Usually offered every year.

JOUR 120a The Culture of Journalism
[ ss ]

Examines the social, cultural, political and economic influences on the practice of journalism. In particular, the course will explore the generational debates around identity, advocacy, and digital disruption that newsrooms around the country are grappling with today, providing the background and concepts for a critical analysis of the contemporary American press. Counts toward History/Culture requirement for Journalism minor. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 121a Late Night News
[ ss ]

In a fractured, rapidly changing media landscape in which many people get their news delivered by comedians, and in which many former reporters and fact-checkers now occupy seats in late-night writers’ rooms, where is the line between journalism and news? This course will trace the evolution of late-night comedy. Long dominated by Johnny Carson’s broad, non-ideological monologue jokes, late-night television began a dramatic change in 1999, when Jon Stewart took over The Daily Show. He reshaped that broadcast into a highly political show that ridiculed its subjects with an editorial edge backed by journalistic research. Before long, studies found that more young people were getting their news about current events from Stewart’s show than from mainstream media outlets. In 2014, former Daily Show correspondent John Oliver took things a step further: Every week he and his Last Week Tonight writers delve into a single, complex subject, pulling it apart and pointing out its absurdity through meticulous research and reportage. In this class, students will investigate the implications of journalism that is mediated through a laugh-seeking sensibility – in both left- and right-leaning contexts. And with live TV viewing an increasingly obsolete notion, we’ll also explore political satire that is produced for short-form, social media distribution, melding the worlds of digital and late night. Usually offered every fourth year.

JOUR 130b Science Journalism: Covering Crises from the Pandemic to Climate
[ dl ss wi ]

What is the best way to communicate real science in the age of fake news? What role should science journalists play in the face of today’s biggest crises, from the pandemic to climate change? This course explores the hallmarks of sound science and medical writing and how to confront the public-health consequences of misinformation. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 132b Covering the World: International Reporting and Global Affairs
[ ss ]

Explores the evolution of reporting on international affairs and other cultures for an American audience, and how the work of overseas correspondents shapes foreign policy and public opinion. It will examine the challenges facing journalists working in foreign countries and the ethical, cultural, technological, and political factors that influence the U.S. media's coverage of global affairs. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 139b Reporting on Diverse Communities in Journalism
[ deis-us ss ]

Examines who has been left out of the news discourse; how that has shaped public understanding of race, immigration, gender, and sexual orientation in the United States; and how to produce coverage that is more representative and better reflects reality. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 145a Opinion Writing
[ ss wi ]

An exploration of opinion and first-person writing in all of its journalistic forms. In an era of hot takes unsupported by facts, this course focuses on commentary with a journalistic, factually sound backbone. Students will learn to hone their voice and practice the art of persuasion, developing well-constructed arguments built on deep research. They will also write autobiographical pieces that are held to the same rigorous truth-telling standards that apply when reporting on someone else. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 152a Truth, Fact and Research in Journalism
[ ss ]

Investigates the concept of journalistic truth through immersion into research, fact-checking, and the art of the interview. Working with transcripts, footage, and other sources, students learn how to find the story, leveraging the power of new media and converting information into knowledge. Usually offered every second year.

AMST/JOUR 137b Journalism in Modern America
[ ss ]

May not be taken for credit by students who took AMST 137b in prior years.

Examines what journalists have done, how their enterprise has in fact conformed with their ideals, and what some of the consequences have been for the republic historically. Usually offered every year.

HIST/JOUR 163a The Road to September 11th and Beyond: History and Media
[ djw oc ss ]

The September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center ushered in two U.S. wars in Afghanistan and Iraq that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives and drained the U.S. Treasury of at least $8 trillion. 9/11 radically changed the dynamics between the U.S. and the Middle East, along with those between the press and military and government officials. Co-taught by a historian of modern Middle East and a journalist who extensively covered these events, this course aims to give students a fresh lens for examining the history and the aftermath of this crucial event from both a Middle Eastern and American perspective. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 15a Documentary Journalism: Reporting and Storytelling for Broadcast
[ ss wi ]

 Studies a wide range of documentary journalism, examining the genre with a critical eye. We'll assess scripts and visuals for their journalistic value, underscoring the power of rigorous reporting methods and compelling storytelling choices.  Usually offered every year.

JOUR 114b Arts Journalism, Pop Culture, and Digital Innovation
[ ss wi ]

How do journalists cover the arts in a world of ever-expanding online options, and where artists are increasingly telling their own stories through social media? This course explores the evolution of arts and entertainment coverage, from its earliest days to its current digital incarnation. Students will develop skills using new tools and innovative approaches to deliver meaningful pop culture coverage and cultural criticism. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 120a The Culture of Journalism
[ ss ]

Examines the social, cultural, political and economic influences on the practice of journalism. In particular, the course will explore the generational debates around identity, advocacy, and digital disruption that newsrooms around the country are grappling with today, providing the background and concepts for a critical analysis of the contemporary American press. Counts toward History/Culture requirement for Journalism minor. Usually offered every second year.

AMST/JOUR 109b Reinventing Journalism on the Local Level
[ dl ss wi ]

This fast-paced, experiential course examines media innovation at work, from digital storytelling to data visualization, at both start-up and legacy media outlets. Students will then put what they learn into action: reporting and producing multimedia news stories and participating in weekly workshops to sharpen their work so it can be published in a respected, professional local-news outlet. Students will be required to travel to Brookline for this course (BranVan provided). Students may use this course, in combination with JOUR 89A, to fulfill the JOUR minor’s internship requirement (instead of completing an outside internship). Usually offered every year.

AMST/JOUR 113a Long-form Journalism: Storytelling for Magazines and Podcasts
[ dl oc ss ]

What makes for a great story? This course will examine the hallmarks of successful narrative nonfiction, in both written and audio form. Students will analyze award-winning magazine stories as well as reporting-based podcasts that have injected new energy and financial success into the journalism world. They will learn story structure and techniques to capture and hold the audience's attention. And they will learn by doing, producing their own podcasts and written pieces. his course fulfills the Reporting requirement of the Journalism minor. Usually offered every year.

JOUR 25a The Art of the Interview
[ ss ]

JOUR 101a The Fundamentals of Journalism
[ ss wi ]

Provides students with a grounding in the fundamentals of news reporting and writing, linking theory to practice. Equips them with the foundational skills to address the demands of today’s rapidly changing media world. Counts toward Writing requirement for Journalism minor. Usually offered every year.

JOUR 130b Science Journalism: Covering Crises from the Pandemic to Climate
[ dl ss wi ]

What is the best way to communicate real science in the age of fake news? What role should science journalists play in the face of today’s biggest crises, from the pandemic to climate change? This course explores the hallmarks of sound science and medical writing and how to confront the public-health consequences of misinformation. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 110b Ethics in Journalism
[ deis-us ss wi ]

Should reporters ever misrepresent themselves? Is it ever acceptable to break the law in pursuit of a story? What kind of news footage is too graphic to share? By wrestling with difficult decisions in journalism, this course is designed to strengthen students’ critical thinking and news judgment. Usually offered every year.

JOUR 89a Contemporary Media: Internship and Analysis

Brings together students who have held a summer internship in journalism or are interning concurrently with the course. The instructor will work with students one-on-one and in group settings to sharpen the skills they developed as interns and advance to a higher level of producing professional journalism. This course is required for an internship to count toward the journalism minor. Usually offered every year.

JOUR 98a Independent Study

Prerequisite: Permission of the program director.

Offered upon request when approved by the program director.

JOUR 98b Independent Study

Prerequisite: Permission of the program director. Yields half-course credit.

Offered upon request when approved by the program director.

AMST 103b Advertising and the Media
[ ss ]

Combines a historical and contemporary analysis of advertising's role in developing and sustaining consumer culture in America with a practical analysis of the relationship between advertising and the news media in the United States. Usually offered every second year.

AMST 131b News on Screen
[ ss ]

An interdisciplinary course exploring how journalistic practice is mediated by moving image--cinematic, televisual, and digital. The historical survey will span material from the late-nineteenth-century "actualities" of Thomas Edison and the Lumiere Brothers to the viral environment of the World Wide Web, a rich tradition that includes newsreels, expeditionary films, screen magazines, combat reports, government information films, news broadcasts, live telecasts, television documentaries, amateur video, and the myriad blogs, vlogs, and webcasts of the digital age. Usually offered every second year.

AMST 135a Photography and American Culture
[ ss ]

Looks at how photography has (and has not) shaped understanding of certain key themes and issues in American history and culture-and how American history and culture have (and have not) done the same to photography. Usually offered every second year.

AMST/JOUR 109b Reinventing Journalism on the Local Level
[ dl ss wi ]

This fast-paced, experiential course examines media innovation at work, from digital storytelling to data visualization, at both start-up and legacy media outlets. Students will then put what they learn into action: reporting and producing multimedia news stories and participating in weekly workshops to sharpen their work so it can be published in a respected, professional local-news outlet. Students will be required to travel to Brookline for this course (BranVan provided). Students may use this course, in combination with JOUR 89A, to fulfill the JOUR minor’s internship requirement (instead of completing an outside internship). Usually offered every year.

AMST/LGLS 140b Investigating Justice
[ deis-us ss ]

Prerequisite: LGLS 10a or FYS 12a.

Examines methods used by journalists and other investigators in addressing injustices within criminal and civil legal systems. Problems include wrongful convictions, civil rights, privacy protection, and ethical conflicts. Research methods and reporting techniques enhance skills in interviewing, writing, and oral presentation. Usually offered every second year.

ANTH 26a Communication and Media
[ dl ss ]

A wide-ranging exploration of the human communicative capacity, starting with verbal and visual communicative modalities and culminating in the study of communication through mass and social media. Usually offered every second year.

ENG 62a Documentary: Techniques and Controversies
[ hum ]

An introduction to documentary, covering major works of nonfiction prose and film. Focuses on the variety of documentary techniques in both media and controversies surrounding efforts to represent the real. Usually offered every third year.

ENG 129a Creative Nonfiction Workshop
[ hum wi ]

Offered exclusively on a credit/no credit basis. May be repeated for credit.

Students will learn how to use a wide range of literary techniques to produce factual narratives drawn from their own perspectives and lives. Creative assignments and discussions will include the personal essay, the memoir essay and literary journalism. Usually offered every second year.

ENG 169a Eco-Writing Workshop
[ hum wi ]

Offered exclusively on a credit/no credit basis.

A creative writing workshop focused on writing essays and poems that engage with environmental and eco-justice concerns. Readings, writing assignments, and class discussions will be augmented by field trips. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 45a Sports Journalism and Innovation
[ ss wi ]

Innovative journalists have found new, impactful ways to cover sports. In this course, students will practice the skills needed to craft meaningful stories across platforms, examine the role of the sportswriter in modern culture, and discuss how the sports media industry has evolved to include new niches and business models. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 104a Political Packaging in America
[ ss ]

Examines the history of political marketing, image making in presidential campaigns, the relationship between news and ads, and the growth of public-policy advertising by special-interest groups to influence legislation. Usually offered every fourth year.

JOUR 107b Media and Public Policy
[ ss wi ]

Examines the intersection of the media and politics, the ways in which each influences the other, and the consequences of that intersection for a democracy. Through analytic texts, handouts, and contemporaneous newspaper and magazine articles, explores the relationship between policy decisions and public discourse. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 111b Advanced Multimedia Storytelling Workshop
[ dl oc ]

Prior experience with multimedia editing software is recommended but not required.

Invites students to produce multiple episodes of narrative non-fiction as multimedia pieces. Students interested in podcasting may choose to make a long-form podcast; students interested in video may choose to make a video docuseries; students may also choose to create a series that moves between these two formats. A key theme of the course is how documentary films have influenced podcasts and vice versa; part of the coursework involves close looking and listening as we analyze podcasts and documentary films that show a high level of craft in their sound and visual design and dramatic construction. We will place special emphasis on sound design, exploring advanced sound recording and mixing techniques to design dramatic scenes from a combination of voices, ambiences, and music. Usually offered every spring.

JOUR 112b Social Journalism: The Art of Engaging Audiences
[ dl ss wi ]

Students will learn how to use social media storytelling to develop their own voices, sharpen their reporting skills, and reach new communities and platforms. They will also learn the art of tracking and building audiences through engagement tools and will critique the work of professionals and colleagues. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 118a AI in Journalism
[ qr ss ]

Explores the burgeoning role of artificial intelligence, especially generative AI, in news media. Students will learn how modern AI tools like large language models (LLMs) (e.g., ChatGPT, Claude) and diffusion image generators (e.g., Midjourney) work under the hood, and how these tools can be practically applied in journalistic workflows for tasks such as news writing, summarization, transcription, research assistance, and image creation. Usually offered every year.

JOUR 121a Late Night News
[ ss ]

In a fractured, rapidly changing media landscape in which many people get their news delivered by comedians, and in which many former reporters and fact-checkers now occupy seats in late-night writers’ rooms, where is the line between journalism and news? This course will trace the evolution of late-night comedy. Long dominated by Johnny Carson’s broad, non-ideological monologue jokes, late-night television began a dramatic change in 1999, when Jon Stewart took over The Daily Show. He reshaped that broadcast into a highly political show that ridiculed its subjects with an editorial edge backed by journalistic research. Before long, studies found that more young people were getting their news about current events from Stewart’s show than from mainstream media outlets. In 2014, former Daily Show correspondent John Oliver took things a step further: Every week he and his Last Week Tonight writers delve into a single, complex subject, pulling it apart and pointing out its absurdity through meticulous research and reportage. In this class, students will investigate the implications of journalism that is mediated through a laugh-seeking sensibility – in both left- and right-leaning contexts. And with live TV viewing an increasingly obsolete notion, we’ll also explore political satire that is produced for short-form, social media distribution, melding the worlds of digital and late night. Usually offered every fourth year.

JOUR 130b Science Journalism: Covering Crises from the Pandemic to Climate
[ dl ss wi ]

What is the best way to communicate real science in the age of fake news? What role should science journalists play in the face of today’s biggest crises, from the pandemic to climate change? This course explores the hallmarks of sound science and medical writing and how to confront the public-health consequences of misinformation. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 132b Covering the World: International Reporting and Global Affairs
[ ss ]

Explores the evolution of reporting on international affairs and other cultures for an American audience, and how the work of overseas correspondents shapes foreign policy and public opinion. It will examine the challenges facing journalists working in foreign countries and the ethical, cultural, technological, and political factors that influence the U.S. media's coverage of global affairs. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 139b Reporting on Diverse Communities in Journalism
[ deis-us ss ]

Examines who has been left out of the news discourse; how that has shaped public understanding of race, immigration, gender, and sexual orientation in the United States; and how to produce coverage that is more representative and better reflects reality. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 145a Opinion Writing
[ ss wi ]

An exploration of opinion and first-person writing in all of its journalistic forms. In an era of hot takes unsupported by facts, this course focuses on commentary with a journalistic, factually sound backbone. Students will learn to hone their voice and practice the art of persuasion, developing well-constructed arguments built on deep research. They will also write autobiographical pieces that are held to the same rigorous truth-telling standards that apply when reporting on someone else. Usually offered every second year.

JOUR 152a Truth, Fact and Research in Journalism
[ ss ]

Investigates the concept of journalistic truth through immersion into research, fact-checking, and the art of the interview. Working with transcripts, footage, and other sources, students learn how to find the story, leveraging the power of new media and converting information into knowledge. Usually offered every second year.

LGLS 116b Civil Rights and Civil Liberties: Constitutional Debates
[ ss ]

May not be taken for credit by students who successfully completed POL 116b or LGLS/POL 116b previously.

The history and politics of civil liberties and civil rights in the United States, with emphasis on the period from World War I to the present. Emphasis on freedom of speech, religion, abortion, privacy, racial discrimination, and affirmative action. Readings from Supreme Court cases and influential works by historians and political philosophers. Usually offered every year.

POL 116b Civil Liberties and Constitutional Interpretation
[ deis-us ss ]

May not be taken for credit by students who successfully completed LGLS 116b previously.

The history, politics, and theory of civil liberties and civil rights in the United States, with emphasis on the role of constitutional interpretation. Focus on speech, religion, affirmative action, policing, and prisoner rights. Readings from Supreme Court cases and legal/political philosophers. Usually offered every year.

SOC 146a Mass Communication Theory
[ ss ]

An examination of key theories in mass communication, including mass culture, hegemony, the production of culture, and public sphere. Themes discussed include the nature of media effects, the role of the audience, and the extent of diversity in the mass media. Usually offered every year.