Big changes in old department
Joe Cunningham
Issue date: 9/2/09 Section: News
NSU's department of journalism is underway with the revamp to their curriculum to fit the ever growing and changing media.
Students entering the journalism program when this change takes place would no longer choose a concentration of journalism to study, but instead will go into a media studies program.
The department decided to drop their accreditation and give students a greater freedom in choosing their journalism classes.
The media studies program will tear down the barriers that have existed between broadcast, newsprint and public relations and give students a buffet-style method of learning journalism.
Students already in the program will remain unaffected.
The changes will only apply to incoming students the semester the change is official.
Rather than taking all classes pertaining to broadcast or newsprint, a student will take the department's core courses and then take 21 hours in journalism electives.
It's a huge increase from the six hours of electives current and past journalism students have had to take.
The electives will include previously required classes for the different concentrations, like advanced TV reporting and news writing.
There is one caveat, according to Paula Furr, head of the department of journalism.
The department can't afford to hold classes with a low number of students.
"It all depends on student interest," Furr added.
Another change to the program will be a greater emphasis on entertainment technologies.
"We do get a lot of students who want to go into broadcast, but don't want to be in front of a camera," explained associated professor of journalism Mary Brocato.
Furr added to that, explaining that it was something they were hoping to work toward for a while now.
"You could already see in our minor program how we were emphasizing production and all the technologies involved in that."
Essentially, the program offers core classes ranging from media writing to basic television techniques to communication law.
Students entering the journalism program when this change takes place would no longer choose a concentration of journalism to study, but instead will go into a media studies program.
The department decided to drop their accreditation and give students a greater freedom in choosing their journalism classes.
The media studies program will tear down the barriers that have existed between broadcast, newsprint and public relations and give students a buffet-style method of learning journalism.
Students already in the program will remain unaffected.
The changes will only apply to incoming students the semester the change is official.
Rather than taking all classes pertaining to broadcast or newsprint, a student will take the department's core courses and then take 21 hours in journalism electives.
It's a huge increase from the six hours of electives current and past journalism students have had to take.
The electives will include previously required classes for the different concentrations, like advanced TV reporting and news writing.
There is one caveat, according to Paula Furr, head of the department of journalism.
The department can't afford to hold classes with a low number of students.
"It all depends on student interest," Furr added.
Another change to the program will be a greater emphasis on entertainment technologies.
"We do get a lot of students who want to go into broadcast, but don't want to be in front of a camera," explained associated professor of journalism Mary Brocato.
Furr added to that, explaining that it was something they were hoping to work toward for a while now.
"You could already see in our minor program how we were emphasizing production and all the technologies involved in that."
Essentially, the program offers core classes ranging from media writing to basic television techniques to communication law.
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