Reportr.net

Image via WikipediaNBC has a strange idea of broadcast journalism for the 21st century. It has joined the New York Film Academyto launch a programme to “train the next generation of journalists who will be prepared to navigate the evolving landscape of digital journalism”.

The aim is to meet “the pressing demand for skilled, can-do digital journalists on network television, cable, and the Internet”.

These are noble intentions, but the curriculum available online is firmly rooted in established broadcast journalism practices, with students working on assignments such as a traditional news segment. NBC’s conception of digital journalism appears to be based on the idea of shooting and editing your own material.

The programme looks more like broadcast journalism for the 20th century, using 21st century tools. Other academics have also questioned the training:

A curriculum focused on teaching new technologies “misses the point,” said Dianne Lynch, dean of the Park School of Communications at Ithaca College. “You have to have the tools so you can say the things you have to say, but first you have to have something to say.”

The new media component is laughable:

Students will upload their projects to a class website as they are completed. Each student will create a short opinion piece to post, and maintain a vlog throughout the year.

This falls far short of re-imagining network TV news for a YouTube generation and reveals a lack of understanding of how online video is different from TV.

Would you pay US$17,000 per semester for this course?