What you need to know about Digital Journalism
Digital Journalism is, perhaps, twenty-five years old. It might be a bit older, maybe a bit younger, but … that’s it. Clearly, this form of journalism has a very short history. If you’ve never heard the term ”Digital Journalism” used before, you may not know what it is … you may, in fact, be scratching your head in wonder.
So … here’s the very short definition. Digital Journalism refers to news reporting and commentary that comes “directly from the Internet.” It is Journalism in the 21st Century, an information stream that exists only because there is a worldwide Internet.
In fact, Internet Journalism, along with its equally-young cousin, 24 hour Cable news programming, is altering the news and information landscape, pushing traditional forms of journalism and reporting to their collective deathbeds. It’s no secret that mainstream newspapers and network TV news programming, the longtime mainstays of journalism in America, are rapidly losing their audiences and their ability to remain viable.
Magazines, for example, a long time source of journalistic commentary, are in serious trouble because they have lead times that are too long. Most magazines are published weekly, bi-weekly or even monthly. By the time, a journalism article reaches a reader, that same news has been written about, discussed, dissected and more – repeatedly – on Internet blogs and on cable news programs, as well.
The future doesn’t appear much brighter for network television. While they file reports daily, their opinions overwhelm the news they cover. Since perception is often reality, the three major networks are considered to be too political for viewers and, as a result, can no longer be trusted to provide news reporting and journalistic commentary in a fair and unbiased way.
Sadly, the same is now true for major, mainstream newspapers. They have become so politicized that their front page news stories often include political opinions and commentary, not just a straight reporting of events. People dislike that and, the result is obvious: readership is diminishing rapidly.
Twenty-four hour news reporting on Cable TV networks has been able to fill much of the growing void left by failing mainstream news and journalism outlets, but not all of it. While cable news networks like Fox are growing rapidly and cutting into the more traditional channels of viewership and readership, their success is not limited to them alone.
Their partners in the new journalism of the 21st Century can be found online – on your personal computer screen. It is there that individual Digital Journalists work to follow and report on news stories as they happen … to engage in political commentary, reflecting all different points of view … and to create the new journalism for this century – Digital Journalism.
There are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of Digital Journalists working as much as seven days a week to report and comment on news and events honestly and openly … and totally. While editors at major newspapers and network TV stations have often filtered news and held back stories they didn’t want you to learn about, Digital Journalists operate ethically and hold nothing back.
When you think about it, that’s a very good thing. There can be no doubt that Digital Journalists are providing a very important public service.
The Columbia School of Journalism … A Reputation for Excellence
There are many fine Journalism Schools scattered at colleges and universities throughout the United States. One of the very best, if not the absolute best, may be the school located uptown in Manhattan in the neighborhood known as Morningside Heights.
That is where you’ll find students attending classes in the Columbia School of Journalism’s Graduate Program, a course of study that has produced many of today’s best-known print, television and online journalists.
Columbia University’s Journalism School is nearing its 100th birthday which makes it one of the oldest Journalism Schools in America. The university itself was founded before the American Revolution, way back in 1754 when it was known as “King’s College” in honor of the reigning British monarch at that time, King George.
When the school opened its doors to undergraduate students way back then, there were already four colleges operating “in the colonies,” because, as I mentioned earlier, the American Revolution had not yet taken place … there were no American citizens, only British subjects.
No matter. The school began operations and, over time – lots of it – became known as one of the country’s and the world’s top institutions of higher learning. In fact, today in the modern era, it is a “member of the prestigious Ivy League” and has a well-deserved reputation for excellence.
That reputation exists for all of its course studies, including Journalism. Interestingly, there was no School of Journalism for much of the university’s long history. The idea for a Journalism School was put forth by the nationally-known publisher, Joseph Pulitzer in the late 19th Century. As a prominent newspaper publisher at the time, Pulitzer hoped that a Journalism School could – and would – crank out a steady supply of qualified journalists for his newspaper.
It took several years for Pulitzer’s idea to take root. The truth is that the Columbia School of Journalism opened its doors for the very first time in September, 1912. When it did so, the first class had a student body of about 100 students in total, many of whom came from as many as twenty-one foreign countries. Additionally, the students were a mix, some part of the university’s undergraduate program while others were already part of the graduate program.
The school was popular from the outset and, over time, its student body – and its reputation – grew exponentially. In 1935, the school became the very first Graduate School of Journalism in the United States even though graduate students had been taking courses for more than twenty years.
Today, the Columbia School of Journalism remains one of the finest institutions of learning for budding journalists in the United States and throughout the rest of the world. Its student body is comprised on “the best and the brightest from America” and from dozens of other countries, as well.
The school’s faculty is superior and, in many cases, nationally-known. And the Graduate students who are there to study and learn are a serious group … intent on being the next generation of famous TV, print and online journalists. Many of them are certain to succeed.
America’s Top Undergraduate Journalism Schools
There was a time in American history when the country’s top journalists had no formal education. Frequently, these men, and to a lesser extent women, learned their craft through “the school of hard knocks.” They would start their careers on the bottom, as paper boys or mailroom workers and gradually, over time, learn everything they would need to know about being a journalist.
Call it a process of osmosis; the act of being around a real journalist, then watching, learning, absorbing … until the day arrived when the novice (former paper boy) was ready to assume the role of journalist.
That romantic vision of professional opportunity no longer exists in modern America although that scenario probably occurred over and over way back in the 1930s, 1940s, even in the 1950s. But, when the current generation of professional journalists reached college age, they went to school, courtesy of their well-meaning parents.
By strict definition, a journalist is both a news gatherer and a news reporter. He or she needs to know how to conduct research … and interviews … take notes quickly and understandably in “shorthand” … and have superior writing skills, as well. It is no longer acceptable to work your way up from minor jobs to someday rise to the level of journalist … just because you’ve spent several years in or around the newsroom.
No, if you want to be a television or newspaper journalist today, you need the proper educational credentials to get the job. That means you must attend a good 4-year college or university … and graduate. An undergraduate degree should be enough to get you a job as a journalist at a small TV station or on a local newspaper.
You may be able to land a really big and prestigious job if you stay in school and complete a Graduate Program (advanced degree) in Journalism, but it is not, by any means, necessary. Your successful completion of an undergraduate journalism program – and receipt of a degree—can land you a quality job … and a solid opportunity to launch your career.
Are some colleges and universities that offer courses in journalism better than others? Apparently, yes. Currently, the best 4-year undergraduate journalism degree programs are available at such schools as Ball State University … Indiana University … The University of Florida … The University of Maryland … and The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The schools offering this degree program have earned a nickname from journalism students – “J Schools.”
Of course, there are probably many other very fine colleges and universities that deserve mention, but the schools noted here are among the very best in the country. Now, entry into Journalism School is not easy.
Competition among graduating high school students is intense and many who deserve entry into a degree program frequently don’t receive it. If journalism is something that interests you, make sure your high school grades remain high, your SAT scores do the same … and that you apply early to the school or schools of your choice.
America will always need journalists. Perhaps the next great journalist can be you.