Students are introduced to the history and role of media in society, how the media works, learn the skills required to source, research, write news stories, write comment and feature articles.
From research and interviewing to writing and editing, you will gain a detailed understanding of news production including the role of news editors and the skills of the sub-editor.
You will learn how to review, learn the skills of specialist columnists with modules on investigative journalism, sports journalism and travel writing. You will learn how to create markets for your writing as a freelance journalist, learn to write for women and for men, contrast print with broadcast - writing for radio and television, learn the increasing importance of online journalism and writing for the web. Understand journalistic ethics, the laws of libel and copyright protection.
On completion of this course the student will have attained a comprehensive knowledge of journalistic writing skills in a variety of disciplines, will understand how traditional and new media work, how print and broadcast newsrooms operate, will be equipped with the qualities necessary to be a successful freelance journalist and have an appreciation of the skills needed in the ever-growing online and digital market. You will also equip yourself with the principles that all professional journalists sign up to - ethical standards, an in-depth knowledge of the laws of libel and the protection that copyright provides.
The course involves case studies, practical examples and extensive writing exercises.
An introduction to the newspaper office, The changing face of journalism, The work of the journalist explained, What is news, How news is changing, What makes a hard-hitting news story, Where news comes from, How to gather news and generate stories, Hard news and soft news explained, The difference between features and general interest articles.
A short history of the newspaper industry, The business of newspapers, Newspaper structures & departments - production, circulation, promotions, advertising, accounts. Journalism and society, The media landscape, How the media works. How the business model of media works. How publications position themselves in the marketplace. The role of the circulation manager and building market share. Advertising, classified advertising. Going online.
Exploring news values, Determining news worthiness, News writing skills, Different news for different audiences. The 5 W's and the inverted pyramid, KISS, Short simple sentences, Getting your introduction right, Ensure accuracy, Facts not opinions, Using quotes, Avoiding jargon, Structuring the story, Recapping past history, Conducting an interview, Telephone interviews, Email interviews, Press conferences.
Building your contacts book, The importance of contacts - how to cultivate and use them, Who makes a good contact book, Useful tips for running a contacts network, Tracking down stories and finding facts. Researching a story, On and off the record. Protecting and respecting your sources, Calls you should make, Stories to look for, Developing the story, Good sources for information and story ideas, Monitoring other media, The importance of current information, Who to speak to, How to use cuttings, Always check quotes, Using the internet.
What makes a good feature, Transforming research into copy, Structuring your feature, Doing it in the house style. Revise and improve. Writing opinion columns - The four categories of columns, How to write comment, Grab a topic, Gather facts, Get to the point, Structure.
Writing Reviews - Theatre, Music, Book, Television, Radio - The reviewer's role and responsibilities - what you should include in your review - attitude - How to review and write up for theater, musicals, concerts. Reviewing books - a checklist of what to include in your review. Tips on reviewing CDs, Films and TV Eating out reviews - the pitfalls - key points to include - an example of a fact file. Car reviews.
How the newsroom is organized, The chain of command, The roles of the news editor, deputy editor, associate editors, the news editor, chief sub-editor, sports editor, features editor and the picture editor examined. The daily editorial conference and its function - the news list, coordinating journalists and stories, assignments, placing stories, newspaper policy, Routine tasks. Copyflow - how a news item goes from an original idea to a printed story.
The importance of the sub-editor's job including responsibilities - being held to account, protecting the paper's reputation, Dealing with raw copy, Keeping it in the house style, Cutting to length, Best intro angle, to re-write or not to re-write, Constructing Headlines, Caption writing, Placement of a story, news/advertising ratio, The influence of advertising, Planning, The importance of timing, Design theory - layout, visual appeal and design definitions.
Ethical dilemmas for journalists, invasions of privacy, racism, reporting of terrorism, anti-sexism, anti-ageism, whistle-blowers, check book journalism, the political economy of the media, monopoly ownership, hyper-competition, moral panics, sexing up a story, dumbing down.
What is libelous, defamation, Defence against libel, Justification for printing, What justifies fair comment, Malicious comment, Corrections, Clarifications, Offers of amends, Reporting criminal courts, Reporting civil courts, Employment tribunals, Inquests, Contempt of court.
Intellectual property, Understanding copyright, The limitations of copyrighted material, How copyright protects the journalist.
Qualities that are necessary to be a successful freelance journalist, The pros and cons of freelancing explained, Making contact and talking to editors, Breaking into the magazine market, The importance of knowing your market - Research - analyzing the contents of newspapers and magazines, Article analysis, Tailoring your work to their requirements, Best categories for the freelance to tackle.
Opportunities for the freelance journalist, Finding a regular supply of work, How to organize yourself - keeping records, cuttings file, joining the National Union of Journalists.
Blogrolls to wikis, the audience for online journalism, Print industry under attack, The rise of citizen journalism, The journalist as online publisher, Online ethics - guidelines and best practice, Blogs, Weblog conventions, blogspeak, How to begin blogging, Tips for setting up a blog, Blogroll, Tags, Trackbacks, Pingbacks, What is Technorati? How to promote your blog, Using wikis, How to write for a wiki.
Benefits of social media, Understanding your audience, Social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, MySpace, Flickr, Picassa, Blogger, Ning, Meetup, Second Life, Viral content production, Social media marketing techniques, Social bookmarking, Social Networking, Accumulating social capital, The Future of Social Networking, Understanding Facebook, How Facebook benefits a business, How to target your market, how to promote yourself on Facebook, How advertising works on Facebook, Understanding Linkedin, LinkedIn groups, companies, applications, direct ads. Marketing on Linkedin.
How content dictates design, Design as a selling tool, Why the front page must attract the reader, Settling on a style for the publication. The main elements of print layout, Paper and size, Structure and look, Typefaces/Fonts, Structuring text, White Space, Colour, Pictures and Graphics. Headlines, Straplines, Tag lines, Sub-headings, By-lines, Captions. The production stages, Shaping the page. Do's and Don'ts of Print Design.
Learn the most important aspects of radio reporting, Writing for radio - news flashes, headlines, voicers, tasters , Planning the news package, Identifying contributors, Techniques for presentation, Qualities of a good presenter, Techniques for successful interviewing, Technical side of interviewing, Types of interviews.
What makes radio journalism distinctive? Writing short reports and headlines, Writing different types of stories: News flashes, Headlines, Copy stories, Voicers, Tasters, Live reports, Script writing, and Presentation skills. Digital audio editing, Ethics of editing.
Writing for television, The News Package, scripting a television news bulletin, Fitting the narrative with the shots, Gathering News, Technicalities associated with news gathering, Tips for interviewing, Short features, Camera shots and editing, Presentation, The News Schedule, How a TV newsroom is organised. What to wear.
Learn to investigate stories concerning Malpractice, Corporate wrongdoing, Political corruption, Crime. Analyzing documents - court cases, legal documents, tax records, company and property ownership, government reports, regulatory reports, corporate financial filings/returns, Investigating technical issues, Interviewing on-the-record sources, Interviewing anonymous sources/whistleblowers, Sourcing information through Freedom of Information Acts from Government and Government agencies. Understanding cause and effect, Uncovering the stories behind the statistics.
Sports journalism, an essential element of any news media organization, is a highly specialized field and requires specific knowledge and skills, but the disciplines and practices are similar to those of a standard journalist.
How media coverage of sport is structured and prioritized, Interviews, Sources and contacts, Planning, Researching, Covering an event, Sports news reporting, Captions, Feature writing, Profiles, Sport as soap opera - Scene setters, Types of stories - build up or scene setter, Previews, Running reports, Considered reports, Delayed reports, Inquest pieces.
Women: The changing face of women's magazines, Front page teasers, How to tackle the triumph over tragedy article, How to write the confessional article, Celebrity profiles, Celebrity interviews - how to approach them and what questions to ask, The importance of preparation, getting an original quote, The role of photographs.
Men: the new contents of men's magazines, Understanding how they are read and consumed, Demographics and target markets, Market research - observing the contents, review the work of other writers, Picking an area of interest and becoming an expert, Common topics - fashion, cars, sport.
What a travel editor is looking for, The secret of a good travel piece, Tips on finding new angles, How to write the travel article - what to include and what to leave out, Gripping introductions, Use of sidebars, Staycations, City Breaks, Cheap travel, Special offers, Niche markets - Grey Pound travel, Features, The Travel Narrative, Contacting and writing for the top travel markets. Other opportunities - in-flight magazines, eco tours, exercise holidays, wellness travel.
Sponsorship; Internal PR functions; Corporate Image; Press and Broadcast Media Relations; Client Relationships; Internal PR; Commissioning and Briefing Photographers; Supplying Material to the Press/Getting Material onto TV and Radio; Organizing Seminars; Exhibitions and Conferences; Audio/Visual Aids; Writing Skills (Press Releases, Writing Feature Articles for the Press, In-house Journals and Newsletters); Crisis Management; Corporate Advertising; Brochures and Printing.
Blogs, Microblogs, Chatrooms, Delicious, Email, Flickr, Twitter, Instant messaging, Message Boards, Mobile Internet , New Media Releases, Online Conferencing, Online Surveys, Pay per click, Podcasts, RSS, Search Engines, SEO, Social Networking Service Sites, Video Sharing, Virtual worlds, VoIP, Wiki and Widgets.
Commercial Implications of the Internet, Social Interaction with the Internet, Web 2.0 and its Implications, Internet Convergence, the Network Effect, Internet Information Exchange, Internet Audience Size and Exposure, Internet Culture and Communication, Transparency and the Internet.
Online Communications Platforms, Online Communication Channels, Online Communication Mediums, Interactivity and Application of Communication Channels, Policy, Optimization, Monitoring and Evaluation of Online Communications Channels, Online Communications Channels Planning and Implementation.
Local versus Global Communication, Landscaping Platforms, Channels and context, Online PR Organisational Analysis and Segmentation, Developing Online PR Strategies, Online PR Tactics and SEO considerations, Online PR Planning, Managing Online PR Risk and Opportunities.
Internet influence on News, Internet Journalists, Economics of Online News Production, Internet Critics and other influences, the PR Practitioner as an Online Publisher, Ethical Internet PR, Truthfulness and Duty of Care, Online Ethics, Debate, Guidelines and Best Practice. Monitoring and Evaluation of Social Media Discourse, Trends and Value. Policy Influences, corporate speak. Implications of Social Media for Corporate Social Responsibility.
Creative Writing for the Web, Writing for your Client, Relevant Content - Importance of, Simple versus Complex Messages, Keeping a Natural Flow to your Content, Optimizing Content, Keyword Management, When to use Key Words, Ratio of Prose to Keywords, Importance of Homepage Content, Images and Art Text, Importance of Spell Checking, Using a Copywriter.
Creating a Business Plan, Executive Summary, Business Opportunities, Sales Strategy, Competitor Analysis, Management Team and Personnel, Operations, Financial Forecasts, Business Legalities, the Workplace, Office Equipment, Financing your Business.
Enrollment for this course will commence on the April 13th 2012.
14 weeks to 1 calendar year depending on individual progress.
There is no application form. The course can be booked and paid for online through our website at our payments page. If you have any additional queries after reading this brochure we simply ask you to contact us by phone or email and ask to be booked in for a consultation; we will then arrange a time convenient for you.
$1595
All course material is included in the fee. Fees are payable by credit card, debit card, bank draft/transfer, check or PayPal. All fees must be paid before the course starts.
Request a Brochure for this Course.
Every effort is made to ensure accuracy, however responsibility is disclaimed for any error or omission in this website.
Fitzwilliam Institute Group, closes on Public Holidays and for a number of days at Christmas and New Year. Fitzwilliam Institute Group reserves the right to postpone, cancel or alter courses without notice or to change any of the details in this brochure. Fees are not refundable unless the course is cancelled by Fitzwilliam Institute Group. Distance Learning Courses are provided by the Fitzwilliam Institute Ltd.
Distance Learning Courses, Fort Mc Murray, Alberta, T9H 3G6. Phone: 646 593 7959
