JOU 270 A/B/C
Introduction to Journalism (3 credit hours)
270 A: Prof. Justin Catanoso, MW 12:30-1:45pm (CRN 17678)
270 B: Prof. Ivan Weiss, TR 9:30-10:45am (CRN 27125)
270 C: Prof. Ivan Weiss, TR 11-12:15pm (CRN 29824)
Introduction to Journalism is your gateway course to a minor in journalism. This course is a full immersion into new ways to think about gathering information and communicating it—fairly and accurately—in a variety of forms and formats. Throughout the semester, we will discuss, evaluate and practice the craft of journalism through clear and concise writing. You will write news, features and opinion. You will write stories of varying length. You will post to a blog and tweet news. You will practice multimedia reporting using audio, video and/or digital photography. You will be creative, but work only from verified facts and information. Ultimately, you will learn communication skills that will impress potential employers, whether you plan to work as a journalist (writer or editor), a PR professional, an attorney, a business person or in any field where writing cleanly and communicating clearly are vital. There will be more than a dozen graded assignments, many of them on deadline.
Class size: 16
JOU 278 A/COM 270 J
News Literacy (3 credit hours)
Prof. Justin Catanoso
MW 2-3:15pm (CRN 20493/25038)
The mission of the course is to teach students to become informed and discerning consumers of news in a media landscape that is flooded with both information and misinformation. Students learn how to evaluate news coverage; how to read for bias, fairness, integrity, and accuracy; how to use new media to increase their knowledge of world events; how to research their own facts as a way to check the accuracy of the media outlets they rely upon; what happens when governments and media owners try to control news coverage; and the dangers of both censorship and media outlets run amok.
Class size: 18
JOU 310
Editing (3 credit hours)
Prof. Justin Catanoso
T 2-4:30pm (CRN 27123)
This class looks both broadly and deeply at the practice and principles of editing news and features, primarily for newspapers—in print and online. Editing skills practiced and emphasized will include: grammar, AP Style, form and flow, story structure and thoroughness, use of quotations and verifying information, balance and fairness. Regular discussions will center on news judgment, coaching and managing reporters/writers, responding to readers, ethics and legal issues. Students will edit stories for homework and also in class on deadline. A critical expectation: students will keep up with national news daily so that they become well-versed in the news and issues of the day. Some class time will be regularly devoted to discussing current events and the news decisions that arise from top stories. The skills acquired in this class will apply to many disciplines, not just journalism, that require information gathering, skeptical thinking, verifying facts and writing clear, concise prose and managing people. Select guest speakers join classes to illustrate the various worlds in which editing is applied, from traditional media to fashion to magazines to public relations. Texts: Editing Today and Editing Today Workbook (Iowa State Press), AP Stylebook, and materials from the instructor.
Class size: 18
JOU 330
Prof. Ivan Weiss
Podcasting (3 Credit Hours)
WF 12:30-1:45 (CRN 28985)
As the world of nonfiction audio grows rapidly, students will learn the building blocks and best practices of audio journalism, including sound editing, interviewing, and narrative. Students will immerse themselves in a variety of podcasts and radio pieces, and will complete a series of creative exercises and projects, laying the groundwork for them to grow as audio producers.
Class Size: 12
JOU 331
Prof. Paul Garber
On Air With WFDD (3 Credit hours)
WF 9:30-10:45 (CRN 28984)
Fundamentals in audio reporting including interviewing techniques, writing for radio, beat coverage, audio recording and editing, and social media. Students will work with news professionals at 88.5 FM WFDD to produce stories for broadcast including and gain an understanding about creating community through radio.
Class Size: 8
JOU 322/WRI 322
Investigating Innocence (3 Credit Hours)
Prof. Phoebe Zerwick
R 4:30-7:00 (CRN 29725/29724)
Learn to write like a journalist and think like a lawyer by investigating and writing about an ongoing case of a wrongful conviction under review by the law school’s Innocence & Justice Clinic. Law students and undergraduates work together with instruction by professors in law and journalism. POI Required. Also listed as WRI 322, LAW 500.
Class Size: 12
JOU 355 A/COM 215 A
Broadcast Journalism
Prof. Melissa Painter Greene
M 5-7:30pm (CRN 29954/20153)
Introduces students to best practices in broadcast storytelling, including scripting, producing, filming, editing and anchoring a news broadcast. Also listed as COM 215.
Seats are limited.
JOU 375A
Special Topics: Mastering the Interview (3 credit hours)
Prof. Barry Yeoman
M 1-3:30pm (CRN 24811)
Interviews not only reveal information; they also hold power to account, give space to unheard voices, and can be newsmaking events themselves. In this class, we’ll discuss the best practices for conducting interviews and using them in longer stories. Students will read, listen to, watch, and discuss great interviews. They will discuss the craft with other journalists and documentarians. And they will conduct interviews, culminating in two writing projects. The course will have a thematic focus on justice and power.
Class Size: 12
JOU 375B/COM 319 A
Special Topics in Journalism: Media Ethics (3 credit hours)
Prof. Philip Cunningham
TR 12:30-1:45pm (CRN 25846/29832)
Examines historical and contemporary ethical issues in the media professions within the context of selected major ethical theories while covering, among other areas, issues relevant to: journalism, advertising, public relations, filmmaking, and media management.
Seats are limited.
JOU 375 C/COM 370 E
Special Topics in Journalism: Rhetoric of Black Cultures (3 credit hours)
Prof. Eric Watts
TR 9:30-10:45am (CRN 27133/24063)
Course description coming soon.
Seats are limited.
JOU 375 D/COM 247 A
Special Topics in Journalism: Media Production I
Prof. Thomas Southerland
MW 2-3:15pm (CRN 29953/24060)
Students produce a variety of short-form media projects. P-COM 120.
Seats are limited.
JOU 375 E/COM 365 A
Special Topics in Journalism: Imagination Project
Prof. Christopher Zaluski
W 9:30-11:50pm (CRN 29962/29960)
The production of short films, digital study guides, or E-books and/or other types of multimedia materials on important social, political, cultural and economic issues. Opportunities for students to immerse themselves in a topic and interact with scholars from various disciplines (topics vary each year).
Seats are limited.
JOU 375 F/ WGS 271
Making Sense of the News Through A Feminist Lens
Prof. Julia Jordan-Zachery
W 3-5:30pm (CRN 30008/29567)
Inquiry into news literacy from a feminist perspective, with the intention to identify gender bias and consider questions of empowerment, exclusions, consumerism, and how to navigate the digital landscape to distinguish verified, reliable news from propaganda.
Seats are limited.
JOU 380 A
Prof. Lisa Sorg
Deep Dive: Project Reporting (1.5 credit hours)
M 5-6:15pm (CRN 28982)
This course is a group project in which students will learn how to report and write compelling, accurate and in-depth stories that focus on the environment, such as pollution, climate change, environmental justice and even their intersection with public health.
Over the semester, students will learn to use documents, data, interviews and fieldwork to collaboratively report, write and photograph one in-depth environmental story of 800-1,500 words. There will be an opportunity for multimedia storytelling to supplement the written work if there is interest among the students. The story will be based in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County, and when finished, will be suitable for publication in a print or digital media outlet.
In addition to traditional reporting and writing skills, students with interests and/or expertise in photography, audio/video storytelling, graphic design or data science are encouraged to enroll.
Class Size: 6
JOU 380 B
Prof. Justin Catanoso + Justin Cook
Deep Dive: Photography (1.5 credit hours)
WR 5-8pm (CRN 28991)
This 1.5-credit independent study takes students through the fundamentals of photojournalism: basic photographic skills development and review of more advanced techniques as well as consideration of how journalists develop story ideas, cultivate sources and create their ultimate published reported project. The short course involves five in-class sessions in January and February 2024. A 35mm camera is not required.
Class Size: 12