Journalism

The Journalism Program offers a Journalism minor.

The Journalism minor provides a bridge between a liberal arts education and the practice of journalism, which seeks to strengthen democracy by informing citizens and promoting public dialogue.

The program teaches the essential skills of good journalism: critical thinking, research and investigation, clear expression, and storytelling in every form. It explores journalists’ duty to the truth, public and private ethics, the pressures of a changing media ecosystem, and other challenges that face reporters, editors, critics, essayists and public intellectuals.

The Journalism minor encourages real-world experience, including a required internship, and aims to enhance students’ opportunities in the media and other fields. Combining traditional commitments to accuracy, fairness and accountability with a passion for new media experimentation, the minor complements a wide range of major fields of study across the University and prepares students for successful futures in a changing media environment.

Journalism Minor

Requirements for the Minor

Students must take six classes to complete the minor:

  • JOUR-100     Introduction to Journalism (offered fall and spring)
  • JOUR-200   Digital News (offered fall and spring)
  • JOUR-350    The Media Industry (offered spring only; companion course for required internship)
  • JOUR-490    Journalism Capstone (offered spring only)
  • two elective courses

Required courses should be taken in the following order:

  • JOUR-100    Introduction to Journalism
  • JOUR-200   Digital News should be taken after “Introduction to Journalism”
  • JOUR-350   The Media Industry must be taken after “Introduction to Journalism”
  • JOUR-490 Journalism Capstone should be taken in a student’s senior year

The list of electives below is not comprehensive. At least two electives are offered each semester. Current lists of courses will be maintained by the Minor Director and the College Dean’s Office. Courses that students wish to count toward the minor that are not on the list must be presented for review to the Minor Director before the student takes the course.

  • JOUR-303 Covering the City
  • JOUR-325 Opinion Journalism
  • JOUR-355 Reporting from Florence
  • JOUR-360 Covering a Pandemic
  • JOUR-361 Feature Writing
  • JOUR-365 Covering Sports
  • JOUR-366 Fashion Journalism
  • JOUR-367 Media Law in the Digital Age
  • JOUR-368 Media and Social Justice
  • JOUR-370 Magazine Writing in the Digital Age
  • JOUR-372 The Interview
  • JOUR-374 Video News Production
  • JOUR-375 Free Speech
  • JOUR-376 Covering the White House
  • JOUR-377 Government-Media Relations in a Digital Age
  • JOUR-378 Pop Culture, Race and the Media
  • JOUR-379 Broken News: Journalism and Citizenship
  • JOUR-380 Crime and the Media
  • JOUR-381 Investigative Journalism
  • JOUR-384 Visual Storytelling: Advanced Video Journalism
  • JOUR-390 Covering the Economy
  • JOUR-392 Global Journalism
  • JOUR-400 Telling the Truth
  • JOUR-401 Political Journalism
  • JOUR-402 Reporting War
  • JOUR-403 Reporting Foreign Affairs
  • JOUR-405 Science and Environmental Journalism
  • AMST-379 Sports Personalities of the 20th Century
  • ARAB-213 Arabic Media I
  • ARTS-162 Introduction to Graphic Design
  • ENGL-241 New York Stories
  • ENGL-256 Documentary
  • ENGL-282 Creative Non-Fiction Writing
  • ENGL-294 Writing to be Heard
  • ENGL-458 The Writer’s Perspective
  • FMST-350 Film Festival Studies
  • FMST-355 Documentary Film: History and Theory
  • FMST-399 CBL: Social Justice Documentary
  • JUPS-333 Alternative Media and Post-Colonial Communication
  • MUSC-161 Writing About Music
  • MUSC-251 Audio for Documentary
  • MUSC-270 The Music Documentary
  • MUSC-361 Podcasting
  • SEST-601 Media, Public Opinion and National Security

Journalism minor candidates interested in a second internship for academic credit can do a one-credit tutorial (JOUR-302) if they have successfully completed JOUR-350 Media Techniques.

Applications

Students are invited to apply during the spring semester. Acceptance will be based on overall academic performance and the strength of the application essay. Demonstration of interest in journalism, including newsroom experience through internships or campus media, will be regarded as a positive factor.

For more information see http://journalism.georgetown.edu

(For course listings for Journalism see Schedule of Classes)