Instructor:
Justin Beck
Email: justin@sfsu.edu
Twitter: @pixplz
Class meetings: Thursdays 4:10 to 6:45 p.m. in HUM 312
Office hours: Thursdays 10:00 a.m. to noon in Hum 310 or by appointment via:
- In-person
- Google Chat (justin3000@gmail.com)
Thanks to an ever-growing number of digital tools and platforms, and the rapid changes in how people use them, technology is providing journalists with new and innovative ways to:
- Generate story ideas
Gather and report information
Engage the public
Tell stories using different media
Publish and promote content
Intro to online journalism will focus on all of these aspects. Through in-class exercises, homework and other assignments, students will immediately put to use the tools they learn about in class, which include:
- Social media and real-time media (e.g. Twitter)
- WordPress
- Hardware and software for capturing and editing various forms of multimedia, including audio and video
- Google’s variety of applications (Reader, Maps, Docs)
- Other Web applications and services
By the end of the semester, students should have a well-rounded understanding of online journalism and the potential roles for technology in every step of the way, from coming up with story ideas to promoting and measuring readership of the content. Given how rapidly media technology will continue to evolve, students will not only need to be fluent in the current set of online journalism tools, but they’ll also need to be ready for constant change.
