Learn about the role of journalism in the modern print media.

Journalism and Print Media is a course that introduces you to the editorial and journalistic practices used in gathering and publishing news articles for print media.

The course begins by introducing the history and development of print media with a focus on newspapers and their impact as mass media. You will learn about the different factors affecting newspaper circulation and profitability, and how modern media organizations are combating this with newspaper ownership chains and Joint Operating Agreements (JOAs). You will learn how a decline in readership can be traced to competition with blogs and online newspapers. The course also describes different journalism styles such as objective journalism, interpretive journalism, and literary journalism, and how they influence reporting styles.

Next, you will learn about the different magazine types and the developmental history of the magazine industry. You will learn about the specialization of different magazine publications, how they target certain population demographics and how they influence popular trends and culture. Also covered is the way magazine publications dictate not only which articles and stories get published but also how they are presented.

Finally, you are introduced to the role editors play in the print media industry, the different types of editor and their function in the newsroom. You will learn about editorial manipulation and its impact on the functioning of a fair and just society. You will learn about editorial bias which is the suppression or distortion of important facts, and how it should be fought by media organizations through a process of checks and balances. The function of producers and sub-editors in the newsroom is also explored.

This course will be of great interest to journalists and publishing professionals who want to develop their understanding of the print media industry and how they can develop the skills needed to research, prepare and publish news articles.