鈥淲hat journalism should we teach?鈥� 鈥淗ow can the academy drive and lead change in practice?鈥� These questions run like a red thread through a new publication produced by a collective of BU academics聽 in the Journalism Education Research Group, based within the Centre for Excellence in聽Media Practice.听
(Routledge) draws on original and innovative contributions from educators, practitioners and students 鈥� including BU alumni.
Some observers describe journalism as broken聽鈥� accused of elitism and often branded as too far removed from the reality of people鈥檚 lives. Beleaguered by a persistent聽crisis of trust, journalists and journalism are often portrayed as core to the problem, rather than the solution. Inclusivity remains an urgent issue with news organisations and industry councils聽intensifying protocols in a bid to create more diverse newsrooms.
Against this background,聽Challenges and New Directions in Journalism Education聽engages with a series of key themes and objectives. These include discussions around safeguarding, sustainability, journalism鈥檚 鈥榙emocratic deficit鈥�, integrating media literacy, podcasting and the 鈥榩ost-pandemic鈥� context.
Each chapter draws on a research-informed approach: primary data, case studies and examples to describe and unpack the topic, and concludes with practical suggestions for journalism educators. The core tenet is the importance of listening 鈥� to the voices of students, the requirements of industry, and to each other.
The book was edited by , with chapters written by several members of the Journalism Education Research Group:聽;听;听;听;听;听;听听补苍诲听;听and . BBC Newsround presenter and BU graduate聽 and ITV News reporter also contributed chapters.听
The book is accompanied by a podcast, in which the chapter authors expand on the final section of the book 鈥撀�Reflections. It concludes with a Manifesto for Change, drawn up by the authors,聽which is intended to spark a conversation within and between industry and the academy.
The podcast includes the findings of a 鈥榗all and response鈥� exercise with final year students of聽BA (Hons) Multimedia Journalism. This exercise was discussed further in a podcast with聽. It also considers how journalism schools and news organisations can work together towards the shared goal of producing journalists that are ready to hit the ground running in industry.
聽is published by Routledge.
The 2 part podcast: I Challenges and II New Directions is available under .
The journalism.co.uk podcast is .
