Department of Journalism and the Writing Professions

• Faculty
• Field Description
• The Major in Journalism
  • Program Learning Goals
  • Major Course Requirements
• The Major in Business Communication - Business Writing Specialization
• The Minors and Courses
• Special Program – The Sidney Harman Writer-In-Residence Program
• Journalism Laboratory
• Courses
  • Courses in Journalism (JRN)
• Department of Journalism and the Writing Professions Website

Field Description

The Department of Journalism and the Writing Professions offers students many exciting ways to study journalism in the media capital of the world and to master the ability to do research, conduct interviews, organize material and write clearly no matter what field a student hopes to enter. Its faculty brings a wide variety of professional experience to the classroom.

Students in journalism classes do original reporting, pursuing their ideas throughout the metropolitan area. Opportunities to publish are available in Dollars & Sense, published by the department and winner of numerous national awards; on the Writing New York blog; and in a variety of professional publications. Journalism students also gain valuable experience through internships at news organizations and publishing houses, major newspapers, magazines, television and radio stations, news and entertainment websites, and book publishers.

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The Majors

The Department of Journalism and the Writing Professions offers two majors:

• Journalism
• Interdisciplinary Major in Business Communication: Business Writing Specialization for the BA Student

Interested students should contact the Department of Journalism and the Writing Professions, Room 7-263 in the Newman Vertical Campus, telephone: 646-312-3974.

Journalism

Journalism majors improve their research, writing, interviewing, editing, and storytelling abilities and knowledge of the city, the country, and the world in preparation for careers in journalism, the Internet and new media, book and magazine publishing, television and radio, music and the arts, the film industry, business, education, government, and law. Students work closely with expert faculty and in internships across the writing-related professions. Internships provide on-the-job experience for students interested in such fields as radio, network and cable TV, newspapers, magazines, wire services, business and financial journalism, and book publishing.

The Department of Journalism and the Writing Professions offers two specializations: journalism and creative writing, and business journalism. Each specialization is outlined in detail below.

• Journalism and Creative Writing Specialization
• Business Journalism Specialization   
  

Program Learning Goals

Upon completion of a major in Journalism, students will be able to:

1. Write clear and well-organized prose that includes grammatically correct sentences in a variety of styles and, where appropriate, employs narratives that show the reader what happened in contrast to telling the reader.
2. Employ journalistic concepts such as the lead (the opening paragraph), the “nut graph” (an explanatory paragraph that follows the lead), and background information, including quotes, that provides context.
3. Demonstrate journalistic reporting and research proficiency, including identifying quality sources and obtaining information from them through interviews, and locating and evaluating data, scholarly material and previously published material and verifying all source material.
4. (Business journalism major): analyze and incorporate into articles data from economic reports; track financial markets; evaluate corporate earnings.
5. (Creative writing major): develop a voice; become familiar with a range of writing forms; identify and employ symbolism, subtext, and selective omission.
6. Understand the value of independent journalism and the role of the press in a free society; recognize journalism-related legal risks in news-gathering; understand rights of access to government institutions; critically evaluate news accounts for credibility, quality, and accuracy.
7. Report on issues, institutions, ideas, and trends in society, and do so in a manner understandable to a lay readership.
8. Practice multimedia journalism including audio and video reporting; retain the essential values of accuracy and balance with the tools and priorities of new media.
9. Embrace the core ethical values of journalism, avoiding plagiarism and fabrication and understand why they are unaccepted.

Major Course Requirements

Journalism and Creative Writing Specialization

The journalism and creative writing specialization helps students develop research, interviewing, writing, editing, and multimedia storytelling skills that are crucial to success across a broad spectrum of fields and professions in this information age. A faculty of professional writers and editors teach students to research, report, interview, and write about urban affairs, politics, crime and the courts, arts and culture, law, education, science, sports, and many other topics.

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The Minors

The department offers two Tier III minors, one in journalism and one in business writing. Each provides students in business, public affairs, and liberal arts a range of courses to strengthen their writing and communication skills. These minors are particularly recommended for students preparing for careers in media, law, and politics and with nonprofit organizations. Students should note that many of the 4000-level capstone courses have prerequisites. In choosing 3000-level courses, students should keep in mind that capstone course, so as to meet its prerequisite requirements.

Business Writing

The minor in Business Writing provides students in business, public affairs, and liberal arts with a firm foundation in professional writing for business purposes.  The program includes options to study business and marketing-related writing, Internet communications, legal writing, journalistic writing, and financial writing.  Students will expand their research, analytical, and writing abilities as they study and become proficient in the use of workplace-related writing. This minor is particularly recommended for students preparing for careers in business, government, marketing, management, public relations, media, law, education, politics, and with nonprofit organizations.

To fulfill the liberal arts minor with a concentration in business writing, students are required to complete a minimum of nine credits, including one course chosen from among

Journalism

The minor in Journalism provides students in business, public affairs, and liberal arts with a range of courses to strengthen their writing and communications skills. This minor is particularly recommended for students preparing for careers in media, law, business, politics, and with nonprofit organizations.

To fulfill the College-wide requirement for the Tier III minor with a concentration in journalism, students are required to complete a minimum of nine credits, including two courses at the 3000-level or above and one course at the 4000- or above, drawn from the curriculum of the Department of Journalism and the Writing Professions. All journalism courses at the 4000-level or above, except for the Media Internship (

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Special Program

The Sidney Harman Writer-In-Residence Program

The Sidney Harman Writer-in-Residence Program, an endowed residency in the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences, offers gifted undergraduates the opportunity to enroll in writing workshops taught by distinguished visiting professors. Since its inception in the fall of 1998, Harman Writers-in-Residence have included poets Yehuda Amichai, Agha Shahid Ali, April Bernard, Carol Muske-Dukes,  Charles Simic, and Major Jackson; playwrights Edward Albee and Tony Kushner; authors William Finnegan, Philip Gourevitch, Jane Kramer, Mark Kurlansky, and George Packer; fiction writers Paul Auster, Susan Choi, Anita Desai, Francisco Goldman, Colum McCann, Lorrie Moore, Sigrid Nunez, Francine Prose, Joseph O'Connor, and John Edgar Wideman; and graphic novelist, Ben Katchor.

Harman courses vary in numbering and in subject, depending on the choice of the visiting writer. Interested students of all majors are encouraged to submit transcripts and writing portfolios for review to Professor Bridgett Davis, 646-312-3927; e-mail: Bridgett.Davis@baruch.cuny.edu.

Harman classes can be taken for honors credit and students can use the Harman courses to fulfill their honors course requirements. The courses also can be used in the Journalism major and minor and in the English major and minor.

Additional information on the Harman Residency is available at www.baruch.cuny.edu/wsas/harman.

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Journalism Laboratory

The department's facilities include Studio H, a state-of-theart computer lab and classroom for journalism students. Studio H offers students the latest technology for multimedia journalism, with 25 Apple iMac computers and software for editing photos, audio, and video. An audiovisual system allows for the viewing of multimedia features, television feeds, and other video on a large screen at the front of the room, and large flat-panel monitors on the side walls offer additional screening options. For example, when a news story is developing, students can follow coverage on at least three stations simultaneously. Studio H, funded by the Harnisch Foundation, also offers wireless Internet access and has its own server for easy file transfers

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Courses

Courses in Journalism

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