Journalism

• COM JO 502: Journalism Special Topics
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: COMJO 200; Graduate Prerequisites: COMJO 721. COMJO 502 offers a variety of relevant topics in the field of journalism for undergraduate and graduate students to explore. This course is designed to give students a deeper understanding of a particular topic, allowing them an opportunity to test their skills as a journalist.
• COM JO 503: Journalism Research
  A rigorous grounding in research and investigative methods from interviews and records searching to computer-assisted reporting and use of the Freedom of Information Act. Four credits, fall and spring semesters. (Undergraduate Prerequisites: COM JO 200. Graduate Prerequisites: COM JO 721.)
• COM JO 504: Arts Criticism
  In this course, students learn how to cover entertainment and the arts and how to write criticism of performances and exhibitions. Students develop critical thinking and writing. Topics include: structuring a review; critical biases; profiling celebrities from a critical perspective; cultural criticism (how to write about entertainment or the arts to make broader points about our culture) and, style - how to get it. Assignments include TV, film, music and theater reviews, screenings and a trip to a Boston theater. Guests include prominent Boston critics. Four credits, fall semester.
• COM JO 505: Race & Gender in the News Media
  Students examine the nature of race and gender stereotypes and the forms they take, and the historic context in which they develop and change overtime. The class looks at the structures, practices and culture of the news (and entertainment) media that create or echo and reinforce race and gender stereotypes. Students evaluate and analyze dominant political and ideological positions on race and gender in the U.S. and how they are presented by major media outlets. Four credits, every semester.
• COM JO 506: Audience Engagement
  The ability to report for a digital audience and engage readers with your coverage are two of the most prized skills in newsrooms today. Understanding your audience -- why people read, watch, and listen to what they do -- and being able to connect them to your journalism is often the difference between a story read by millions that delivers a major impact and one that disappears without a trace into the vastness of the Internet. Many newsrooms have developed entire departments dedicated to these skills, which are core to both editorial strategy and company success. They represent not only a growth area in the industry, but also an important potential starting point for eager journalists looking for a foot-in-the-door. More specifically, this course will give students a thorough grounding in the principles and skills of digital reporting, audience engagement, multimedia journalism today. They will learn how to nimbly master emerging technologies and report in a way that resonates deeply within their communities. They will come away with not only the core concepts behind these disciplines, but also hands-on abilities that they can use in the real world for internships and full-time jobs. We’ll employ lectures, journalism critiques, guest speakers from around the industry, and real-world assignments to educate our students.
• COM JO 507: Video Community Reporting
  This class is about the stories that don’t start with the police scanner. They are the stories you find and develop. At their best, they have focus, strong visuals, compelling sound and wonderful writing. This is also the finishing school course that will launch you into your career. We’ll sharpen the skills you’ve learned at COM & work on long-form stories. I want you to start thinking and acting like professionals. Pay attention to the world around you. If you see it - shoot it. Look for the unanswered question and the story behind the headline. Focus. Be a storyteller. Bring all that you’ve learned to every project. We’ll work on content and presentation. The goal: Have you “Air Ready” in 13 classes.
• COM JO 508: Multi-platform Story Editing
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (COMJO200 & COMJO205) - Graduate Prerequisites: (COMJO704 & COMJO721) - Whether you go to work for a print, broadcast or digital only newsroom, or produce content for your own start-up or non-profit, knowing how to properly edit content for multiple platforms is critical. This course is designed to give you hands-on experience with editing for multiple platforms. Examples of typical assignments: Editing a text story for print and web, writing a headline and description for YouTube video, copy editing photo captions for a photo gallery, fact checking social media. Students will put what they've learned to practical use by editing content that will run on the department's award-winning showcase news site for journalism students' work.
• COM JO 509: Bearing Witness
  Pre-requisites: Undergrad - COM JO205; Graduate - COM JO710. This course introduces students to documentary journalism as a form of long-form visual reporting. It is a production-intensive class that examines documentary aesthetics, ethics, and genres. Throughout the semester, students research, produce, shoot, and edit a six-to-ten-minute documentary short, learning how to build a story from initial idea through final edit. Instruction focuses on story development, ethical decision-making, interviewing, visual storytelling, sound, narrative structure, and editing. Through screenings, discussions, and intensive hands-on work, Students learn to identify and produce compelling long-form video stories grounded in the journalistic principles of accuracy, fairness, and transparency. Class time is divided among screenings, discussions, camera and editing workshops, and work-in-progress critiques, with an emphasis on revision and learning through critique.
• COM JO 511: Covering Government and Politics
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (COMJO200 & COMJO210) - Graduate Prerequisites: (COMJO721) - This class provides instruction in covering state government, including legislative process, analyzing data, interviewing, and developing beats. Students learn how to write so that readers understand significant issues. Guest lectures, readings, and exercises explore the dynamics of political and public affairs reporting. Taken in the same semester as JO546 (Statehouse Program) as part of the Boston Statehouse Program. Class is open to journalism majors in all specializations. Four credits, every semester. (Undergraduate Prerequisites: COM JO 200 and JO 210. Graduate Prerequisites: COM JO 721.)
• COM JO 512: Designing Media
  This is a studio course where students learn the elements of design. Students design a newsletter and sample pages for a magazine on topics of their own choosing. Students design with Adobe Creative applications. This course covers the principles of typography, composition, and visual language and encourages creative/innovative ideas. All projects will be portfolio pieces. 4 cr., either sem.
• COM JO 513: Advanced Photojournalism
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (COMJO312) or consent of instructor. - Graduate Prerequisites: and consent of instructor. - An intensive course designed to give students the skills necessary to produce professional quality work meeting publication standards, with emphasis on storytelling in the visual medium. Weekly assignments require students to produce original picture packages complete with written material and captions. Four credits, fall and spring semesters. (Undergraduate Prerequisites: COM JO 205/303 and JO 312; or consent of instructor. Graduate Prerequisites: JO 706 or consent of instructor.)
• COM JO 514: Sports Journalism
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (COMJO200) - Graduate Prerequisites: (COMJO721) - A special-topic writing course for students interested in a career in sports journalism. Topics include game stories, features, columns, and profiles, as well as examining sport as a commercial enterprise. Four credits, fall and spring semesters. (Undergraduate Prerequisite: COM JO 200. Graduate Prerequisite: COM JO 721.)
• COM JO 516: Foreign Reporting
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: Pre-req: JO200 or JO721 - This course covers the practical, critical, and theoretical issues involved in reporting the world for domestic audiences. How can journalists best report on different cultures? How can they demystify the other for their readers and viewers? How do you work with a fixer? Manage your own trauma? Stay safe? How does 19th Century colonialism still influence foreign coverage, and how do you escape this influence? What's to be learned from Conrad's Heart of Darkness about reporting on Africa? When is personalizing the news a bad idea and when is a good time to do it? Students read outstanding examples of foreign reporting, workshop their stories, and learn how to be successful given the current standards for foreign reporting. However, in light of such challenges as globalization, global warming, ethnonational conflict, and the rise of China, the class also debates how to develop better norms in the future. Four credits. (Undergraduate Prerequisite: COMJO 200/250. Graduate Prerequisite: COMJO 721.)
• COM JO 518: Newsletter Writing
  In this class, students will learn why newsletters are becoming a crucial part of every news organization’s strategy for audience engagement, subscription attainment and retention, and yes, revenue growth. We’ll analyze the most popular newsletters in the journalism industry – honing in on the tone, style, and trends that make them so successful. Spoiler: The one thing all the best newsletters have in common is that readers find them indispensable. By the end of this class, you’ll have developed, designed, and started producing your own newsletter for an approved beat or subject. Maybe you’ll create the go-to chronicle as BU skates to the Frozen Four, or establish a must-read digest about Boston City Hall, or devote your entire semester to finding the best brownie in Boston. The goal will be to offer an engaging and informative product that will keep readers coming back for more.
• COM JO 519: Narrative Radio
  It used to be commonly accepted that if you wanted to work in audio journalism, then you were likely looking for a career in radio news. But the nature of audio - and journalism - continues to evolve. Now, legacy media outlets like newspapers have entire audio divisions producing daily and longform podcasts while news radio stations are re-thinking their broadcasts and attracting new audiences via streaming apps. But no matter the platform, there are certain tenets of audio storytelling and production that make for great listening and powerful journalism. This class combines the highest editorial standards of public radio with the best practices of digital audio production. You will learn how to write effectively for radio, incorporating in-depth reporting techniques with creative audio storytelling. The goal of this course is to produce a variety of high-quality audio pieces that could potentially be aired on a public radio program or serve as a launching off point for a longer form project. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: The Individual in Community, Oral and/or Signed Communication, Creativity/Innovation.
  BU Hub Learn More

  • Creativity/Innovation
  • The Individual in Community
  • Oral and/or Signed Communication
• COM JO 520: Covering the Climate Crisis
  This course will immerse students in the fundamentals of climate and other environmental journalism. While students learn about everything from sea-level rise to lead poisoning, they'll be expected to produce in-depth reporting with the goal of publishing stories.
• COM JO 521: Data Journalism
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: JO 200 - Graduate Prerequisites: JO 721 - This course teaches the basics of how to find, report, write and present data- driven news stories.' It is an introduction to the collection, analysis, presentation and impact of structured information by journalists.'Students will learn six skills:' identifying and obtaining government data, downloading and importing data, "scraping" data, cleaning and standardizing data, analyzing data, visualizing data and crafting a compelling data-driven story for your audience.' Students will also gain an effective mindset for approaching data, including how to obtain data from government agencies and strategies for overcoming obstacles in getting that data. Four credits, fall and spring semesters. (Undergraduate prerequisite: COM JO 200; Graduate prerequisite: COM JO 721.)
• COM JO 522: Filmmaking for Journalists
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (COMJO205) - This course is an advanced visual journalism class, concentrating on moving images and (a little) audio in a cinema direct documentary film tradition. The course takes students through a range of skills to develop their ability to work to professional standards & complete a narrative documentary show-reel adhering to photojournalistic/cinema direct ethics. You may use this class to create visuals/b-roll for an existing documentary film project you are working on. It will be a showcase piece for your portfolio. Active, experiential and hands-on learning will dominate this course. You are expected to have some experience in video and sound, as well as a basic knowledge of how to edit, though the instructor will assist you to grow your skills. 4 credits. (Undergraduate Prerequisites: COM JO 205. Graduate Prerequisites: COM JO 706; or permission of instructor.)
• COM JO 523: The Presidency and the Media
  Students follow the week-to-week interaction of the president and the news media, while examining the evolution of relations between journalists and American presidents from FDR to the present. Four credits
• COM JO 531: Disinformation and the Press
  Critical examination of the role of covert action in foreign and national security, including the process and impact of disinformation when used to manipulate the adversary's public opinion or decision-making elite. Particular attention given to international disinformation campaigns and the ways in which the media can defend themselves.