Global voices in journalism education

Editors: Jebril, N., Jukes, S., Takas, M. and Iordanidou', S.

Publisher: Intellect Books

Abstract:

ABSTRACT When reporting crisis events, we, as journalists, can make the voiceless, voiceless” (Marsh, 2016). Journalists wield power and decide whose voice is heard, decisions often determined by the limits of time, social milieu and newsroom environments. This paper shares the concept and design of an ongoing pedagogic project in which British journalism students interrogate ‘mainstream’ media through engagement with the mission of the Dutch non-profit news organisation Global Voices, to embrace the blogosphere, participatory journalism and citizen witnessing (Allan, 2013). Within a specifically designed, new curriculum, which incorporated contributions from a range of industry speakers, the students engaged critically with issues such as representing Islam, the Syrian crisis, working in divided communities and covering stories that are often under-reported. Journalism’s normative values - ethics, the shibboleth of objectivity - were scrutinised through the lens of critical self-reflection. In individual presentations, the students displayed raised awareness of how they, in future, as journalists would strive to avoid making the ‘voiceless, voiceless’ KEYWORDS voice; self-reflection; critical thinking; values; journalism education

Source: Manual