Start of my course: MA Web Journalism

I don't normally blog on activities I personally undertake, however considering its relevance I thought I'd pen (or type) a short piece on the start of my course.

I've currently studying for an MA in Web Journalism at the University of Sheffield. It's been a busy few weeks with inductions, module choices and lectures, seminars and workshops - certainly more than I've been used to in my undergraduate degree.

Already I'm beginning to see more of the differences between the traditional media, in particular print, and the emerged world of online media.

The Journalism department at the University of Sheffield offers a a range of different MA courses, namely Print, Magazine, Broadcast, Web and Political Communication. These are roughly in the order of popularity, Print being way out front. Many of the modules are shared and thus are undertaken by most if not all postgraduate students.

So far we have had lectures and seminars on, among many other aspects of journalism, the newsroom, media law, face-to-face interviewing, the PPC (Press Complaints Comission) code and so on. Thus far, I can't help but feel that much of what we have been taught is focusing on the aspects of journalism which are in decline and very much part of the MSM.

I'm not entirely sure this is a bad thing, but at a time when print media is in decline, and thus there are undeniably much fewer jobs available, could there be more recent developments incorporated instead? Luckily, there will be.

With digital research sessions to come and an acknowledgment from every lecturer about the importance of the Internet, this is unlikely to be a perception which will last. The department is impressive in its equipment and software, with all students having remote access to the UK PA newswire. This is not a department harking back to the ol' days of print media, but undergoing the same transition the whole sector is with interactive, multi-platform journalism taking a prominent role.

It's also worth remembering that much of what is taught that may seem to be aimed at traditional journalists - media law, ethics - is just as relevant to those working in the online media. There is an awful lot that that I simply don't yet know and whatever blogs or articles I've read about the state of the media so far, I'm not going to dismiss what the course has to offer. Not to mention that highlighting such a distinction between one 'type' of journalist and another, considering media convergence, may be outdated itself.

In particular, the aspects of the course exclusive to online media have been much more what I expected - it took all of 20 minutes to mention Facebook - and a lecture yesterday touched on Twitter, the idea of 'citizen journalism' and the Guardian's disastrous 'Clarke County' project in 2004.

The course is pretty intense, but fascinating and will be a lot of hard work. I'll be making a website using Dreamweaver with original articles, as well as engaging in patch work, discussing journalist ethics and studying lots of media law. On with the course!