Open Day Meet Monashminded individuals SUNDAY 2 AUGUST 10AM 4PM Clayton campus AUSTRALIA CHINA INDIA ITALY MALAYSIA SOUTH AFRICA monash.edu
Journalism and Journalism Education! at Monash Open Day 2015! School of Media, Film and Journalism!
What this lecture is about In about 20 minutes I ll try to open up discussion of the following issues:! What is Journalism? Why is it important? Is it declining? What skills do Journalism graduates have? Where are the jobs for graduates?
What is Journalism? You ve all heard that the role of a Journalist is to uphold the fourth estate. But what does that mean?
What is Journalism? THE basis of our governments being the opinion of the people, the very first object should be to keep that right, Thomas Jefferson wrote in January 1787. And were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate to prefer the latter.
Why is it important? The discipline of verification. The search for and communication! of the truth in the public interest. An essential watchdog in a democracy.
Is it declining? Q: What does that say about democracy? A: If Journalism dies democracy dies. Journalism is an indicator of the healthy of a democracy as much as voting
But surely Journalism is in decline Journalism is not in decline. Newspapers are in decline. Newspapers and Journalism are not the same thing.
But surely Journalism is in decline The digital era that is destroying the old business models of the mainstream press barons is opening up the most exciting opportunities for story telling in the history of Journalism. We are at the edge of a golden age in which we can combine all media to tell our stories to the biggest audiences.
!!!! What does this mean for Journalism? New Skills! Opportunity/requirement to tell stories in more powerful ways using all the media, technology and formats that are now out there Journalism is the place where all media come together Other new skills that will be necessary?! Entrepreneurial Independent Resourceful Resilient How do the Journalists we educate compete?
What jobs are there for graduates? Students and their families are naturally concerned with what this future means So here are some figures.
ABS Employment in Journalism Table 1: Employment in Journalism Role! 2006! 2011! Newspaper or Periodical Editor 4844 5059 Print Journalist 6306 5510 Radio Journalist 671 603 Television Journalist 1059 1123 Journalists and Other Writers (nec) 1279 1705 Journalists and Other Writers (nfd) 1414 2125 Totals! 15573! 16125!
50.2% increase! in employment in Journalism & other (nfd)* 33.0% increase! in employment in Journalism & other (nec)* 6.0% increase! in employment in TV 4.4% increase! in employment in newspapers or periodical editor s 10.1% decrease in employment in radio 12.6% decrease in employment in print 3.5% total increase! *Examples: blogger, critic, photojournalist, multimedia journalist, editorial assistant
Australian government job outlook data Table 2: Journalists and Other Writers (Job Growth) Time Period Occupation (per cent growth) All occupations (per cent growth) 5 Year Growth 37.8 7.8 2 Year Growth 28.7 1.9
!! Employment & projected employment: Journalists & Other Writers 35! 30! 29.1! " Thousands! 25! 20! 15! 16.5! " 22.9! " 20.3! "! 23.4 " 21.6 " 21.8! "! 24.9 " 23.0 " 22.2! " 22.5! " 24.9! " 10! 5! 0! 2003 " 2004 2005 2006 2007 " 2008 " 2009 2010 2011 " 2012 " 2013 2018! *Source: ABS Labour Force Survey, Department of Employment trend data to 2013 and Department of Employment projections to 2018.
Australian Government job outlook data for Journalists & other writers Employment for this occupation rose moderately in the past five years and rose strongly in the long-term ten years. Employment for Journalists and Other Writers to November 2018 is expected to grow strongly. This is a large occupation (22,500 in November 2013) suggesting job opportunities are available in many areas. Journalists and Other Writers have an average proportion of full-time jobs (75.4 per cent). For those working full-time, average weekly hours are 40.0 (compared to 41.1 for all occupations) and earnings are above average. Unemployment for Journalists and Other Writers is below average *Source: Australian Government Job Outlook
What does this mean for jobs? Over the five years to November 2018, the number of job openings for Journalists and Other Writers is expected to be average, at between 10,000 and 25.000 jobs. These come from both employment growth and people leaving the profession
If these jobs are not in newspapers, then where are they? The jobs are in old media, which is not declining uniformly or at the rate some would have us believe. But above all: More media content is being created now than at any time in our history. Media is not declining, but it is fragmenting. The jobs are in a host of online opportunities that are proliferating massively
You don t just read a newspaper any more, think of all the things you read/watch/listen to every day this is what is now open to you to work in. And then how you can learn to do these things at Monash e.g. As well as learning to write traditional news you can learn to make multimedia presentations/data journalism/video content and mini documentaries/sound slides/live blogging/online reporting/ investigative reporting! Think of all the new and successful websites that have emerged and employed people in the last decade.
Give me just one example
Another example
What skills do Journalism graduates have?
The traditional skills of journalism plus new ones are now needed more than ever! Ability to think critically! Ability to engage with the world and people! Understanding of the concepts of evidence, facts! Understanding of impartial argument/balance! Finding stories/looking beneath the surface! Researching! Interviewing Writing crisply, cleanly, with nuance! Communicating with audiences! Editing! Understanding the difference between good and bad writing! Digital skills in content creation and distribution! Enhanced knowledge gained from other disciplines: law, science, politics, history, design, art etc.
What are these skills good for? Journalism is not an area of study that equips you to be a Journalist and nothing else. When you acquire the skills of Journalism you are a good fit for jobs in a host of areas, including other media jobs such as PR, communications for government and private corporations, speechwriting, producing and many others.
Monash gets behind Journalism At this university we care about students and work hard to ensure they get the jobs they want! The university s commitment is ever-increasing! We are in the final stagers of spending more than $3 million on state-of-the-art TV and radio studios, along with computer labs and a digital newsroom hub.! These will come on stream next year.! Our digital and electronic media students will be equipped with all they need to succeed! This will support the intensive internship and student publishing opportunities we have developed for our students. AUSTRALIA CHINA INDIA ITALY MALAYSIA SOUTH AFRICA monash.edu
From 2016 there will be two ways for students to complete a BA majoring in Journalism. These are: Major in Journalism Extended Major in Journalism
Bachelor of Arts Major in Journalism FIRST YEAR Semester 1 ATS1089 Foundations of Journalism (gateway unit) Arts Elective any level students may take Journalism elective here Arts Minor Free Elective space any area of study, any faculty FIRST YEAR Semester 2 ATS1090 Practice of Journalism (gateway unit) Arts Elective any level students may take Journalism elective here Arts Minor Free Elective space any area of study, any faculty SECOND YEAR Semester 1 ATS2784 * News and Power (cornerstone unit) Arts Elective any level students may take Journalism elective here Arts Minor Free Elective space journalism elective or any area of study, any faculty SECOND YEAR Semester 2 ATS2787 * Reporting digital news (cornerstone unit) Arts Elective any level students may take Journalism elective here Arts Minor Free Elective space journalism elective or any area of study, any faculty THIRD YEAR Semester 1 ATS3645 ** Journalism & global change (capstone unit) Journalism Elective Free Elective space any area of study, any faculty Free Elective space journalism elective or any area of study, any faculty THIRD YEAR Semester 2 ATS3265 ** Broadcast studio journalism (capstone unit) Journalism Elective Free Elective space any area of study, any faculty Free Elective space journalism elective or any area of study, any faculty * as only one corner stone unit needs to be completed, students have the option of taking a level 2 Journalism elective in place of one of these cornerstone units. ** as only one capstone units needs to be completed, students have the option of taking a level 3 Journalism elective in place of one of these capstone units.
Bachelor of Arts Extended Major in Journalism FIRST YEAR Semester 1 ATS1089 Foundations of Journalism (gateway unit) Arts Elective any level students may take Journalism elective here Arts Minor Free Elective space any area of study, any faculty FIRST YEAR Semester 2 ATS1090 Practice of Journalism (gateway unit) Arts Elective any level students may take Journalism elective here Arts Minor Free Elective space any area of study, any faculty SECOND YEAR Semester 1 ATS2784 * News and Power (cornerstone unit) Arts Elective any level students may take Journalism elective here Arts Minor Free Elective space journalism elective or any area of study, any faculty SECOND YEAR Semester 2 ATS2787 * Reporting digital news (cornerstone unit) Arts Elective any level students may take Journalism elective here Arts Minor Free Elective space journalism elective or any area of study, any faculty THIRD YEAR Semester 1 THIRD YEAR Semester 2 ATS3645 ** Journalism & global change (capstone unit) ATS3265 ** Broadcast studio journalism (capstone unit) Journalism Elective Journalism Elective Extended Major ATS3786 Journalism law & ethics Extended Major 3 units from extended major elective list Free Elective space journalism elective or any area of study, any faculty Free Elective space journalism elective or any area of study, any faculty * as only one corner stone unit needs to be completed, students have the option of taking a level 2 Journalism elective in place of one of these cornerstone units. ** as only one capstone units needs to be completed, students have the option of taking a level 3 Journalism elective in place of one of these capstone units.
New extended major At the same time, from 2016, we are providing students with the option of an extended arts degree major, with an extra four units on top of the standard major. These units will emphasise internships and skills development in areas we know to be crucial to students. To avoid confusion among students and their parents, out offering will be restricted to an arts degree with a minor, major or extended major in Journalism. We ll discontinue the B Journalism as part of the process of being clear and offering everything within the framework of the BA, rather than the large number of majors we offer now.
Conclusion: Monash website message from me to our students Q: What does the fourth estate mean? A: It means that you are the one who finds the real story before the rest of us even realised it was there; you are the one who informs us about the problems and achievements of our society; you are the one who finds the connections between our community and the world. There is no more important job.
Journalism at Monash will teach you the skills to write succinctly, to a word limit, and to a deadline. It will teach you to question ideas, and to be brave enough to question people, face to face. You will learn to think on your feet and to understand an issue quickly. It will also teach you to be accurate, to check your sources, to dig deeper, to analyse data, to find the next big story in the field that interests you most.
Journalism at Monash will teach you how to create stories using both traditional and constantly emerging new technologies, so that you can communicate when you decide to speak. There are now so many ways to be heard: newspapers, audio, video, and digital. Our graduates work in all these areas. +
Finally, our course will teach you to understand journalism itself, not just practise it.! I can guarantee you that Journalism at Monash will help you inform and shape the future. The only question we leave unanswered is this: what is the world you would like to create?
Thank you!