A quartet of former veteran editors-turned-academics may be uniquely qualified to influence significant change as journalism schools work to meet the needs of a changing profession. Newcomers Pam Fine, Pam Luecke, Lou Ureneck, Saundra Keyes and Arlene Morgan aren't the first professional journalists to influence or direct academic programs. But they will certainly be comfortable with what academia now admits must be a faster pace of change if colleges and universities are to stay in step with newspapers and other media pursuits. Lou Ureneck, chair of journalism, Boston University: “We are introducing new courses, forming industry partnerships and providing more faculty development in the area of new media. The basic skill sets of recognizing news, collecting and synthesizing information and writing clearly remain intact and fundamental to a journalism education. On top of those skills, we are moving students toward the ability (and mental flexibility) to work in several formats, from print to the Web.” Pam Fine, Knight chair, University of Kansas: “Journalism schools recognize that they will need to continually evaluate and change courses to adjust to changing technologies and tools to meet the needs and expectations of audiences and employers. At universities there is a level of insularity that can thwart awareness and incentives to change as quickly as necessary. But there are people and units within universities and J-schools that are quicker to adapt to changing dynamics than others.” Arlene Morgan, associate dean, Columbia Graduate School of Journalism: “If there is a deficiency in journalism teaching, it is getting students out on the streets to gain experience and in turning their stories into multimedia story packages. We are all striving to answer the philosophical question involved with how much technology versus how much you teach in storytelling, critical skills, ethical and critical thinking, and depth in certain subjects like science, business and education. Very few schools can excel in everything. Students will have to search for the school that fits their needs.” Pam Luecke, Reynolds business journalism chair, Washington and Lee University: “Journalism education is not out of touch, but we need to remind students of the power of journalism to change the world, to expose societal wrongdoings, to ensure a functioning democracy. It is easy to become bogged down by the layoffs, ethical transgressions and other industry woes. As someone who teaches a specialty subject (business journalism), I do think a knowledge in a specific subject or two can be useful.” Saundra Keyes, professor, Reynolds School of Journalism, University of Nevada: “Core values will remain essential. As numerous universities and journalism conferences point out, we're exploring new territory with online discussion boards, anonymous comments, etc. We can't give our students specific rules that will cover every future situation, but we can give them a foundation in ethical decision-making. Issues of change that loom large for us who have been in the business for years aren't really issues for our students. The silos we have built — a print track, a broadcast track, and so on — don't reflect the approach that comes naturally to students.” - By Warren Watson

Warren Watson teaches journalism at Ball State University, where he is director of J-Ideas, a national institute that promotes excellence in scholastic journalism and First Amendment awareness. Reach him via e-mail at wwatson@bsu.edu.

Academia struggles to stay current and fill the talent needs of the rapidly zigzagging news industry

THE CREAKING AND GROANING YOU'RE hearing behind the walls of academia's Ivory Towers are the sounds of journalism school programs moving to meet the uncertain needs of today's zigzagging media profession.

The construction is a little slow and choppy at times, much like a new dance partner trying to learn a new step. Yes, our educational establishment is getting with it — now we just have to figure out what “it” is.

“Newsrooms today need young people who are creative, entrepreneurial and ready to try new things,” said Dean Mills, who heads the 100-year-old journalism program, the nation's oldest, at the University of Missouri. “Perhaps we should think less of about preparing them and more about how we can work with them to help us reinvent journalistic forms while we coach them on eternal journalistic verities.”

That means, said ASNE president Charlotte Hall, editor of the Orlando (Fla.) Sentinel, that colleges and universities must emphasize critical thinking and intellectual curiosity but focus on new ways to deliver the message — multiple platforms, digital, videography and more. She said, “Students need to have the willingness — no, the desire — to keep changing and keep learning.”

What we know now is that the elusive “it” has become a movement:

• More and more journalism programs are modifying traditional structures to produce new courses and curricula to meet the needs of organizations prodded by new technology and relentlessly moving online. Multimedia storytelling is the new catchword.
• The Knight and Carnegie Foundations have invested $11 million this year alone to adapt journalism education to meet the challenges of an ever-evolving industry. The two foundations now fund curriculum redevelopment at 11 schools and one research center.
• And diversity is even part of “it.” Programs such as Arizona State's Southwest Borderlands Initiative, part of the new Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, are focusing research, professional outreach and fieldwork projects on the rapidly growing border with Mexico, specializing in Latino and transnational coverage.

Candace Bowen, journalism professor at Kent State University, summed it all up: “This is a challenge and worth the battle. Certainly it was easier when all we had to teach them were inverted pyramids and how to count a headline!”

Editors everywhere welcome higher education's blossoming response. Watching closely is Tim Harmon, managing editor of the South Bend (Ind.) Tribune. “Graduates today need to have it all — cutting-edge practical skills, an ability to adapt to a rapidly changing journalism, a strong general education. Many students emerge from college without the range of skills to cope with a multimedia environment and inadequately informed about the challenges our industry is facing.”

He added, “Colleges have the obligation to level with students about the rough road that lies ahead.”

In addition to internal efforts to make changes, external organizations are eagerly trying to prime the pump of innovation.

Most notably, the Knight and Carnegie Foundations announced in July they will be investing more than $11 million to expand a national initiative to adapt journalism education to a struggling — yet evolving — new industry.

“Every community in this democracy continues to have a core need for reliable information,” said Alberto Ibargüen, in announcing the expansion. “That need will not go away. (Future journalists) will tell those stories with traditional verification-journalism values but on multiple platforms and structures influenced by new technology.”

The expansion to the University of North Carolina, Arizona State University and the University of Nebraska brings to 11 the number of schools who are attempting to broaden the knowledge base of their students, among other curriculum enhancements. The improvements include a stronger focus on complex subjects such as philosophy, history, politics and classics.

And the American Press Institute, the nation's oldest institute for midcareer journalists and their business-side counterparts, is taking programs directly to college campuses with the hopes of expanding journalism and business awareness to faculty — and to students.

“We need to teach students and their teachers about the business. A free press has to be a solvent press,” said Carol Ann Riordan, API vice president.

And others are getting in on the act. At the Poynter Institute for Media Studies, an expanded News University, an interactive online program, is expanding education programs for students and teachers at all levels.

A significant number of institutions are blowing up their curriculum formats to adjust to the online revolution.

Northwestern University's John Lavine, dean of the Medill School, was among the first, moving two years ago to innovate the program in suburban Chicago. The process is ongoing.

Others have quickly stepped into line.

In central Indiana, the Journalism and Telecommunications departments in Ball State's College of Communication, Information and Media are continuing a yearlong process to develop a new course structure that will merge some functions of the two areas.

“The new news curriculum will reflect a cooperative spirit, integrating faculty, students and course materials,” said Ball State journalism professor Mary Spillman.

Added dean Roger Lavery, “Our curriculum is being redesigned to expose our students to the realities of a new work environment.”

Paul Voakes, dean of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, is aiming at the same goal. “We're increasing the diversity of guest speakers in classes, especially successful media professionals who are not working in traditional settings,” he said.

Another emerging challenge will be to introduce college students to the important topic of diversity.

In Phoenix, the Cronkite School has introduced a unique diversity-related project at Arizona State. Students in ASU's Southwest Borderlands Initiative are taking a multidisciplinary seminar examining cultural, historical, political and economic dimensions of Latino life in the United States.

With Latinos becoming an even greater percentage of the population, Cronkite Dean Christopher Callahan pointed out that the project, and other programs at the school, will help develop young journalists who “can draw on a deep reservoir of knowledge from multiple disciplines” in telling the story of rapid Latinization in the Southwest and elsewhere.

“Students will need to be able to have an understanding of and appreciation of the kind of ethnic diversity the country will see in the coming years,” added Calvin Hall, assistant professor of journalism at Appalachian State University in North Carolina. “It will become increasingly important to understand the interplay of race, class, age, gender and geography.”

Roadblocks lie ahead as colleges broaden and refocus programs to adjust with the profession's need, not the least of which is the pace of change in academia. Procedural steps in making curricula changes move at a dinosaur pace at some institutions. Committee and governance hurdles sometimes mean that new courses might not be instituted for 18 months or longer.

“If there are deficiencies,” said Patsy Watkins, dean of the Waler J. Lemke Department of Journalism at the University of Arkansas, “they lie with the demand on faculty members to figure out what to do with courses and then move quickly in making changes.”

She said that more journalism faculty members, especially those who have worked as professionals, are more adept at a faster pace of change.

Marilyn Weaver, chair of the Department of Journalism at Ball State, agreed. “We simply must move faster,” she said.

Tom Callinan, editor of The Cincinnati Enquirer, cites the “syllabus” approach to teaching as a negative factor: “Toss out the plan every morning and adapt to a media landscape that changes by the nanosecond. I am astonished that I do not hear from deans and instructors — or students — pestering us every day to gain hands-on observations and experience of what is happening in real life.”

All agree, however, that those curriculum changes must be meaningful, well-reasoned and carefully prepared.

Michael Bugeja, dean of the Greenlee School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Iowa State University, said that the frenzied environment of the monetized journalism industry is partly to blame. “There are no cubs anymore in the bearish environment of today's corporate newsroom,” he said. “We're not doing an adequate job of preparing future media practitioners because too few people in the industry know what they want, and if they did, McClatchy's stock price wouldn't be at less than $5 a share.”

Ultimately, the direction will be clearer.

Jerry Ceppos, longtime professional and new dean at the Reynolds School of Journalism at the University of Nevada, believes that so-called soft skills may be the most important for the new generation. “How can we teach students to analyze new platforms? How can we teach students to come up with ideas like Craigslist? How can we teach students to realize that even sure-fire industries — such as newspapers — aren't necessarily going to be around forever? How can we plant it in the minds of the next generation?” he said.

Peggy Kuhr, another former editor and now dean at the University of Montana after a stint as a Knight chair at the University of Kansas, believes that financial crisis in the media business has led to action behind those Ivory Towers of academia.

“Walls are breaking down. That's a good thing. But there is a big power shift in the way journalists relate to the public,” she said. “We must listen to the public more. Journalism, because of the Internet, is now democratized. This value must be transferred to students above all else. The profession has changed. They will have to understand the business as never before.

“That will lead to the kind of innovation and creativity we sorely need.” *

In their own words ... Is journalism education keeping up with the needs of the industry? There is some disagreement. Here’s a contrasting sampling of educators and practitioners: Editor: Howard Altschiller, Portsmouth (N.H.) Herald “Colleges are not doing the job. They are still teaching old concepts. They have no idea of what is happening in newsrooms today, especially those smaller papers where everyone is expected to multitask.” Educator: Cheryl Pell, Michigan State University “Journalism schools are trying to figure it all out. We can’t veer from the core principles of journalism. One of my fears is that we are becoming a nation of bloggers. Too often, blogging becomes a biased, unsubstantiated rant.” Editor: Charlotte Hall, Orlando (Fla.) Sentinel “Journalism educators are getting up to speed, and it’s the students who are driving it because they live in a digital world.” Educator: Lillian Kopenhaver, Florida International University “The weaknesses for journalism schools are being able to keep up with technologies given shrinking budgets and sources of revenue. I think they are moving just as quickly as the media itself.” Associate Publisher: Ken Bunting, Seattle Post Intelligencer (former editor) “Journalism educators are doing as good a job as ever in teaching the basic skills, recognizing and developing talent and staying abreast of trends — and the imperatives of the multiplatform news organization.” Educator: Marie Hardin, Penn State University “It’s easy to criticize J-school programs for not keeping up with industry demands, but I think that criticism in unfair. In a fairly short time we take students from little-to-no understanding or skill to proficiency in a number of areas.” *