Journalism and Communications—Courses
Please note that not every course listed is offered each year and that students should consult the following sources for current course offerings:
COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
JOUR-1013. The Messenger: Journalism and Storytelling
Journalism is the art of storytelling. This course will explore the nature of stories, the ways journalists tell stories, and the role these storytellers play in open and closed societies.
JOUR-1023. The Messenger: Great Stories of Journalism
This course will introduce students to a range of works of print and broadcast Journalism to allow them to understand the scope, purpose, and influence of stories in the journalistic tradition. Students will respond to these works in writing and post their responses in an online discussion forum.
JOUR-2013. Broadcast Journalism: Stories in Pictures and Sound
This course will introduce students to storytelling in the broadcast medium. Topics include a critical examination of broadcast stories, story focus and structure, visual storytelling, an introduction to the camera and the manipulation of light, an introduction to gathering sound for stories, and the fundamentals of editing. Enrolment is normally restricted to students admitted to the Major in Journalism in accordance with procedures outlined in Section One, Part F of the University's calendar.
JOUR-2023. Journalistic Writing: the Language of Storytelling
This course will introduce students to storytelling in Journalism through an intensive programme of writing instruction and workshops. Students will write news and feature stories, read and respond to literary non-fiction writing. They will develop stories through the process of generating ideas, conducting research, editing, and rewriting. Prerequisites: JOUR 1013, 1023.
JOUR-2033. Community Journalism: Reporting Political and Social Issues
This course is the foundation reporting course for the Journalism Programme at St. Thomas. All stories of Journalism contain some relation to political and social issues in our communities. This course is designed to immerse students in current events, which they will be required to place in a broader historical context. Topics include finding and focusing story ideas in the community, exploring how journalists report on the agenda of governments and social groups, and how journalists set their own agendas. The class will require students to attend and report on public events in the community. Enrolment is normally restricted to students admitted to the Major in Journalism in accordance with procedures outlined in Section One, Part F of the University's calendar.
JOUR-2043. Photojournalism
This course explores the art of still photography in Journalism, its history and influence on public affairs, and offers students an introduction to digital camera skills. Prerequisite: JOUR 2023. Limited enrolment.
JOUR-2053. Pictures At Eleven: Understanding Television News
This course will examine television news programmes from the inside out, exploring how stories are prepared and presented. After students gain a level of media literacy, they will consider a wide range of media critics. The course will allow students to distinguish fact from fiction, story from spin, and in the process become smarter consumers of television news.
JOUR-2063. Law and Media in Canada
This course will introduce students to the freedoms and responsibilities of journalists in Canada. Topics include press freedom and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, publication bans, defamation, confidentiality of sources, investigative reporting and the law. Students will be introduced to the fundamentals of court reporting. Prerequisite: JOUR 2023.
JOUR-3013. Television Journalism I: Telling the Stories of Today
All Journalism contains some element of news. Reporting the news of the day is at the heart of the journalistic tradition. This course will focus on reporting the news in the television medium. Topics include how decisions are made about the stories of the day, how to turn an announcement into a story, how to find pictures, how to write to pictures, how to tell stories on deadline. Enrolment is restricted to students admitted to the Major in Journalism in accordance with procedures outlined in Section One, Part F of the University's calendar. Prerequisites: JOUR 2013, 2023, 2033, 2063.
JOUR-3023. Radio Journalism 1: Telling the Stories of Today
All Journalism contains some element of news. Reporting the news of the day is at the heart of the journalistic tradition. This course will focus on reporting the news in the radio medium. Topics include how decisions are made about the stories that make a newscast, how to turn an announcement into a story, how to find and record sound for radio, how to write a story that incorporates sound, how to tell stories in concise radio language on deadline. Enrolment is normally restricted to students admitted to the Major in Journalism in accordance with procedures outlined in Section One, Part F of the University's calendar. Prerequisites: JOUR 2013, 2023, 2033, 2063.
JOUR-3033. Print Journalism 1: Telling the Stories of Today
All Journalism contains elements of news. Reporting the news of the day is at the heart of the journalistic tradition. This course will focus on reporting the news in the print medium. Topics include how decisions are made about what stories a newspaper will cover, how to turn an announcement into a story, how to find sources for stories, how to tell stories that both cover the news and tell a compelling story. Enrolment is normally restricted to students admitted to the Major in Journalism in accordance with procedures outlined in Section One, Part F of the University's calendar. Prerequisites: JOUR 2013, 2023, 2033, 2063.
JOUR-3043. Television Journalism II: Telling the Stories of Tomorrow
This course will focus on enterprise reporting in the television medium. Topics include how to find original story ideas, how to develop sources, how to find the focus in stories, and how to explore universal ideas in particular stories. Enrolment is normally restricted to students admitted to the Major in Journalism in accordance with procedures outlined in Section One, Part F of the University's calendar. Prerequisites: two of either JOUR 3013, 3023, or 3033.
JOUR-3053. Radio Journalism II: Telling the Stories of Tomorrow
This course will focus on enterprise reporting in the radio medium. Topics include how to find original story ideas, how to develop sources, how to find the focus in stories, and how to explore universal ideas in particular stories. Enrolment is normally restricted to students admitted to the Major in Journalism in accordance with procedures outlined in Section One, Part F of the University's calendar. Prerequisites: two of either JOUR 3013, 3023, or 3033.
JOUR-3063. Print Journalism II: Telling the Stories of Tomorrow
This course will focus on enterprise reporting in the print medium. Topics include how to find original story ideas, how to develop sources, how to find the focus in stories, and how to explore universal ideas in particular stories. Enrolment is normally restricted to students admitted to the Major in Journalism in accordance with procedures outlined in Section One, Part F of the University's calendar. Prerequisites: two of either JOUR 3013, 3023, or 3033.
JOUR-3073. Reporting 2.0: New Media and the New Journalism
This course will explore the decline of traditional media such as newspapers and supper hour television news programs, and the rise of new media on the internet. What does the future hold for journalism in a world of instant communication? What role will professional reporters play in the evolving world of Journalism 2.0? Prerequisite: Journalism 2023.
JOUR-4006. Free Speech and the Free Press
This course examines the free press both in theory and in action in democratic societies. Specific areas of study include the emergence of the free press, the many faces of censorship, and free expression in contemporary society. Prerequisite: JOUR 2023.
JOUR-4016. Editing, Publishing and Producing
This course is a capstone course in storytelling for Journalism students. The course requires students to either pursue a publishing/producing project, or a special work of Journalism for a professional news organization. The publishing work can either involve an editing role at a student newspaper or work on the Journalism Programme's publishing website, STU Dispatches. Other special projects can be approved by the Director of Journalism. Enrolment is normally restricted to students admitted to the Major in Journalism in accordance with procedures outlined in Section One, Part F of the Universitys calendar. Prerequisites: two of either JOUR 3013, 3023, or 3033; and two of either JOUR 3043, 3053, or 3063.
COMM-2013. Edward L. Bernays and the Manufacturing of Public Opinion
The course will explore the birth of modern public relations in North America, with particular attention to the innovative work of Edward L. Bernays (1891-1995). Bernays was a social scientist who studied the way the public processes information and forms opinions. The communications strategies he developed, from the media event to the message track, are still in use today. This is the foundation course for students pursuing an Interdisciplinary Major in Communications. 3 credit hours. Prerequisites: JOUR 1013, JOUR 1023.
COMM-2033. Reaching the Public: Fundamental Skills in Strategic CommunicationsThis course introduces students to the essential skills of the communications industry, with a particular emphasis on writing. Students learn the importance of writing skills in developing and executing communications plans, which may include a number of formats, such as news releases, backgrounders for new conferences, political speeches and other information-driven events. Students will interpret and learn to communicate research data, including polling results and other measures of public opinion. Students will also explore the ethical issues involved in shaping public opinion. Prerequisite: COMM 2013.
COMM-3013. The Politics of CommunicationsThis course explores the management of information by political organizations and in the broader public sector, including NGOs and citizens groups. Topics include the use of polling data, the development of strategic messages, the use of language to shape political campaigns and the influence of strategic communications in the modern political world, and the influence of digital technology in political communications. 3 credit hours. Prerequisites: JOUR 1013, 1023.
COMM-3023. The Business of CommunicationsThis course will explore information management in the business and corporate worlds. Topics include the manner in which corporations respond to public issues and events, both positive and negative, and the influence of digital technology in communications and corporate communications. 3 credit hours. Prerequisites: JOUR 1013, 1023.
COMM-4003. Independent Study/InternshipThis is a required capstone course that will require students majoring in Communications to either write a substantial Communications case study under the supervision of a faculty member, or complete a supervised internship with a professional Communications agency, or nongovernmental organization and complete a detailed exit report. 3 credit hours. Prerequisites: COMM 3013, 3023.