Discussing journalism & mass communication education at UW (updated)

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Many of you are probably already aware of this, but there are several discussions unfolding this week — one at the Isthmus and one on the Badger Herald opinion pages — dealing with journalism & mass communication education here at UW (including contributions by me in both cases). The Isthmus article even got reblogged by both the Capital Times and the Mayor.

(You may also know that I was dismayed and more than a little annoyed by the tone and civility of the original Badger Herald opinion piece, expressing my displeasure and defending our graduate students in a letter to the editor.  But other writers at the Herald seem to genuinely want to open a productive dialogue, and I hope they succeed.)

I want to encourage all SJMC faculty, staff, students, and alumni to participate in such conversations — whether in the media or with us here in SJMC directly.  And although it should go without saying, you are also welcome to use this blog for any and all discussions about both the future of mass communication, and the best strategies for preparing our students (both majors and non-majors) for that future.

Update 2010-01-30: The discussion continues with a Badger Herald opinion piece on the SJMC Madision Initiative for Undergraduates proposal that points to the question of bringing more undergraduate research into the curriculum.

2 thoughts on “Discussing journalism & mass communication education at UW (updated)”

  1. If students/alumni want to contribute to this blog, how would they go about posting an article or topic to discuss? Or do we only have the option to comment on articles posted by faculty?

  2. Hi Zachary. Right now, we’ve set it up so that SJMC faculty, staff, and graduate students have accounts on the blog to post front-page articles. The main roadblock to opening up the front page to hundreds of undergraduate SJMC majors right now is simply the hassle of administering all the authorizations. But we’re going to work on that, and I’ll get back to you.

    For now, please continue to comment on anything you see here, and feel free to pass along ideas to me or any other faculty member for reposting on the front page!

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