NMD3901 Digital Investigative Journalism Bahçeşehir UniversityDegree Programs ECONOMICS AND FINANCEGeneral Information For StudentsDiploma SupplementErasmus Policy StatementNational QualificationsBologna Commission
ECONOMICS AND FINANCE
Bachelor TR-NQF-HE: Level 6 QF-EHEA: First Cycle EQF-LLL: Level 6

Course Introduction and Application Information

Course Code Course Name Semester Theoretical Practical Credit ECTS
NMD3901 Digital Investigative Journalism Spring 2 2 3 10
This catalog is for information purposes. Course status is determined by the relevant department at the beginning of semester.

Basic information

Language of instruction: English
Type of course: Non-Departmental Elective
Course Level: Bachelor’s Degree (First Cycle)
Mode of Delivery: Face to face
Course Coordinator : Dr. Öğr. Üyesi TİRŞE ERBAYSAL FİLİBELİ
Course Lecturer(s): Dr. Öğr. Üyesi AYBERK CAN ERTUNA
Prof. Dr. HASAN KEMAL SUHER
Recommended Optional Program Components: None.
Course Objectives: The journalism industry is always changing. With the new world of the internet comes a new form of journalism: convergence. Media convergence is defined as a form of cross-media cooperation, usually involving broadcast, print, photography and internet sites. This new form of journalism requires the journalist to be skilled in more than one discipline. For example, a convergence journalist could write an article for a newspaper and produce a broadcast package on the same story all in one day. Convergence journalism also adds more elements and details to a story through the use of more than one outlet to tell the story. This course is aimed to focus on the latest developments in journalism practice with underlining the cross-media applications and to give students basic skills to cover stories in a convergent way.

Learning Outcomes

The students who have succeeded in this course;
The students who succeeded in this course;
- will have a view on future of journalism and the place of convergence journalism in this future,
- will be able to analyze convergent and multimedia coverage in a more critical way in both technical and ethical manners,
- will be able to use cross-media in the same coverage,
- will be able to enrich their coverage with blending visual and textual material to tell news stories in a more effective way,
- will be able to use computer and basic editing and publishing software for journalism practice,
- will learn about the mobile technologies in video and podcast production,
- will be equipped with technical and theoretical qualifications to work for news websites as well as televisions, radio stations and other conventional news media,
- will pick the right medium for different kinds of stories,
- learn about basic verification techniques.

Course Content

Students who will be already taken the introductory courses on different sections of journalism will be introduced and re-introduced about the importance of convergence in media as well as technical details about; news writing, photojournalism, fundamentals of multimedia journalism, broadcasting, editing, computer assisted journalism and information graphics. Blogging and podcasting will also be issues during the semester. Students will be obliged to cover convergent real news stories in order to be able to apply what they’ve received from the course.

Weekly Detailed Course Contents

Week Subject Related Preparation
1) Overview of the course, the syllabus and the textbooks
2) Basics of convergent journalism and web 2.0
3) Content management systems
4) Introduction to Wordpress
5) Themes
6) Dashboard
7) Plug-ins
8) Midterm
9) Content creating and managing
10) User management
11) Web analytics
12) Presentation of projects
13) Presentation of projects
14) Review of the semester

Sources

Course Notes / Textbooks: Jeffrey S. Wilkinson, August E. Grant and Douglas Fisher. Principles of Convergent Journalism. UK, Oxford University Press, 2008.

Stephen Quinn , Vincent Filak. Convergent Journalism An Introduction: Writing and Producing Across Media. New York, Focal Press, 2005.

NatGeo Guide to Photography:
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/content/dam/ngdotcom/rights-exempt/NatGeo_GuideToPhotography.pdf

KALOW, Nancy (2011). Visual Storytelling. Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University
P. 6-15
https://documentarystudies.duke.edu/books/visual-storytelling-digital-video-documentary

JENKINS, Henry (2006). Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide, New York: New York University Press.
P.1-24 (Introduction: “Worship at the Altar of Convergence”: A New Paradigm for Understanding Media Change)

FILAK, Vincent F. (2015). Convergent Journalism an Introduction: Writing and Producing Across Media. New York: Focal Press.
P.63-74 (Structure and Storytelling)

Reuters Handbook: A Reporter’s Guide to TV News Production: P.25-31 (Reporting and Writing Basics)

Reuters Video News Handbook: Pictures/Editing/Audio
References: Jeffrey S. Wilkinson, August E. Grant and Douglas Fisher. Principles of Convergent Journalism. UK, Oxford University Press, 2008.

Stephen Quinn , Vincent Filak. Convergent Journalism An Introduction: Writing and Producing Across Media. New York, Focal Press, 2005.

NatGeo Guide to Photography:
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/content/dam/ngdotcom/rights-exempt/NatGeo_GuideToPhotography.pdf

KALOW, Nancy (2011). Visual Storytelling. Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University
P. 6-15
https://documentarystudies.duke.edu/books/visual-storytelling-digital-video-documentary

JENKINS, Henry (2006). Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide, New York: New York University Press.
P.1-24 (Introduction: “Worship at the Altar of Convergence”: A New Paradigm for Understanding Media Change)

FILAK, Vincent F. (2015). Convergent Journalism an Introduction: Writing and Producing Across Media. New York: Focal Press.
P.63-74 (Structure and Storytelling)

Reuters Handbook: A Reporter’s Guide to TV News Production: P.25-31 (Reporting and Writing Basics)

Reuters Video News Handbook: Pictures/Editing/Audio

Evaluation System

Semester Requirements Number of Activities Level of Contribution
Attendance 13 % 10
Midterms 1 % 40
Final 1 % 50
Total % 100
PERCENTAGE OF SEMESTER WORK % 50
PERCENTAGE OF FINAL WORK % 50
Total % 100

ECTS / Workload Table

Activities Number of Activities Duration (Hours) Workload
Course Hours 14 2 28
Application 14 2 28
Study Hours Out of Class 14 14 196
Midterms 1 4 4
Final 1 4 4
Total Workload 260

Contribution of Learning Outcomes to Programme Outcomes

No Effect 1 Lowest 2 Low 3 Average 4 High 5 Highest
           
Program Outcomes Level of Contribution
1) Build up a body of knowledge in mathematics and statistics, to use them, to understand how the mechanism of economy –both at micro and macro levels – works. 3
2) Understand the common as well as distinctive characters of the markets, industries, market regulations and policies. 2
3) Develop an awareness of different approaches to the economic events and why and how those approaches have been formed through the Economic History and understand the differences among those approaches by noticing at what extent they could explain the economic events. 1
4) Analyze the interventions of politics to the economics and vice versa. 3
5) Apply the economic analysis to everyday economic problems and evaluate the policy proposals for those problems by comparing opposite approaches. 2
6) Understand current and new economic events and how the new approaches to the economics are formed and evaluating. 2
7) Develop the communicative skills in order to explain the specific economic issues/events written, spoken and graphical form. 3
8) Know how to formulate the economics problems and issues and define the solutions in a well-formed written form, which includes the hypothesis, literature, methodology and results / empirical evidence. 2
9) Demonstrate the quantitative and qualitative capabilities and provide evidence for the hypotheses and economic arguments. 2
10) Understand the information and changes related to the economy by using a foreign language and communicate with colleagues. 3