Reflections on the Shifting Shape of Journalism Education in the Covid-19 pandemic.

Abstract

Journalists usually report on crisis. The Covid -19 pandemic places journalists, like everyone else, in the crisis. Thus, it presents a unique challenge to journalism, which is founded on the principle of impartiality, and to journalism educators, striving to teach professional values in an online environment, whilst also focusing on student wellbeing. This paper shares the initial reflections of journalism practitioners who are members of a journalism education research group within the Centre for Excellence in Media Practice at Bournemouth University in the UK. The overarching theme considers the delivery of high quality, industry - facing and relevant journalism education in a digital environment and within a context where we are all part of the story. We reflect on building community and identity for undergraduate and postgraduate students; the challenges of teaching the normative values and skills of journalism (such as objectivity, accuracy, fairness), emotional literacy and the delivery of industry-accredited standards. These individual reflections are presented as a collective essay which engages with questions of identity, self and voice: how can we instil a sense of wellbeing in journalism students who may feel anxious and marginalised? How can they focus on telling the stories of others when they are part of the same story? How can we best engage with these challenges in a digital environment, whilst instilling an understanding of the importance of self–care and wellbeing? In responding and adapting to crisis, we have also discovered - through the work of our students in the virtual classroom - new ways of teaching journalism and innovative approaches to storytelling as we grapple together with the shifting shapes of journalism practice and journalism education.