Each year, aspiring journalists and media professionals throughout the world enroll in journalism schools, or “J-schools,” in the United States. Many U.S. colleges and universities even cover tuition and other costs through financial need- and merit-based scholarships.

To discuss the lure and value of journalism education in the U.S., IJNet recently spoke to Chris Simpson, a professor at the School of Communication at Washington D.C.’s American University. American University is home to more than 1,000 international students from more than 130 countries.

Simpson, whose current teaching and research areas include communication technologies, geographic information systems and some aspects of communication law, discussed what potential enrollees can expect from journalism training in the U.S.

IJNet: What are the most important courses offered by U.S. journalism schools?

Chris Simpson: I would start from the courses which J-schools cannot teach. Courage, fairness and self-discipline are the most important qualities of a journalist.

IJNet: Sure. But what else, in addition to newsgathering, broadcasting, modern technology, interviewing skills and other topics, do your students study? How has journalism curriculum changed in the last 30 to 40 years?

CS: In addition to traditional courses in writing, broadcasting and others, U.S. journalism and communication schools offer courses in qualitative and quantitative research, ethics, law, convergence and modern technology.

I consider Quantitative Research – statistics for journalists, knowledge of using SPSS [a computer program used for statistical analysis] and other statistical software – very important because reporters often get assignments to cover statistics releases, election polls and other stories connected with numbers.

It is absolutely essential that reporters understand how to cover statistics and how to present numbers to the public with fairness. And it is very important that journalists understand what the numbers mean, which research questions were used, etc.

Another important course in U.S. journalism schools is Law, or Communications Law. Knowledge of the law greatly improves [the reporter’s] interpretation of events being covered, and protects the journalist. Law courses are offered by many U.S. journalism schools nowadays, and many schools are offering dual degrees in journalism and media law.

IJNet: Do students that receive media law training ever move into the legal field? Or do they remain in journalism?

CS: One cannot become a lawyer graduating from a journalism school, but knowing media law may provide more opportunities in the field of communication.

IJNet: Media professionals are obviously being affected by the development of the Internet; many have already lost jobs. What are your predictions for the future of the profession, and which forms of media do you think have the best chance of survival?

CS: I see no fundamental problem in the [widespread] availability of information. I think that reliability is more important than the style and linguistic features of a text. The former Soviet Union is a good example of a place that had well-developed journalism, but did not tell the public the truth. The Soviet media employed a large number of well-educated professionals who wrote in a good style but the information was not reliable. Despite the availability of multiple sources, providing reliable information still requires courage in many parts of the world.

The Internet is a powerful tool for international communication and gathering information. Even though the Internet is rapidly developing and Internet skills are among the most important to be learned in journalism schools, traditional media still have a big audience.

In many parts of the world outside of the U.S., newspapers are still growing and have a stable future, especially community papers which deliver local news and speak to the reader by understanding his or her needs and way of life.

IJNet: Many journalism students are trying to get into the lucrative public relations field, rather than into journalism. What are the tendencies in your school?

CS: Yes, students of Public Relations make up the largest group in the School of Communication. This pattern is common in the U.S., that’s the reality we face. Journalism professors are not really happy with the situation.

Journalism schools must teach how to inform the public about politics and about truth and this is our goal. However, it is always the individual’s personal choice.