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BA(Hons) Digital Journalism


Introduction

Britain’s media industries are experiencing dramatic change. Newspaper and web based delivery systems are uniting to form multi-platform outlets to deliver information. Journalists who wish to continue working in creative industries will increasingly be required to be multi-skilled. Not only will they have to be able to tell a story and write it in a succinct, pithy style, they will also be expected to move effortlessly between shooting and editing digital video and audio and uploading their stories onto the World Wide Web.

 

 

Multi-skilled Digital Journalists

Safina Kauser and shaheen shad on location

On location Safina Kauser and

Shaheen Shad

 

Journalists who can produce, shoot and edit video on location and be able to upload it to the web will distinguish themselves from the competition. They are likely to be people with the instincts necessary to search out stories and tell them well. They will be technically adept at using cameras, microphones and understanding non-linear editing. They will know how to weave a film or radio programme together at speed, as well as be able to plan efficient workflows, take attractive still photographs and write concise prose.

New job descriptions, such as “backpack journalists”, who return from the scene of a story with words, audio and video, and new ways of melding text and multimedia on news websites are a central theme of the University Campus Oldham’s Digital Journalism BA(Hons) degree.  New developments, such as podcasting, the rise of citizen journalism, and the development of online communities, such as medical self help groups, will be studied alongside media perspectives, media law, ownership and regulation as it relates to the internet. We teach a thorough understanding of journalistic law, such as defamation and privacy laws, and how to work in an ethical, professional way.

These are the kind of journalists who will graduate from the University Campus Oldham’s Digital Journalism BA(Hons).

 

 

Why Oldham?

Digital Journalism students can take full advantage of the University Campus Oldham’s new Digital Centre, housed within the £5.5 million pound University Studios that opened in November 2008. There, you will have access to state of the art digital cameras (Panasonic P2s), digital editing software (Avid) and digital audio editing equipment. A new green screen television presentation studio has been installed for working on news and documentary style programmes. You will be able to practice your presentational skills, reading scripts from an autocue mounted on the camera. The green screen enables different backdrops to be seen behind the presenter, as you deliver your piece to camera. The digital radio studio is used for news programmes, round table discussions and occasionally to record music and movie soundtracks for the films we produce.

 

Safina Kauser interviews Chancellor Professor Patrick Stewart

Safina Kauser interviews University of Huddersfield

Chancellor, Professor Patrick Stewart

 

If you want to learn how to make films and radio programmes that will be seen by a wide audience, digital journalism at the University Campus Oldham may be for you.

An important part of the University experience at Oldham is to collaborate with students from other disciplines. At University Studios, our neighbours include digital fine art, game design and theatre so there is no shortage of partners to work with. We cannot use copyright music in our programmes.  So we work with UCO students on some of these other courses who compose new soundtracks which add drama and maximise the impact our projects have on our audience.”   

Teamwork and leadership are key to the success of our practical coursework. You are expected to work together and share ideas in order to become familiar with working as a production team. Each will get exposure to a wide variety of roles, whether it is on screen presenting, reporting, producing, directing or journalistic writing.

 

Why Digital?

Safina and Jessica meet Michael Meacher MP and Vice-chancellor Professor Bob Cryan

Jessica and Safina meet Michael Meacher MP

and University of Huddersfield Vice-Chancellor,

Professor Bob Cryan

 

Digital platforms are fundamentally changing the relationships that news organisations have with their audiences.  Digital journalism, thanks to blogging and globalisation, is becoming more of a conversation with the audience, who are encouraged to participate and contribute their own thoughts and ideas.

There is now a move away from the editorial models of the 'age of representation', where news organisations published what they thought readers should know, to an ‘age of participation’ where there is a better understanding of who the audience is. Facebook; the growth of broadband; the spread of Wi-Fi; the digital music revolution; eBay; podcasting; 3G phones that work;  and content-sharing websites like Flickr and YouTube are all changing the way in which news, information and entertainment are produced and consumed. User-generated content is becoming commonplace.  Mobile phones with video cameras are often used to film newsworthy events that can be emailed to newsrooms and websites and watched by a global audience. The BBC’s i-player and podcasts enable the audience to decide their own schedules. Digital journalism students at Oldham learn about this changing nature of journalism and will be equipped with the knowledge and skills to work in a digital age.

 

About Oldham

Located a short train ride away from Victoria train station in Manchester, five minutes’ walk from the bus station and ten minutes’ drive from the M60 and M62, University Campus Oldham is perfectly situated in the foothills of the Pennines. Oldham is undergoing a substantial programme of regeneration as the town’s infrastructure is improved. University Studios is central to that process of improvement and investment in the town’s future. It’s also a really friendly place to study.

Europe’s largest construction site, Media City UK, is located just a few miles away in Salford. It will create employment opportunities for 15,500 people and will become home to a major new BBC production centre, creating a host of opportunities for creative talent in the North West of England.

 

 

Course Leader Course Leader Mark Handscomb

Mark Handscomb worked as a self shooting producer/director of documentary and current affairs programmes with 20 years’ experience as a freelance journalist, based in the North West of England. He made programmes all over the world, from Rwanda to the USA, and developed one of the BBC’s most popular strands, Who Do You Think You Are? He has produced reality programmes such as Trawlermen (BBC 1) and Seaside Rescue (BBC 1), as well as investigative strands such as World in Action (ITV) and Dispatches (C4) for television and Face the Facts, for BBC Radio 4.  He has also produced live studio programmes, such as You and Yours for BBC Radio 4, in addition to reporting for Today (R4), The World Tonight  (R4) and presenting numerous radio documentaries, such as It’s My Story (R4).

 

 

Course Technician

Tamsin Carr is a cinematographer and editor with many years’ experience of working in community media.  Her film projects have featured inspiring people doing innovative things.  Tam will accompany you on location shoots and offer you software support as you become confident in using the radio and TV studios, editing software and recording equipment. 

 

 

What our students say

 

Safina Kauser meet Geoffrey Hughes with Jessica and Tamsin Carr

L-R: Safina Kauser, Geoffrey Hughes, Jessica,

Tamsin Carr

 

 

Safina, 23, has a background studying healthcare and is interested in presenting television programmes and is in her first year of the Digital Journalism BA(Hons).

 

“The first filmed interview I ever did was with Patrick Stewart, Chancellor of the University Campus Oldham. He came to officially open University Studios, Oldham in November 2008. We decided to make a film about his visit. I was a bit nervous sitting in front of someone I had only ever seen as a Hollywood ‘A’ list movie star but he was really friendly and nice. Then I made a film with the Connexions Centre in Oldham and I’ve been making a series of films with Oldham Athletic Football Club and the Oldham Coliseum Theatre.

“I’m really enjoying the course. It’s pretty full on and we get involved in lots of different projects. We also go out to visit media organisations, like the BBC and Manchester’s digital television station, Channel M, to get firsthand experience of how the digital skills we are learning are put into practice”.

 

 

Jessica, 19, studied her A levels at Oldham Sixth Form College and has discovered she has a real flair for digital editing.  She is also in her first year of study.

“Before I came on this course, I had never picked up a video camera or edited any video. I was used to using computers and  Facebook to talk to my friends, but that was about it. Now, during our first term, I’ve made three short films and have a couple more in production at the moment. I like computers and have really enjoyed editing the films. We go filming on location and although the cameras were a bit daunting at first, you soon get the hang of using them. We are about to start making our own radio programmes and will be using the new radio studio to record in. We get to do a bit of everything and because there are so many projects going on, there’s always something interesting to do”.

 

 

Entry requirements

A minimum of 200 points or equivalent. Students studying towards A-level will have one or more of the following; English Language or Literature, Media Studies, Communication Studies, Sociology, Business Studies, Theatre Studies, Performing Arts, or Art and Design.

Students studying towards completion of a 14-19 Diploma must have relevant media experience.

Course structure

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3

The final year has two project-based units of study that are designed to provide important opportunities to examine specific aspects of the media.

The Practical Project allows you to develop skills through a major practical task that requires you to work as part of a team to generate a digitally based media product which is commissioned by an outside agency which acts as a client in negotiations, and makes real use of the product. The client is also involved in the assessment of your work.

The Media Professional Case Study in undertaken on an individual basis. You will identify an aspect of the media which you then investigate by comparing a number of organisations and by direct contact with the practitioners through interviews and short periods of work placement.

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Teaching and assessment

Throughout the course students will participate in a series of practically based modules designed to provide them with the necessary skills reflected in the current media profession. Theoretical modules will also allow students to demonstrate their understanding of the concepts and ideals which drive the practical modules.

Career opportunities

This degree prepares students for the following;

 

Further Studies


On completion of this degree students will be able to enter a wide variety of postgraduate study. Students will also be able to apply for NCTJ short courses.


Special Features

We are a partner of the BBC where we offer placements to students and we have visiting consultants and speakers. We also have partnerships with The Royal Television Society, Avid Technology, Screen Yorkshire and Panasonic. We also maintain strong contacts with leading independent production companies.

Other information

All applications must be made through UCAS. Prospective candidates can visit UCO to view the facilities and discuss the course informally.

 

Contact

Admissions Team
Tel: 0161 213 5000
Fax: 0161 213 5001
E-Mail: oldham@hud.ac.uk

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