CHENNAI: Through a grant from the U.S. Consulate in Chennai, The Poynter Institute (www.poynter.org) will conduct a series of journalism workshops in India during March 2014. The workshops will share American journalism training ideas and best practices with Indian journalists and educators, while exploring how to strengthen the ties between journalism and education in both countries.
“We are delighted to have The Poynter Institute conducting the collaborative journalism workshops in Chennai, Kochi and Bengaluru. Our increasingly interdependent worlds require cooperative solutions, which can only come from a cross fertilization of ideas and thoughts. The Poynter Institute is also collaborating with local partners for a wider reach of the program,” said U.S. Consulate General, Chennai’s Public Affairs Officer David Gainer.
“When people are good at journalism, journalism is good at strengthening democracy,” said Karen Dunlap, president of The Poynter Institute. “These workshops represent genuine opportunities for idea exchange and collaboration around the best practices of journalism using the training methods of Poynter. I’m grateful to Howard Finberg for his leadership in this project.”
Poynter has conducted similar programs in Egypt, Indonesia and South Africa as the Institute expands its role on the international stage. All of these international programs share a common thread of strengthening journalism in service of democracy and democratic ideas.
‘Strengthening Journalism: Poynter Collaborative Learning Workshops’ will feature well-known U.S. journalism editors, media executives and educators who will meet with their counterparts in India to discuss topics such as journalism best practices, credibility, digital tools and citizen journalism, and the changing nature of journalism education.
The faculty members for the project are: Howard Finberg, Director of Training Partnerships and Alliances; Tom Huang, Dallas Morning News Sunday and Enterprise Editor, Diversity Fellow; Sue Burzynski Bullard, Associate Professor of Journalism; Jeffry Couch, Executive Editor of the News-Democrat and http://bnd.com in Belleville Illinois; Casey Frechette, Visiting Assistant Professor, University of South Florida St. Petersburg; Zella Bracy, Business Development for Tru Measure (a division of The McClatchy Company); and Vidisha Priyanka, Interactive Learning Producer Poynter Institute.
One of the goals of these unique workshops is to provide an opportunity for U.S. journalists and educators to share ideas in a less formal setting than traditional group lectures. From these encounters, Poynter will develop follow-up evaluations, impact studies and a white paper later in 2014.
“Poynter views this project as a great opportunity to develop long-lasting and sustainable training partnerships with journalists and journalism training organizations worldwide,” said Howard Finberg, Director of Training Partnerships and Alliances. “We hope to extend what we learn in-person with our digital efforts, especially our e-learning site, NewsU.”
Poynter will work with journalism schools and press organizations in each of the three states to assist in the development and execution of the program. The partners are the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media in Bangalore, the Kerala Press Academy in Kochi, and M.O.P. Vaishnav College for Women in Chennai.
Workshop Dates: Chennai: March 19, 20, 21; Kochi: March 23, 24, 25; and Bangalore: March 27, 28, 29.
The topics for discussion include ‘Core Skills for the 21st Century’; ‘Credibility and Journalism in the Digital Age’; ‘Transformational Newsrooms’; ‘Story Ideas and Reporting’; ‘The Future of Legacy Media’; ‘Strong, Independent Local News Mission’; ‘Multimedia/Multiplatform Planning’; and ‘Teaching New Digital Tools/Technology.’
About Poynter
The Poynter Institute for Media Studies (http://www.poynter.org) is an international leader in journalism education, and a thought leader that stands for uncompromising excellence in journalism, media and 21st century public discourse. Poynter faculty teach seminars and workshops at the Institute in St. Petersburg, Florida, and at conferences and organizational sites around the world. Its e-learning division, News University (http://www.newsu.org), offers the world’s largest online journalism curriculum, with more than 250 interactive courses and 280,000 students.
