Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas

Short Courses of the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas

Knight Center Offers New Online Course In Spanish: How to Write for the WebKnight Center Offers New Online Course In Spanish: How to Write for the Web

The Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas offered Latin American and Caribbean journalists the online course "How to Write for the Web," from May 25 to June 28, 2009. The course was taught by Colombian journalist Guillermo Franco and was based on his recently published book How to Write for the Web.

The course, which was free of charge, was designed specifically for the Knight Center and was offered for the first time. Using his book as a central reference, it combined exercises and concepts that will help journalists understand how to write for the digital platform in a variety of contexts.

Spaces in the courses were limited, and applicants selected were Latin American or Caribbean journalists who currently work full time for online news media as writers or editors. Instructors of online journalism could also apply. In addition, participants must:

wish to improve their writing and have at least five examples of their own writing they can use in the course
commit to participating consistently in an intensive course that demands 10-15 hours a week
have read the How to Write for the Web (http://knightcenter.utexas.edu/como_web.php) and/or able to read it before the course begins
be able to read in English (medium level) because several course materials were in English

The course explored the following topics:

Learn how to write for the web
Know the elements of when to use and how to process written texts for the online medium from other media
Develop a critical vision of published texts on the Web
Know how to incorporate specific concepts into online content from different contexts and platforms

The class was conducted entirely online. Students worked on the course according to their own schedule, and at their own pace, but were expected to meet weekly deadlines. Each week's course consisted of readings from the Franco book, and writing activities. Students were expected to participate in weekly online discussion forums and chat sessions. Homework included written assignments based on the journalist’s own writing examples.

Those who successfully completed the course received a certificate of participation from the Knight Center.

Franco has 23 years of journalism experience and has dedicated the last eight years to digital journalism and the Internet. He worked throughout his career at Casa Editorial El Tiempo (CEET), owner of the El Tiempo daily newspaper and eltiempo.com, the website with the most audience traffic in Colombia. From 2000 to 2008, Franco worked as New Media Content Manager at CEET and as the managing editor of eltiempo.com. He was responsible for the content strategy of all the websites that belong to the organization.

Franco's new book presents practical examples about writing for online publications, as well as research from other sources. He considers it to be more than just a manual, but rather a starting point for a more comprehensive guide about writing for the Web, with contributions from journalists throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas was created by Professor Rosental Calmon Alves at the University of Texas at Austin School of Journalism in August 2002 thanks to a generous donation from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

In 2007, the Knight Center received a new five-year grant from the Knight Foundation to refocus its work as a digital media training center for Latin American and Caribbean journalism, and to expand its efforts to serve as an incubator for new journalism organizations.

Added Oct 15, 10:09, 2009