Short Courses of the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas
New Online Course in Spanish: Advanced Digital Tools for Investigative JournalismNew Online Course in Spanish: Advanced Digital Tools for Investigative Journalism
Knight Center instructor Sandra Crucianelli explains in this video the content of the new course on Advanced Digital Tools for Investigative Journalists.
The Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas offered Latin American and Caribbean journalists the online course "Advanced Digital Tools for Investigative Journalism," from June 15–July 19, 2009. The class was taught by Sandra Crucianelli, an internationally known journalist and instructor from Argentina who has conducted several other courses with the Center since 2004.
The application period for the four-week class closed June 4.
The course was designed specifically for the Knight Center, which has offered the introductory class, Digital Tools for Investigative Journalism, on several occasions. This was the first time Crucianelli offered an advanced version of the course.
Space was limited, and demand for the course was high. Applicants selected were Latin American or Caribbean journalists who currently work full time for print or electronic news media and have at least five years of journalism experience.
Journalists who successfully completed Crucianelli's introductory version of the course received special consideration for the advanced class. Those who have not taken that course but who possess advanced digital skills could also apply, but they should describe their qualifications carefully in the essay.
In addition, participants must:
commit to participating consistently in an intensive course that demands 10-15 hours a week
have experience participating in and/or creating online social networks
have skills in knowing how to work with visualization of data (recommended but not required)
demonstrate how and where they will be able to apply the advanced digital tools and skills learned in this course into their daily work in a newsroom
have a Twitter account and know how to use the microblogging application
understand the differences and appropriate uses of various application formats of .xls, .pdf, .jpeg, .flv, etc.
have experience using databases
The course explored the following topics:
Introduction to the semantic web
Visualization of data
Social networks and specific digital tools (e.g. microblogs, mashups, etc.)
Model designs of the application of digital tools in journalism across various media and platforms
The class was conducted entirely online. Students were able to work 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 several lectures, group and individual activities, discussion groups as well as chats, and other multimedia-rich assignments. Students were expected to participate in weekly online discussion forums and chat sessions.
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.
Look inside an online course and learn about how you can enroll in our distance learning program.
