Data Journalism - MA / PgCert

Within the context of the increasing use of data within media organisations, Data Journalism aims to facilitate a flexible and adaptable skillset, including the use of ‘computational thinking’, that provides a basis for you to critically adapt to both new and existing data journalism techniques. The module provides practical skills within a range of frameworks applicable to the production practice routes of the award. It also provides a basis for the successful completion of the Master’s route project, and introduces potential avenues of practice-based inquiry for routes into PhD progression beyond.

The module begins by building applied understanding of data journalism techniques and issues, before exploring more specific practices around design, analysis and interactivity. These are closely aligned to the core assignment tasks. A range of newsgathering and storytelling techniques are explored, giving you the basis for initiating and developing contemporary data journalism projects within a professional context.

These techniques include core media production skills required for developing the basis for a masters level practical project. A mixed methods pedagogical approach is adopted, with lectures combined with hands-on workshops where students are supported in developing and reflecting on their own work within a contemporary context.

Work in this module links to the different core semester two modules and Work Placement module.

The module is intended to help you develop and consolidate your ideas for your MA Major Project. By providing a common module that comprises of all MA Media cohorts, Research in Practice aims to facilitate a shared skillset that aids the successful completion of the MA Major project, as well as the potential for routes into PhD progression beyond. It is also designed to encourage interdisciplinary discussions across MA awards.

This module builds key transferable core skills that are needed to work within a modern multiplatform media industry, including the ability to identify and communicate stories for specific audiences; to recognise story formats across multiple platforms along with their generic qualities; to plan and collect information needed for storytelling purposes (including interviews); to write for a range of platforms; and employ multiple media forms.

These skills will help the student develop employable skills in identifying, planning and executing storytelling projects across multiple platforms and media, including emerging formats.

A mixed methods pedagogical approach is adopted, combining lectures with hands-on workshops where students produce stories within their own professional contexts, exploring cycles of pre-production, production and post-production activities. Supplementary technical sessions provide specialist skills with particular media to an advanced technical level. Teaching builds towards an assessed project that demonstrates the application of editorial, creative and practical skills, alongside an evaluation which evidences a methodical and critical approach to all three stages of production.

Specialist journalism and Investigations aims to facilitate a flexible and adaptable skillset that provides a basis for students to critically adapt to any chosen field of reporting. It also provides a basis for the successful completion of the master’s route project, and introduces potential avenues of practice-based inquiry for routes into PhD progression beyond.

Increasingly, media workers and researchers are expected to be able to engage with an unfamiliar field, and interrogate large amounts of information. This module provides a framework to build the techniques for doing so, including an understanding of specialist and investigative reporting techniques as applied to a chosen field of interest (examples might include health, politics, education or culture) which is, as part of teaching and assessment, scoped and critically assessed for reporting opportunities.

A mixed methods pedagogical approach is adopted, with lectures combined with hands-on workshops where students are supported in developing and reflecting on their own work within a contemporary context.

Supplementary technical sessions may be required to provide specialist skills to a required professional standard. Work in this module links to the final project.

Law, Regulation & Institutions focuses on key areas of the law and regulatory systems as they relate to the media, as well as allowing you to research those institutions which are important sources of news. The module will examine the ethical, regulatory and legal constraints under which journalists work. It will look in detail at issues including defamation, contempt of court and various reporting restrictions, human rights law, including the conflict between rights to privacy and to freedom of expression and copyright. It will enable you to develop a critical understanding of the limitations imposed by law and regulation on reporting and also look at those areas of law that work to protect journalists. You will develop a critical perspective on key debates in media law and regulation. The module will also introduce students to the core institutions of public life, particularly in the fields of politics, criminal justice, education, health and social welfare and business. You will conduct your own research into these areas as sources of news.

The structure of the module will consist of lead lectures by academics and practitioners and workshop activities and discussions in which you will be encouraged to consider how the principles discussed in presentations will be practically applied within the context of your journalistic work. Readings and case studies will be available on Moodle as online resources.

The module will be assessed through a media law examination and a presentation on a given area of public life which may be in broadcast, online or mobile format.

The module is an opportunity to learn and critically reflect on the skills of collaboration by enabling you to create a research-informed interdisciplinary project with students from complementary disciplines, or with academic staff.

Collaboration is a vital employability skill within the Creative Industries and this module allows you to develop professional key interpersonal and communications skills, share knowledge and ideas, and engage in collective strategic planning, diagnostic analysis and peer support. Working in an interdisciplinary team will help you to learn beyond your own subject boundaries, which is central to the STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) philosophy of education and resembles work patterns within the creative industries.

In the module, you will produce an interdisciplinary and imaginative group project outcome supported by an in-depth critical evaluation.

Within this module framework, several kinds of collaborative opportunities are available. For example, your supervisor may set you a predetermined project to enable you to work with other students in a cross-course project; there may be opportunities for you to collaborate with staff on research projects; or your supervisor may engage you in a collaborative group brief with a professional client, community or agency.

The purpose of the module is to enable you to undertake a sustained, in-depth and theoretically informed research project exploring an area that is of personal interest to you. It is important that we can support you appropriately, so you will be guided towards choosing a research topic which is relevant to your discipline and in which your lecturers have expertise.

The outcome may take the form of a written dissertation or a practical outcome with accompanying reflective, critical and contextual material. The main consideration when choosing your topic is that it must be relevant to your programme and you should consider the relevance of this topic to your future academic or professional development.