Journalism Education:
The Russian Story
Prof. Yassen N. Zassoursky,
Zassoursky, Dean
dean@journ
[email protected].
msu.ru
Prof. Elena Vartanova,
Vartanova, Associate Dean
eva@
eva@journ.
journ.msu.
msu.ru
Moscow State University
Faculty of Journalism
Faculty of Journalism, Moscow
State University
University Journalism Education
ª Lomonosov, the first Russian ensyclopedist,
founder of the First Russian University, Moscow:
journalists should be ethical and highly educated
ª University Journalism Education: humanistic
basis + philosophical and political pluralism +
professional training (literary skills and ethics) +
internationalization
Journalism Education:
How It Started
ªEarly 1900s: vocational courses at the
University
ªFirst Schools of Red Journalists in 1920s
ªJournalists for the Party Press:
Departments of Journalism in Communist
Party High Schools
ªMain features: Strong literary tradition,
focus on writing techniques and political
loyalty
Faculty of Journalism
ª Established in 1947 as the Department of
Journalism at the Faculty of Philology, Moscow
State University
ª In 1952 re-organized as a separate Faculty under
the name of the Faculty of Journalism, Moscow
State University.
ª The leading school of journalism and mass
communication in Moscow, Russia and CIS
ª The largest center for research in journalism and
media in Russia
Our Graduates
ª More than 18,000 Russian mass media
professional who currently work in different
editorial boards, television and radio stations,
news agencies in Russia and abroad
ª More than 500 foreign graduates from countries
of Europe, Asia, Africa and America
ª More than 300 graduates from the ClS.
Technical Facilities
250 Computers
Four Computer Classrooms with Internet access
(50 computers)
Two Libraries
Library of Periodicals
TV Studio
Radio Studio (digitally equipped)
Experimental Publishing House
Intranet (under construction)
Convergence Lab
5 Year Basic Course
The First Module: Professional Training (more than 20 subjects)
including Introduction to Media Studies, Economics of Mass
ª
Media, History of Russian and Foreign
Journalism,
Contemporary Russian and Foreign Mass Media Systems,
Principles of Advertising and PR, Ethics of Journalism,
Psychology of Journalism)
The Second Module: Socio-Political Sciences including
Philosophy, Political Science, Logics, Aesthetics, Social
Psychology, Principles of Law, Russian History, etc.
The Third Module: Literature and Languages including History of
Russian and Foreign Literature; Theory of Literature,
Contemporary Russian Language; Literary Editing and Foreign
Languages (English as an obligatory plus German, French,
Spanish, Italian, Finnish, Swedish, Japanese, etc.
Basic Characteristics: Integration of the three modules
Professional Training
Intensive In-house Media Training for 1st and 2d year students:
every semester under the guidance of a teacher during one week they
have to produce a Faculty newspaper, weekly, radio and TV programs
in the Centre for Intensive Training. The Centre is equipped with
computers, printers (black and color), copying machines, has an
access to Internet and information support from several news
agencies.
Practice in Mass Media Companies
After 2nd, 3d and 4th years in summer students have spend 4-5 weeks
as practitioners
In media companies and are required to produce a journalistic
production in different
media channels. Evaluation takes place after each training course
Students Newspapers are
Open for the Faculty
Soviet Media: Theoretic
Approaches to Journalism
ª Normative character: journalists (used as
synonym for all media professionals) have to be
party affiliated, people oriented, truthful and
educating
ª News are of minor importance compared to
feature genres
ª Publicistics (political essays) is at the core of
journalists’activity
ª A must(!!): an active citizen’
s stand
When TV Appeared …
ª The Soviet School of TV Studies: TV is a new
form of visual art along with theater, cinema,
painting
ª Particular attention to visual means of TV art
production
ª Joint research on cinema and TV: means of
artistic expressionism
Modern Media Studies in Russia
ª History of Russian and World Media
ª Political Economy of the Media
ª Deontology of Media
ª Sociology of the Media
ª Information Society
ª Cultural Studies
ª Image Studies (including effects of PR)
ª Literary Criticism
ª Media Psychology
ª Media Education
Trends of Media Studies
Common point: Journalism –a profession to create texts for
the media of two types –news and essays (information and
publicist texts) + journalists are active citizens
Basic Points
1. Journalism is a specific creative activity different from
science and arts, a particular form of understanding the
reality, its main function –formation of public opinion by
writing the ‚
contemporary history‘
2. Journalism is a literary form of a political activity based on
facts reporting which necessary involves journalists
personal assessments of events
3. Journalism is a form of a creative activity aimed to reflect
views and positions of different groups in society, to
provide a forum for political debates.
Media Specializations
ª Newspaper journalism
ª TV journalism
ª Radio journalism
ª International journalism
ª Online journalism
ª Advertising
ª Public relations
ª Editing
ª Photo journalism
ª Literary critics
ª Media managers
PhD Program
ª 3 years of studies
ª theoretical courses on philosophy + media +
Foreign language course with an emphasis on
research lexica
ª teaching experience
ª publication of several articles in academic
journals
ª writing the PhD thesis (about 200 pages)
ª defense of the PhD thesis at the Faculty Scientific
Council meeting
Welcome to the Faculty of
Journalism, Moscow State
University