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Students can major in Journalism or Journalism-Sports Production. Students in the traditional Journalism program can choose an area of emphasis to further specialize their journalism training. (Note: an Area of Emphasis is not required for a degree in journalism.)
Areas of Emphasis
Broadcast Journalism
Dream of working in front of or behind the camera in a television newsroom covering local or national news, sports or entertainment news? Want to learn how to gather and report the news for broadcast and digital platforms or how to write and produce a newscast? Students interested in broadcast journalism will learn journalism fundamentals, how to deliver the news for various platforms, how to use professional-level broadcast equipment and how to structure and direct a newscast. Students will have hands-on experience with on-air delivery and anchoring a newscast. Through non-journalism electives, students can learn about government, politics, public health policy, economics, economic analysis of professional and collegiate sports, health promotion or the culture of sports in America.
Community Journalism
Our program’s roots are in community journalism. Community news media outlets, whether they are found in rural or metropolitan areas, have one thing in common — they help strengthen communities by intensely covering local issues and showing citizens they have a voice in our democratic society. Working as a community journalist, one must be ready to cover any issue from local elections, city council, school events to fires and car accidents, as well as report those issues for print and digital platforms. The Community Journalism area of emphasis provides students with a solid grounding in journalism basics, expertise in covering a community, ability to research and report breaking news and in-depth feature stories and hands-on experience using the latest multimedia tools. Through non-journalism electives, students will learn about state and local government, how communities organize and develop, the legislative process, criminal justice, and the history of social issues and social welfare.
Magazine Journalism
Auburn’s magazine and feature writing courses take student writers a step beyond traditional news reporting story forms. They will learn about the innovative techniques, creative formats and use of a strong narrative “voice” that create the kind of compelling print and digital magazine stories people can’t stop reading and editors want to publish. Students will learn about interviewing, writing to specific audiences, fact-gathering, fitting content to various multimedia forms, how magazines work and professional freelancing. Students can decide what kind of writer they would like to be through non-journalism courses in such fields as English literature, fashion, sports, health/fitness and business.
Investigative Journalism
Do you question authority? Do you think public officials should be accountable for their promises and taxpayers’ money? Do you want to report stories about true crime, real politics and real people with problems and dreams only you can tell the world about? Our investigative reporting area of emphasis will teach you to how to interview everyone from millionaires to murderers, introduce you to print and digital information-gathering techniques, and give you a basic understanding of the way systems should work and what happens when they don’t.
Sports Journalism
Students interested in the sports journalism area of emphasis will have a front-row seat at a university in the top-rated Southeastern Conference. Journalism majors who work for student media cover Auburn football, basketball, baseball, gymnastics, soccer, swimming, diving and a host of other collegiate, club and intramural sports. Through their journalism courses, students will learn the art of sports storytelling, how to go behind the players’ stats and game scores to report compelling stories, how to break news across multiple platforms and what sports and media mean to our society. Through non-journalism electives, students will learn about economic analysis of professional and collegiate sports, health promotion, coaching, sports psychology, principles of marketing, management and promotion, the relationship between nutrition and sports performance, and the culture of sports in America.
Visual Journalism
Visual journalists tell stories with words, pictures and design. Designers work in every type of media environment, including newspapers, magazines, multimedia, social media, corporate communication and broadcast media. Visual journalists craft compelling designs using color, typography, visual hierarchy, assignment and selection of images and visual organization. Through the journalism curriculum, students interested in the visual journalism area of emphasis will receive a solid grounding in journalism basics, how to report news and feature stories across multiple platforms, photography, multimedia reporting, slideshows and hands-on experience using the latest design and digital tools. Through non-journalism electives, students will learn 2-D and 3-D digital media, drawing skills, design theory, production processes, entrepreneurial skills, marketing and management.