As part of our efforts to support the news industry, the Google News Initiative is funding a newsroom leadership program at Columbia Journalism School for journalists in Asia Pacific
Not so long ago, journalists had the luxury of focusing on filling the next day's paper, radio segment or television broadcast, without needing to think about business models, subscriptions, publishing tools and technology. Today's newsroom leaders need to understand the business of news in order to be stewards of great journalism. Everyone must also think like a publisher.
To help journalists in the Asia Pacific better manage the transition to the digital age, the Google News Initiative has teamed up with the Columbia School of Journalism to offer a curated program to meet their needs.
The program, which includes four weeks of onsite courses at Columbia University in New York City and Google offices in Silicon Valley and Asia, is for mid-career journalists who have the potential to take on larger roles and run their organizations. Each Fellow will also work on a specific project during the year that is relevant to their newsroom within the main fellowship topics: technology, monetization, and data.
Ten fellows from the Asia-Pacific region will learn how to lead through change in this fast-moving environment and identify opportunities for entrepreneurship within their newsrooms. The program will emphasize:
- How news companies operate as businesses, and how technology has revolutionized what it means to be a publisher.
- Ways to evaluate the costs and benefits of introducing technology-driven changes into newsroom workflows, and how to ensure managers and direct reports support new ways of working.
- The use of data to create compelling content that will resonate with audiences
- How to facilitate design-thinking in newsrooms using Google's design sprint methodology, which is used to solve problems and develop products
The deadline to apply is June 26, 2019, but journalists are encouraged to submit applications early, as they are considered on a rolling basis. The Google News Initiative is partnering with news industry and journalist organizations around the Asia-Pacific region to shortlist applicants, including the Walkley Foundation, J-Forum, Journalists Association of Korea, Aliansi Jurnalis Independen, and Splice. Shortlisted applicants are interviewed by the Google News Initiative, and a Columbia University faculty member will select the Fellows from among those who meet all the criteria and are presented by GNI and its vetting partner institutions.
For more information about the program, curriculum and application instructions, visit the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism website. Submit your application here.
Posted by Irene Jay Liu, News Lab Lead, APAC