MJ5100 Investigative Journalism and Cross Border Cooperation Course description

Journalism is changing and so is investigative journalism. Amongst the factors that affect investigative journalism are emerging digital media and changing technology. This course aims to encourage investigative journalism in digital times and gives students the opportunity to collaborate across borders using digital technology. A rising trend within international investigative journalism is to collaborate across borders and exchange useful information and data. Similarly, investigative journalists increasingly work in interdisciplinary teams drawing on expertise from such fields as law, economy, information technology and social science. The course seeks to deepen the understanding and knowledge of such investigative journalism.

The course will emphasize digital ways to investigate data. Students will learn principles of big data harvesting and analysis, and they will collaborate internationally with other students either on analyses of digital working methods or on doing more practical research related to investigative stories.  

Another important aspect will be securing digital life and protecting sources when doing collaborative investigations across borders.

None

After completing the course, the student should have the following overall learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The student

• has acquired deeper understanding of methodologies in digital investigative journalism
• has acquired solid knowledge of both traditional investigative journalism and more recent digital investigative journalism 
• has got insight into how to collaborate across borders by utilizing digital tools
• has developed deeper knowledge of investigative techniques, particularly when used online
• has developed an understanding of ethical perspectives of digital investigative journalism

Skills

The student

•  can use appropriate theories, methods and knowledge to develop and conduct an investigative journalistic project with digital methodologies   
• can use digital tools to harvest and analyze relevant data

General competence

The student

• is able to analyze ethical and legislative concerns as a result of investigative journalism
• is capable of gathering data in national as well as international contexts and analyze ethical and legislative concerns as a result of such work

Lectures and workshops.

Written assignments based on the reading list or workshops given during the course.There are seven assignments, out of which four must be approved in order to qualify for the exam. All assignments are connected to workshops where students will work in groups with support from experienced journalists, accountants and digital safety experts to learn skills and acquire knowledge necessary to do cross border investigative journalism. All assignments must be written in English. The assignments will be discussed in groups with other students and a teacher. The student will then have the opportunity to improve the assignments before the final handing in.

The details of the assignments will be given in the beginning of the semester. The length of each assignment is  3 - 5 pages. If an assignment is not approved, the student may hand in a new, improved version within a set deadline. In the case of illness or other valid reasons for absence, an individual deadline can be set by the teacher. If the student does not meet the set deadline for at least four of the assignments, the student loses the possibility to hand in the assignment, and thereby loses to right to sit for the exam. 

The exam is a four-days written individual home examination of approximately 10 pages (not including front page and literature list). The paper may be written in either English or Norwegian (or another Scandinavian language). Font and font size: Arial/Calibri 12 points. Line spacing: 1.5.

All aids are permitted, as long as the rules for source referencing are complied with.

Grade scale A-F

The exam papers are assessed by one internal and one external examiner. At least 25% of the exam papers will be assessed by two examiners. The grades awarded for the papers assessed by two examiners form the basis for determining the level for all the exam papers.

A bachelor's degree. The minimum academic requirement for admission is the grade C, in accordance with Regulations Relating to Admission to Master's Degree Programmes at OsloMet.

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