This is an interesting piece by Daniel Schultz at Poynter that discusses Rich Gordon’s new Knight News Challenge Grant to incorporate computer specialists in journalism schools. This is a great idea and can only help to foster better storytelling and news content packaging for the future. As Gordon stated in the interview, “Traditional newsrooms have not employed programmer or developers. Their parent companies do have programmers on staff — but when push comes to shove, their time is typically prioritized to projects like payroll and accounts payable. Even when newsrooms have had direct access to programmers, there is a communication gap: programmers don’t necessarily understand the mission or process of journalism.” This program is a first step. I’ll keep an eye on other programs around the country to see if this trend is picked up by other schools and whether or not these graduates are getting positions after they graduate.

Medill: Techies Go to J-School
by Daniel E Schultz
Journalists with strong technical skills may be in high demand — but they’re currently in short supply. Rich Gordon, associate professor at Medill School of Journalism, Northwestern University, wants to close that gap. He plans to use his $639,000 Knight News Challenge grant will fund a new scholarship program to lure computer scientists into Medill’s journalism program. Guest contributor Daniel Schultz recently interviewed Gordon about this program. - more