Athens, Ga. – Ten African journalists will visit the University of Georgia Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication Nov. 1-5 to discuss broadcast journalism, media education, the job market, new media and business models. Their visit is part of the Edward R. Murrow Program for Journalists and is sponsored by the Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program.
The journalists are from French-speaking countries including Burundi, Congo, Niger and Senegal. The Murrow Program is and Grady College was selected as one of 10 journalism schools to host a group. Their visit is hosted by the James M. Cox Center for International Mass Communication Training and Research.
The Murrow Program sponsors nearly 100 journalists from around the world to participate in the three-week visit. The program is designed as an exchange of best practices, an overview of free press in a democracy and the opportunity for the Murrow Fellows to gain insight into the social economic and political structures of the U.S. The Murrow Program started six years ago and the Cox International Center has been invited to participate as a host for the past five years.
“This is one of the most important journalism programs of the Department of State,” said Tudor Vlad, senior research scientist for the Cox International Center. “The Department of State picks the host schools based on recommendations and feedback, and the Cox International Center is honored to have been selected five years in a row.”
While they are on UGA’s campus Nov. 4-5, the Murrow Fellows will meet with several professors and students. They also will have a chance to watch a daily Grady NewSource broadcast, hear a briefing about the Peabody Awards and participate in a session at UGA’s African Studies Institute.
“Most of the visiting journalists are young and leaders in their organizations,” Vlad continued. “Having our students interact with them is very beneficial.”
The traveling journalists will be visiting the U.S. for three weeks. For the first two weeks, all 100 participants will be in Washington, D.C., and New York City. They will then break into 10 groups to visit their host locations. On Nov. 1, the Murrow Fellows visiting Grady College will arrive in Atlanta and spend two days meeting with editors from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and CNN. They also will tour the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site, Georgia Aquarium and the High Museum of Art, among other places.
For a complete list of host schools and more information about the Murrow Fellows Program, see http://eca.state.gov/highlight/edward-r-murrow-program-journalists.
The James M. Cox Center for International Mass Communication Training and Research
The James M. Cox Jr. Center for International Mass Communication Training and Research is the international outreach unit of the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. The Center was created in 1985 and in 1990 was named for the late James M. Cox Jr., chairman of the board of Cox Enterprises. Each year, the center conducts multiple media workshops for journalists from around the world, publishes technical reports and directs research on a variety of topics related to the practice of journalism around the world. The Cox Center also is the home of the Annual Surveys of Journalism and Mass Communication, which researches and publishes data on the U.S. journalism labor market.
UGA Grady College
Established in 1915, the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication offers undergraduate majors in journalism, advertising, public relations, digital and broadcast journalism and mass media arts. The college offers two graduate degrees, and is home to the Knight Chair in Health and Medical Journalism and the Peabody Awards, internationally recognized as one of the most prestigious prizes for excellence in electronic media. For more information, see www.grady.uga.edu or follow @UGAGrady on Twitter.