The on-campus classes for some 12 working journalists from Asia enrolled in ACFJ’s newest offering, the Diploma in Multimedia Journalism (DMJ), began on 13 June 2011 at the Convergence Technology Center of the Ateneo de Manila University.
Dr. D. J. Clark, multimedia journalist and head of ACFJ’s Visual Journalism Program, teaches the one-year Internet-based distance learning program that aims to enhance professionalism in undertaking ethical cross platform multimedia journalistic projects. The program, which uses an online, and offline teaching method opened on 29 May 2011.
The students working for leading print, radio, TV and new media companies come from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and the Philippines. A Swiss freelance journalist who works with Radio Voice of Vietnam also joins this diploma program. They will attend the on-campus sessions till 18 June 2011.
This DMJ covers the fundamentals of multimedia journalism, newsgathering for multimedia journalism, mobile journalism, convergence theory, multiplatform practice, interactive media literacy and a multimedia journalism project.
Ms Cheryl B Borsoto, an instructor at the Ateneo Department of Communication is the program coordinator for this diploma offering.
Eight students who have at least two years of experience as full-time journalists received full scholarship and four others partial scholarship as part of ACFJ’s fellowship program.
Among the participants are GMB Akash who works as a photographer in Bangladesh for Panos Pictures, London, Rajneesh Bhandari from Nepal, a special correspondent of the Los Angeles Times and a sub editor and reporter for Kantipur Television, and Shohba Iyer, a freelance photographer and Ravi Bajpai, principal correspondent of The Indian Express, both from India.
The Philippines has seven representatives to the program; they are Maria Armie Sheila Garde, assistant content editor of Sun Star Publishing, Ferdinand Cabrera, a GMA 7 stringer, Yasmin Lee Arpon, deputy editor of Asia News Network in Thailand, Kathleen Palasi, a contract photographer for UNICEF-Philippines, Alfredo Pasaylo, online editor of Philippine Star, Jose Torres, deputy editor/online editor of Catholic News Philippines and Anthony Bayarong, correspondent of the Manila Times and editor of Subic Times. Anemi Wick from Switzerland works as a freelance journalist for Radio Voice Vietnam.
