Interested? A course in citizen journalism

JM Foundation for Excellence in Journalism (www.journalism.org.in ) has announced India's first teaching programme in Citizen Journalism. The 10-session module, across two months, will begin on August 1, 2010. Minimum requirement is basic language skills in any Indian language. Age is not a bar.

According to the organizers, fifteen students will be admitted in each batch.

It is a certificate programme and will be conducted every weekend, which would enable working professionals to participate as well.  It will be mandatory to attend the lectures.

Experts from the fields of policing, law, civic issues, Right to Information and technology would be engaged in the teaching programme.

JM Foundation, which was set up by senior journalists Shishir Joshi and Dr Aloke Thakore, is also known for Journalism Mentor, the country's first Mentorship-based post-graduate programme for Journalism, which was launched in 2009.

"We are launching the citizen journalism programme in Mumbai and we will take this programme to empower citizens to various cities across India," said Joshi.

Thakore said, "The history of citizen journalism goes back to the pamphleteers, Tom Paine and Federalist Papers, and also the leaders of the freedom struggle in India. Technology has made dissemination relatively easy for citizen journalism. The crisis of public discourse on many of the issues facing the country begs for a revitalizing of this form of journalism."

The JM Foundation is a not-for-profit body, engaged in the field of Journalism Education, Research and Archiving.

Course details can be had at: 022-28261785/8929

Also at: citizensjournalism@journalism.org.in