Security and Crime
Reporting on terrorism and crime is a demanding and exciting job. It requires a wide range of skills. Since the rise of al-Qaeda and the 7 July 2005 London suicide bombings, international terrorism has rarely been out of the headlines. The growing threat from Islamic State militants is the latest example.
Organised crime - ranging from drug and people smuggling gangs, to internet fraudsters and traditional armed robbers - also continues to fascinate the public.
This course covers how to report on UK based terrorism. It also includes animal rights extremists, Irish paramilitary groups, and lone bombers. This involves getting to know all the
angles - from counter terrorism detectives and MI5, to lawyers, community and pressure groups, as well as the extremists themselves.
A similar approach is taken to reporting on crime - whether it is a piece of analysis about the “perfect robbery”; a profile of a crime family behind the headlines; how to get the best out of crime figures; or talking to a victim of a miscarriage of justice. Preparing court backgrounds and coping with big breaking crime stories are also covered.
This is an extremely practical specialism - students will learn a variety of skills that will prove invaluable in whatever area of journalism they work. It includes how to make contacts; respond to a breaking story; question press and police officers; perform at press conferences; and get an exclusive. Previous visits include trips to the National Crime Agency, and the Old Bailey court, as well as a range of guest speakers.
Tutor: Jason Bennetto was the crime correspondent with special responsibility for security reporting at The Independent for 13 years. Jason became a freelance journalist in 2007 and has written for a range of publications including Esquire magazine, Mail on Sunday, Guardian, Daily Mail, Independent on Sunday, and The Observer. He is a senior lecturer at City University and teaches news and features on the MA Magazine course.
Sport
The module has a sharp focus on tackling the practicalities of sports reporting and includes a substantial practical component. Last year’s course included trips to Wimbledon’s All-England tennis club, for a behind-the-scenes look at the set-up for covering The Championships, and a session at Wembley with the Football Association’s communications director, who provided an insight into life on the ‘receiving end’ of the media. The visit also included a tour of the media set-up. The course seeks to embrace all sports and to develop students’ sports reporting skills. One of last year’s sessions was devoted to visiting and covering football matches - including at visit to Charlton Athletic FC. The aim was to develop an ability to produce live match reports under deadline pressure and also the more considered match feature writing.
The classroom element of the module is also practical, focussing on such questions as: ‘How do you win around an unhappy football manager to your line of questioning? ‘How do you get a story when your sporting interviewee does not want to be there?’ ‘How do you go about finding and developing contacts?’
We also cover the area of sports business journalism, where an abundance of stories is to be found. We examine how to branch out form the written word to add a multi-media element to your work. We also look at how to build a social media following.
Tutor: Ian Herbert is The Independent’s chief sportswriter.
His reputation as one of Britain’s leading sports journalists saw him Highly Commended in the British Sportswriter of the Year category of the British Press Awards last year and in 2012. He was also highly commended in the Sports’ Journalists Association’s Sports News Reporter of the Year award in 2012.
He has a reputation within the profession for a high quality of his writing and also for investigative skill, honed during eight years as a news reporter for The Independent before making the move into sport.
Twitter: @ianherbs