curriculum
Our undergraduate and graduate classes are designed to offer future journalists -- and private and public sector leaders who will interact with them -- a thorough understanding of the role of the news media in the policymaking process. Through instruction and internships, students learn about the principles and the practice of journalism, while mastering the broader background of studies in public policy, politics, economics, history and other liberal arts.
Certificate: Duke undergraduates can pursue a certificate in Policy Journalism and Media Studies. The certificate supplements work in a major area of study and requires 6 courses and an internship in a media-related area.
Courses: Duke students interested in communications are encouraged to take courses in media and public policy through the DeWitt Wallace Center and the Sanford Institute of Public Policy. Undergraduates often major in public policy studies while broadening their perspective through the study of history, political science, economics, literature, and the natural sciences. Graduate students earning masters' degrees in public policy through the Sanford Institute may take media-related courses as electives, in preparation for careers in the increasingly complex world of journalism. Through the Center's curriculum, students may study the role of the media in a democratic society, as well as basic reporting, editing and writing skills. The Center also offers opportunities for summer internships at media organizations at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
Faculty: Students have the opportunity to study with leading research scholars, including: Ellen Mickiewicz, James R. Shepley Professor of Public Policy Studies and a specialist in international communication; James Hamilton, specialist in media and violence; and Fritz Mayer, specialist in the interpretation of communication processes.
In addition, the faculty is comprised of prominent journalists, commentators and policymakers, including: Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist William Raspberry of The Washington Post,former Time Magazine associate editor and senior writer Susan Tifft, former Austrian Vice Chancellor and special representative for the EU's Stability Pact Erhard Busek, telecommunications attorney Mark Prak, entertainment lawyer and electronic publisher Kip Frey,and documentary photographers Alex Harris and Margaret Sartor.
The Center also hosts Media Fellows from major print and broadcast media in the United States, Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the former Soviet Union.