Industry takes notice of SJMC initiative at FIU

South Florida News Service aids newsroom survival.

By Heather Radi-Bermudez

Student journalists attend a weekly budget meeting.

The chatter around newsrooms these days involves the question of survival.

With the advent and increase in Internet and user-generated content, traditional media formats are seeing a transformation due to shifts in American culture. FIU’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication, which prides itself on being at the forefront of the communications wave, is leading this revolution. The ambitious move garnering attention from three leading industry publications is the concept of the South Florida News Service (SFNS). Announced last year, SFNS couples journalism students with major South Florida newspapers to create and publish articles and, more importantly, learn the inner workings of the newsroom and reporting.

The publication of the Society of Professional Journalists, Quill, opened its August 2009 cover story with FIU’s SFNS, saying the program and others like it “are growing” and becoming increasingly popular across the country. SFNS News Director Chris Delboni oversees the program and its participation together with Allan Richards, SJMC interim associate dean, and Teresa Ponte, SJMC interim chair of the Department of Journalism and Broadcasting.

“South Florida News Service affords students the opportunity to learn what it’s like to work in a newsroom from budget meetings to investigative reporting to editing – the whole process. It’s the real thing,” says Delboni, who adds that more than 65 student articles have been published collectively in the daily newspapers since the program started. (Click here to check out some of the stories written by FIU students for SFNS.)

Examining the trend too is former Washington Post editor Leonard Downie Jr., who acknowledges the SJMC partnership as a “contribution to independent news reporting” in an article in the current Columbia Journalism Review, “The Reconstruction of American Journalism.” In a letter to SJMC Dean Lillian Lodge Kopenhaver following the article’s publication, co-author and Columbia University professor Michael Schudson further acknowledged the importance and impact of the program by noting his intention “to pursue further our recommendation that more J-Schools follow the lead of FIU [and others].”

Downie & Schudson continued the conversation on university-based reporting in a Chronicle of Higher Education article published November 15, with what was a third nod to FIU’s arrangement with the Miami Herald, Palm Beach Post and South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Here, Downie refers to the SFNS concept as “help[ing] fill the gap” in shrinking newsrooms and original news reporting. Delboni adds that the SJMC program allows students to hone their skills and creativity in new multimedia platforms while maintaining the integrity and credibility of traditional American journalism. In addition to straight news reporting, students also supplement their articles with interactive incorporations ranging from slideshows to video and audio clips with the help of video production students.

Miami Herald Suburban Editor Joan Chrissos adds, “[The program] is a valuable portion of our newsroom across all departments. The students and faculty at FIU are passionate about journalism and it shows in the quality of work that’s produced.” Another key barometer that the news service is working successfully is the enthusiasm in the students.

Fallon Patterson, SJMC senior and SFNS contributor since its inception, applauds the program, saying, “I’m grateful SFNS gives me the outlet to tackle complex stories as an undergrad.”

Kopenhaver supports the collaboration, stating, “At a time when media are facing tremendous challenges to better cover their communities and reach their audiences, this innovative partnership can provide a new model in the evolution of these media.” The young SJMC program is quickly gaining traction among students, faculty and the industry alike, and, as the Chronicle concludes, there are “opportunities for growth all around.”

Chrissos agrees, “It’s a win-win for both.”