MA
Investigative Journalism

In a series of workshops, you’ll be taught the essential skills for investigative story gathering and writing, including the structure and style of different types of news stories and basic skills of reporting and interviewing.

You’ll have the opportunity to take your core data skills to the next level and combine them with advanced research for rich, in-depth investigations. You’ll develop these while working both on an individual investigation and as part of a team on a group project – this will be a data-driven investigation suitable for publication on the Eastlondonlines news website.

You will be introduced to the major theoretical debates in the study of journalism. We will cover: the current crisis in journalism, questions of political power and the public sphere; ownership forms and how they are changing; the role of audience: as well as regulation and representation. We will also look at journalism as a narrative form. All these debates will be situated firmly in a current and practical context and you will be encouraged to make connections between formal lecturers, seminar presentations and practical discussions of the day’s events and how they are reported. Sessions will be followed by a seminar. This module will provide practice students with a theoretical underpinning for your work, which you will develop via personal study later in the year. Those taking this module as a theory option will find it provides a challenging insight into journalism as a practice.

The module investigates critically to an advanced extent the nature of media law and ethical regulation for media practitioners in the UK. The students are directed towards an advanced analysis of media law, as it exists, the ethical debates concerning what the law ought to be, and the historical development of legal and regulatory controls of communication. The theoretical underpinning involves a module of advanced learning of the subject of media jurisprudence (the study of the philosophy of media law), and media ethicology (the study of the knowledge of ethics in media communication). The module evaluates media law and regulation in terms of its social and cultural context.

Media Law and Ethics is a dynamic subject with dramatic and significant changes and developments occurring from year to year addressing acute issues in journalism, current affairs and politics. As a result, the module content is substantially revised in response to these developments.

Understanding data is a vital part of the modern investigative journalist’s skillset. With more and more data available, there is a great demand in the industry for journalists who understand how to handle large data sets, find original stories in data, and present graphically and-or as well-told stories.

In this module you’ll learn:

• How to find data.
• How to interrogate data.
• How to clean dirty data so that it “tells” you stories more accurately.
• How to turn data into meaningful graphics.
• How to make use of numbers in stories.

This module will equip you with the practical research skills that a journalist needs and will introduce you to the latest investigative tools and techniques that you might use when researching a story.

You’ll learn from leading practitioners in the sector. Recent speakers in the Department of Media, Communications and Cultural Studies have included journalists from the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, Open Democracy, the Guardian, the Centre for Investigative Journalism, Full Fact, Airwars and Bellingcat.  

This module is responsive and adapts to the changing needs of the industry, meaning content may change from year to year to make sure you gain the skills you need to be a successful investigative journalist.

You’ll complete a large-scale investigative journalism project. 

This will bring together all that you’ve learnt throughout the degree, to produce a portfolio of work centred around one original piece of investigative journalism. You’ll use your conceptual, planning and practical skills to develop the investigation from first idea to final piece. 

This will allow you to further develop your investigative practice, as well as your project management and storytelling skills. You’ll select appropriate mediums and platforms for your work, identify potential publishing partners and pitch ideas to them.

You’ll also reflect critically on your work, showing evidence of the development of your ideas and the research you conducted, and due diligence regarding legal and ethical compliance.