The Gap between Online Journalism Education and Practice: The Twin Surveys

Abstract

This U.S. national survey of online journalism professionals and instructors examines and compares their perceptions of skills, concepts, and duties. It offers updated insights into the changes taking place in online journalism classrooms and newsrooms, and uncovers the discordance between online journalism education and practice. The results show that online journalism education is tied to traditional journalism in many ways, but is not merely a more technologically focused version of traditional journalism. Future journalists should be trained to be well-versed in multiple aspects of journalism and technology, rather than specializing in only one or two types of tasks.