Educational visit to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Washington, D.C., by students of the Postgraduate Programme ‘MSc in Journalism and New Media’

The educational visit by postgraduate students from NKUA to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, D.C., was a huge success. The visit took place from 3 to 10 December 2022 with the support of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF).

Ten students from the Department of Communication and Media Studies Postgraduate Programme ‘MSc in Journalism and New Media’ had the opportunity to attend the 19^th Journalism Bootcamp of the non-profit research organization CSIS in the capital of the United States of America.

The initiative aims to connect aspiring journalists, seeking a greater understanding of global issues, with international affairs experts and to assist them in mastering the skills necessary to produce feature articles using multimedia.

The NKUA students chose the topic of climate change and its relationship with contemporary international issues, such as migration. More specifically, they analyzed the environmental challenges of the river Euphrates and the consequences of water scarcity and contaminated water for the inhabitants of Syria.

As part of the training, the students heard presentations and conducted interviews with CSIS executives and specialized professionals from politics, journalism, and non-governmental organizations. They also participated in intensive workshops and learnt technical skills that enabled them to complete their assignment using modern digital journalism practices.

By the end of the week, the students had created a full article, complete with rich multimedia content (videos, podcasts, and data visualization), which they presented to the chief executive officer, other CSIS executives, and their guests.

Those in attendance described the students’ presentation as absolutely successful, owing to the excellent use of multimedia and, most importantly, the inclusion of specific and realistic proposals in the article to address the issues it covers.

Dr Aikaterini Stavrianea, Assistant Professor at the Department of Communication and Media Studies of NKUA, led the delegation and stood by the students throughout the programme.

Our students’ successful participation in the demanding training programme of a modern research centre in the capital of the United States of America demonstrates the dynamics of the Postgraduate Programme ‘MSc in Journalism and New Media,’ which, over time, invests in extroversion and the provision of specialized knowledge and experiences to its students.

CSIS Journalism Bootcamp is made possible by the support of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) in collaboration with CSIS’s Dracopoulos iDeas Lab.