UTEP’s journalism program has been selected as a site host for First Draft immersive training FEB.21
UTEP is one of just 10 U.S. universities and newsrooms to be selected for inclusion in the First Draft network.The network is aimed primarily at journalists, but they also want to include researchers and librarians, and 15 UTEP students will participate. BENEFIT TO STUDENTS Students will receive cutting-edge training that few journalism schools have integrated into their curricula. They will contribute to a national election project throughout 2020 with ProPublica, which gives them national exposure for recruitment. Students will be connected with a local or regional journalist before the training, meet on the day of the training and ideally create a strong networking and skills-sharing opportunity. Students will be provided with small incentives to participate throughout the year. Top student contributors will have travel expenses covered for a First Draft summit in Chicago in June. First Draft is a global non-profit formed in 2015 that supports journalists, academics and technologists working to address challenges relating to trust and truth in the digital age. Key funders include the Google News Initiative, The Ford Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.