Bringing power to your story
The world of news is changing and so is the way we tell our stories. The award-winning Digital News Academy equips journalists and editors with up-to-the-minute tools, techniques and insights required to succeed, now and into the future.
A powerful collaboration
News Corp Australia, Google and Melbourne Business School have joined forces to launch the Digital News Academy, the first partnership of its kind in the world to offer a curriculum dedicated to digital storytelling, designed for the working journalist. Combining deep expertise in journalism, technology and education, these forward-thinking organisations give participants unique access to a range of national leaders and global experts.
For me the Digital News Academy has really put a positive focus on what’s possible – it’s telling us where the growth lies and how we can expand.
Anna Wolf – ACM, Editor, Hunter Communities
The Digital News Academy has already been such a great asset to my new career. At university, I never had the chance to meet with such leading industry professionals and the assignments given directly relate to my everyday job.
Brittany Carlson – NCA, Digital Journalist/Reporter
The Digital News Academy has led to one of our Academy participants travelling to New York to document a group of Indigenous fashion designers as they grow their brand on the world stage. The success of the program has furthered the National Indigenous Times’ digital storytelling aspirations.
Reece Harley – National Indigenous Times, Chief Operations Officer
A powerful panel of experts
Each year, 250 journalists, editors and publishers from News Corp and other participating news organisations – more than 20 joined in 2022 – will attend a nine-month virtual program, split into three modules. They will be mentored by leading digital media experts from Australia and around the world.
Campbell Reid
News Corp AustraliaSydney, Australia
Sonja Heydeman
Academy Director, Digital News AcademyMelbourne, Australia
Rod Savage
News Corp AustraliaAdelaide, Australia
Jason van Genderen
Treehouse CreativeSydney, Australia
Miguel D’Souza
News Corp AustraliaSydney, Australia
Stephanie Hunt
StoryfulSydney, Australia
Julia Munslow
The Wall Street JournalNew York, USA
Dougal Shaw
BBCLondon, UK
Dan Petrie
News Corp AustraliaBrisbane, Australia
MaryJo Webster
Star TribuneMinneapolis, USA
Yusuf Omar
SeenGold Coast, Australia
Eoghan Sweeney
Digital media consultantBerlin, Germany
Mike Castellucci
Michigan State University/WKAR (PBS)Dallas and Michigan, USA
Helena Bengtsson
Gota MediaStockholm, Sweden
Uma Patel
Google News LabSydney, Australia
Peter Judd
News Corp AustraliaMelbourne, Australia
Lena K Samuelsson
AftonbladetStockholm, Sweden
Laura Jayes
Sky News AustraliaSydney, Australia
Jessica Espinasse
News Corp AustraliaSydney, Australia
David McCandless
Information is BeautifulLondon, UK
Jonty Burton
News Corp AustraliaMelbourne, Australia
Simon Kuestenmacher
The Demographics GroupMelbourne, Australia
Tom Connell
Sky News AustraliaCanberra, Australia
Kate McDonald
StoryfulSydney, Australia
Tom Winch
News Corp AustraliaMelbourne, Australia
Soraiya Fuda
News Corp AustraliaSydney, Australia
Gavin Fernando
News Corp AustraliaSydney, Australia
Eleni Paneras
News Corp AustraliaSydney, Australia
A powerful curriculum
The Academy shows learners how cutting-edge technologies can be used to enhance their practice.
Ranging from multimedia, vertical storytelling, data journalism, and verification to in-depth investigative reporting, participants hear from some of the best practitioners in Australia and the world, drawn from the news industry and Google's global talent pool.
Learners graduate with knowledge of how the business of journalism works, including audience engagement and ways to attract new audiences.
The Digital News Academy's commitment is to provide the toolkit, skillset and mindset that help journalism practitioners at all levels of the profession discover what’s new and what’s possible, through an innovative learning approach and a supportive environment.
The program includes vibrant self-paced interactive content, delivered by a cutting-edge mobile phone app designed for busy journalists on the go, and the chance to learn in live virtual environments with and from peers from newsrooms across the country.
There are also two high-profile in-person events each year – the US Study Tour for 20 learners, and an all-in live learning event hosted in an Australian capital city where learners get to meet up, share ideas and experience the best of the Academy in person.
The Digital News Academy is an exciting, world-leading approach to developing today’s journalists and fostering future industry leaders.
Global Recognition
In its first year of operation, the Digital News Academy won gold at the prestigious international Chief Learning Officer Learning in Practice Awards, in the category “Excellence in Academic Partnerships”. Announced in Chicago in October, 2022, the awards recognise learning leaders and organisations who demonstrate excellence in the design and delivery of employee development programs through a combination of qualities such as leadership, vision, business acumen and strategic alignment.
The Academy was also a finalist in the 2022 University of Melbourne Faculty of Business and Economics & Melbourne Business School Deans' Diversity and Inclusion Excellence Awards.
Driven by powerful insights
%
overall uplift in mobile journalism as a result of the Digital News Academy*
* Based on a total of 108 learners who responded to an MBS impact survey.
%
of Australian news consumers use a mobile phone as their main device for accessing news online.
%
identify Digital News Academy journalism practices as useful to their work *
* Based on a total of 108 learners who responded to an MBS impact survey.
Podcasting has taught an old dog new digital tricks in long-form investigative journalism. It’s the most dynamic way I can make a profound difference to try to solve serious crime.