• by Val Brickates Kennedy , March 18, 2014

Northeastern University announced Tuesday that it plans to launch a state-of-the-art graduate program aimed boosting the digital skills of "mid-career journalists."

The new program, funded by a $250,000 grant from the esteemed Knight Foundation, will allow experienced journalists to learn such skills as coding, videography, database management and game design, and how to apply them to news projects. University officials hope that the pilot program, which begins in September, will evolve into a new track for the school's graduate program in journalism. 

There's no question that the journalism profession could use programs that allow reporters and editors to easily upgrade their digital skills. Unless an employer provides a digital training program, most journalists are forced to piece one together through web design classes at art schools, coding seminars at tech training centers and online tutorials. Or they just wing it and hope for the best.

But however noble Northeastern's intentions, the program will still not be able to scale the single, biggest obstacle confronting journalism today: lack of funding. Original reporting takes time. Time costs money. And money is tight.

It's so tight that many newsrooms resort to recycling news from other outlets because they can't afford the manpower hours to generate their own stories. Others are refusing to pay writers at all, relying instead on copy from unpaid "experts" seeking publicity, amateur reporters or those who like to write as a hobby.

Everyone knows that the old, advertising-based business model for news is disintegrating. But until a new, sustainable model emerges, even your best-trained digital journalist won't be able to afford to stay in the business.