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Cultural Journalism - JRN260 Fall 2026
Course
Tony Ozuna
This course is an introduction to cultural journalism and reporting, by taking advantage of the rich cultural life of Prague. While there will be a focus on the contemporary art and music scenes, students will also be able to explore the literary and theatre scenes, as well as take advantage of the numerous festivals in the city, particularly for feature and documentary films. An understanding and appreciation of the role of cultural organizations and institutions will be emphasized, and so students will also be given the opportunity to meet with representatives of cultural organizations, as well as artists, musicians, directors, writers and publishers. Field trips to galleries, exhibits and other cultural events in Prague will be an integral component of the course. This activity will be combined with discussions of assigned readings from seminal to contemporary cultural critics and journalists.The primary medium for publishing the best work in this class will be the AAU student newspaper At the Lennon Wall; however, students may also have the opportunity to publish in other online or print publications based in Prague, and beyond. This course, however, is also welcome to students who simply want to learn about the world of cultural journalism.
Here is the course outline:
1. What is Cultural Journalism?
Sep 2
Who is good at it? Cultural journalists vs. entertainment news. Site Visit: Julian Lennon at Leica Gallery. As homework, students should also watch a few documentary films about Prague’s cultural history and its uniqueness |
2. Mysterious Prague
Sep 9, campus then site visit
Topic: Mysterious Prague (discussion) then crash course in journalistic writing versus academic essays - review of the inverted pyramid and the 5 W's for journalists. Site visit: Czech Press Photo exhibit at the National Museum |
3. Contemporary Art Scene
Sep 16
Topic: Contemporary Czech Art Site Visit: Botanical Garden at Albertov |
4. Naprstek Reloaded
Sep 23
Topic: Vojta Naprstek Description: 200th year anniversary of the birth of Vojta Naprstek - a Czech collector of other cultures artifacts Site visit: Naprstek Reloaded at the Naprstek Museum in Prague |
5. Film History Museum in Prague
Sep 30
Na Film - visit to student-run Czech film history museum |
6. A stroll thru Mala Strana - Bedrich Dlouhy plus
Oct 7
Topic: Mala Strana Walking the streets of Mala Strana |
7. Music Journalism I & Pleasures & Vices
Oct 14
Music Journalism I Pleasures & Vices at Ethnographic Museum of Prague |
8. Contemporary Art : Annette Messager
Oct 21
Guest lecturer - Jan Tompkins on this date Site Visit: Annette Messager at Kunsthalle, Prague |
9. Mid-Term break
Oct 28
Topic: There is no meeting on this date due to our Midterm Break |
10. Class is cancelled on this date
Nov 4
Topic: Description: Site Visit: |
11. Music & Film
Nov 11
Topic: Music Lecture (story of the Velvet Revolution) & intro to a Film Festival (or site visit) If there is no site visit, guest is Rachel Danna - organizer of Press Play Prague film festival |
12. Prague Press Play - Pt. 2 (festival visit)
Nov 18
Topic: Prague Press Play Pt. 2 Description: we'll attend the Prague Press Play festival Site visit: meeting at Kino Atlas for film screening at 3:00 pm |
13. Back to Art - DOX
Nov 25
We'll visit the contemporary art center DOX on this date - Argus & Medusa revisited |
14. Summarizing Prague's Cultural Scene
Dec 2
Topic: Summarizing Prague’s Cultural Scene Description: Final excursion, visiting sites for the final article/assignment |
15. Wrap-up.
Dec 9
Last group meeting, and second-half of the final exam session with site visits. |