Morocco: Field Studies in Journalism and New Media

Explore a range of communications and media issues in diverse environments throughout Morocco.

Short excursions will take students to important media and communications entities in Rabat, Casablanca, and Tangier. Students will also experience the imperial cities of Meknes and Fes, as well as other areas of Morocco, during the program’s week-long excursion. The stay in Morocco’s interior will reveal challenges facing rural Moroccans while providing story ideas.

Potential field destinations are listed below.

Rabat

High Authority of Audio-Visual Communication, Morocco’s regulating body for broadcast media
Higher Institute of Information and Communication, Morocco’s only public school for journalism
Maghreb Arab Press, Morocco’s information agency
Al-Tajdid, daily Arabic newspaper and forum for the Islamist political party Justice and Development
Morocco Ministry of Communication, the government’s official institution of information and government
National Trade Union of the Moroccan Press

Casablanca

MIT Media Technopark
Ecole Supérieure de Journalisme et de Communication (Higher Institute of Journalism and Communication), owned by Ecomédias Press group
Al Ayyam, weekly Arabic newspaper
TelQuel, weekly French magazine

Tangier

Radio Méditerranée Internationale (Medi 1) bilingual radio (Arabic and French); broadcasts to the Greater Maghreb region (Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia)
Radio Sawa, station funded by the US government; broadcasts in Arabic
Le Journal de Tanger, Tangier's local weekly newspaper

Imperial Excursion: Meknes, Fes, Marrakech, and Beyond
A six-day excursion will take students through the imperial cities of Meknes and Fes before going southeast to Errachidia, Rissani, and Merzouga. Students will also spend time in Ouerzazate, the High Atlas Mountains, and Marrakech. Students will visit NGOs and local associations and learn about the everyday challenges individuals face in the outer regions of Morocco. The excursion will give students an excellent opportunity to develop new entries in their field notebook and identify potential stories for the Independent Study. Highlights of the imperial excursion include the chance to experience the Moroccan desert.

Rural Morocco
Students will have the chance to compare and contrast rural versus urban lifestyles while spending a week in a rural village. During this period, students might become interested in stories, such as girls’ education, dreams of migration, the importance of water, and needs related to key infrastructure, such as hospitals and markets.