University of Southern California (USC)

The University of Southern California (USC) is a private research university in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1880, it is the oldest private research university in the state. The institution is known for its Marshall School of Business, School of Cinematic Arts, and Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. USC features a large alumni network known as the "Trojan Family," which offers global professional connections. The university combines academic programs with competitive Division I athletics. It serves as a major hub for research, innovation, and higher education.

Journalism degrees offered

USC offers journalism degrees through the School of Journalism, one of two academic units (alongside the School of Communication) within the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism.

• Journalism (BA): Undergraduate major in which students report, write and produce news stories across platforms under journalistic and ethical standards. The degree was introduced while Willow Bay was director of the School of Journalism (2014–2017).

• Public Relations and Advertising (BA): Undergraduate major in the School of Journalism covering brand messaging, content strategy and social media campaigns on behalf of a person, brand or organization.

• Journalism (MS): An 11-month program in cross-platform reporting, production, coding and publishing, first offered in 2014. Graduating classes number about 35 students.

• Specialized Journalism (MA): Students choose a storytelling medium (text, audio, documentary video or augmented reality) and develop a specialized area of coverage.

• Specialized Journalism (Arts and Culture) (MA): Focused on arts or food reporting and criticism, with coursework drawn from USC Annenberg and USC’s six arts schools.

• Public Relations and Advertising (MA): Graduate degree in the School of Journalism covering strategy, audience insights and multiplatform content for public relations and advertising.

• Journalism/PR minors: The School of Journalism houses minors in Advertising; Food Journalism and Public Relations; Latinx News Media; News Media and Society; Podcasting; Public Relations; and Sports Media Industries.

• Communication (PhD): USC Annenberg’s interdisciplinary doctorate in humanistic and behavioral approaches to communication. It is housed in the School of Communication, not the School of Journalism.

Programs and emphasis

• USC Annenberg Media Center / Annenberg Media: A newsroom, classroom and incubator in Wallis Annenberg Hall, home to the student-led news outlet Annenberg Media. Students produce work for web, broadcast, podcast and social platforms, including stories in Spanish and Mandarin, as volunteers or as part of coursework, guided by faculty advisors.

• Daily Trojan: Student-run newspaper that published its first issue on Sept. 16, 1912, as The Daily Southern Californian, and describes itself as USC’s only independent student newspaper. As reported by the paper in September 2025, university budget cuts ended its daily print run; it now prints three times a week and is unable to pay staff.

• KXSC Radio: Student-run radio station founded in 1975 as KSCR and renamed KXSC in 2010; its programming is primarily music-focused rather than news-focused.

History

Journalism instruction at USC began in 1916. In 1933 the program became the School of Journalism within the USC College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, and public relations studies began within the school in 1959.

The USC Annenberg School for Communication was founded in 1971; in 1972, Walter H. Annenberg supported it with an $8 million gift that included funding for a new building. In 1994 the Annenberg School was reorganized to include the School of Journalism and the Department of Communication Arts, both previously housed in the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. In 2009 the USC Board of Trustees voted to rename it the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. Wallis Annenberg Hall, which houses the Media Center, opened in 2014 following a gift from Wallis Annenberg.

Key faculty and leadership

Willow Bay: Dean, USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism (since July 2017; director of the School of Journalism, 2014–2017).
Gordon Stables: Director of Schools; Clinical Professor of Communication.

Location and contact info

USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
3502 Watt Way
Los Angeles, CA 90089-0281

School of Journalism
3630 Watt Way, Suite 303
Los Angeles, CA 90089
Phone: (213) 740-3914

Website. https://www.usc.edu/