One of the problems of teaching journalism in the classroom is replicating the environment of news production which requires journalists to process information from a range of sources under the discipline of strict deadlines. This case study describes a model for teaching journalism students to respond to these pressures by creating a dynamic learning environment that simulates the task performed by journalists reporting on a breaking story. Students are presented with a range of documents and materials (videotape footage email messages telephone messages and photographs) that all relate to a newsworthy incident (a political assassination). This information is introduced into the learning environment at pre-determined intervals. The task of the students is to write a news story about the incident that keeps up to date with the arrival of new information and is completed according to a strict time limit.
