The first international week of the Ringier School of Journalism starts today, Monday, in Zofingen, Switzerland. Twelve young journalists from six countries are taking part: Serbia, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, Ghana and Nigeria. They all work for Ringier publications.

During the week, they will visit the Federal Palace in Berne, the Ringier Pressehaus in Zurich and attend numerous courses at the Ringier School of Journalism in Zofingen. 

“Spiegel” editor Christoph Winterbach will introduce the media professionals to the editorial use of artificial intelligence. Freelance journalist Karin A. Wenger will talk about how she prepares and produces reports abroad. The principal of the Ringier School of Journalism, Peter Hossli, will give an interview course and tips on how to develop journalistic ideas.

The current class of the Ringier School of Journalism spends a day with the international journalists. Together they attend courses on storytelling in social media, various audio formats and the newsletter as an up-and-coming journalistic format.

Nina Siegrist, Head Editorial Ringier Global Media Unit, talks about “user needs” – how editorial teams should meet the needs of their customers. Chief Content Officer Steffi Buchli explains how she is preparing the editorial team at Ringier Media Switzerland for the digital present. Head of Growth Management Laura Crimmons explains how to attract new audiences and retain their loyalty. Finally, Petra Ehmann, Chief Innovation Officer of Ringier AG, will discuss innovation in the media industry. 

Before their return flight, Ringier CEO Marc Walder will welcome the international journalists – and talk about journalism with Peter Hossli.

With the International School of Journalism, which is an internal cooperation project between the Ringier School of Journalism and the Ringier Global Media Unit, Ringier is underlining the importance of journalism for the group. Principal Hossli hopes that the international school week will lead to “a fruitful exchange between different journalistic cultures”. After all, journalism is “universally important”.

Nina Siegrist emphasizes: “Ringier promotes young, talented journalists – and this can intensify the cooperation between the various editorial teams of the Group.

Edina Juhász from Hungary is taking part in the school week. She works as an editor for the Hungarian edition of “Glamour”. She used to be a technology journalist. “I hope to learn in Switzerland how traditional journalism can survive despite disinformation and artificial intelligence.” 

Ghanaian Kwame Boakye is editor-in-chief of Pulse Ghana. In Switzerland, he wants to find out “how artificial intelligence affects the way we tell stories.”

Romanian Alexandra Șerban has been working for the newspaper “Libertatea” since 2021. “I studied history but never had any formal journalistic training, so now I want to learn everything about journalism in Zofingen.” She has come to the right place. The Ringier School of Journalism was established in Zofingen in 1974 – and has been nurturing journalistic talent ever since. The current class will graduate in the summer of 2024. Next fall, the school will celebrate its 50th anniversary.

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