2026 - Fall

Specialized Reporting: Reporting on Race and Immigration

Course Number: JOUR-GA 1182.025

Day & Time: Mon | 3:30pm-7:30pm

Location: 20 Cooper Square, Room 657

“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!

Those are the famous words worn on the Statue of Liberty. Today, they appear to be antithetical to the American values that shape many American views on immigration. This has turned immigration into one of the most debated intersectional issues in the American landscape, touching on civil rights, the economy, employment needs, race, and education. In this class, we will explore the issues of race and immigration through reporting assignments following the actions of ICE, the lives of immigrants and the emergence of Queens as the nation’s urban immigration capital. How does race and the “Browning of America” influence this issue? That question will be central to the exploration of the issue. This is a multimedia course which will allow students to report in various media forms. Students will visit neighborhoods and schools with large immigrant populations as well immigration courts. The course will be taught by Axel Turcios, an Emmy-winning bilingual reporter for NBC 4 New York and Telemundo 47. He has extensive experience covering immigration around the nation, including New York, Florida, and Las Vegas.”