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The article discusses journalism education affected by the increased information scope, media convergence and introduction of new online teaching forms and face-to-screen communication during the coronavirus pandemic. Since the introduction of distance learning at universities, the quality of teaching and learning has been debated by students, teaching staff and officials. By having to overcome the difficulties, the students majoring in Journalism develop a necessary skill of gathering information and issuing school newspapers, radio and TV programs in the new informational reality of the crisis. The study included a survey aimed at finding out how students and faculty assess effectiveness of distance learning in COVID-19 context. Using a method of case study to make a complex analysis, the authors examine the academic process at the RUDN’s Department of Mass Communications as empirical object. The survey results reveal the key problems the respondents had to face when organizing and participating in the online learning process. The survey also helped to indicate the most convenient applications for online lecturing and the most effective teaching techniques, and to analyze the performance of the university’s internal telecommunication learning and information system.

The current study facilitates an evidence-based discussion on teaching during the period of an abrupt shift to virtual classrooms caused by coronavirus spread. There has been a massive investment to bring technology to universities; however, there are some significant gaps that must be addressed. The first is the availability of university online platforms and the second is the digitalization of the curriculum combined with teachers’ confusion and anxiety around the ability to adjust to the new digital environment. The study is aimed to research the current situation at two Russian universities: RUDN (People’s Friendship University of Russia) and PNRPU (Perm National Research Polytechnic University) and describe what changes have been implemented into teaching by the university administration and professors. The research questions include two groups: 1) Learning management system (LMS): Did the university offer a teaching platform to be used by all teachers? Or was it an individual choice of every teacher? 2) Curriculum: Did teachers have to modify the content of their course? In what way? Our study contributes several meaningful findings regarding understanding the advantages, disadvantages, and challenges in changing the education landscape.

The article examines the problems connected with the influence of new computer-based technologies on mass media production process; restructuring of editorial boards and publishing process in connection with convergence and multimediatisation. The paper analyses present forms of mass media consumption and the emergence of the concept of a media platform involving different formats of mass media' presentation of information that meet the needs of the audience. The article examines the editorial boards restructuring aimed at professional roles devolution, rather than the increase of personnel. The traditional mass media that have moved toward convergence rearrange their work in accordance with multimedia principles. Besides, the article covers multiple examples of multimedia editorial boards that diversify forms of delivering news and create new synthetic media genres. The authors define terms related to multimediatisation. The digital transformation of media industry should involve changes in the professional education and training of journalists. That is why the Russian universities continue to improve teaching methods in the field of convergence journalism by training students as multipurpose journalists who could create content for different media and apply mobile technologies. The journalist department of the philological faculty at the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia offers such educational program.

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