If confrontations at Donald Trump rallies are any indication, the Republican National Convention in July may see some of the most exciting – and potentially violent – street protests in recent years, and reporters are being schooled on how to ride out the chaos.

It's not cheap, but a group that usually prepares journalists and nonprofit workers for problems in sub-Saharan Africa or conflict zones in Syria and Afghanistan is finding convention concerns great enough for news outlets to justify special training.

A two-day course from Global Journalist Security scheduled for early May will feature realistic simulations with “protesters” and “party militants" and already has signed up reporters from a major news wire and a prominent new media company, organizers say.

With a price tag of $1,195, the convention training likely is beyond the reach of most student journalists, rent-overdue freelancers and people with their own low-traffic blogs. But it could help well-financed outfits avoid legal and medical costs, and spare PR departments from having to defend employee behavior.

Frank Smyth, a press freedom advocate who founded the organization in 2011, worked more than a decade at the Committee to Protect Journalists and says reporters risk a variety of threats, be it a punch in the face or an arguably unjustified arrest.

“If Mr. Trump doesn’t get the delegates it’s going to be intense, and there are also going to be protesters outside the convention of all kinds,” Smyth says.

American political conventions routinely are magnets for activists, and the Cleveland event has an added question mark not only from a possibly contested nomination, but with Trump's campaign-trail rhetoric rountinely inspiring protests and scuffles.

Smyth says he grew particularly alarmed this year as Trump consistently attacked cameramen for not showing crowds at mega-rallies. The GOP front-runner, who often calls reporters "the most dishonest people," has warned that his own supporters may riot if he is denied the nomination.

Training for journalists will cover basic first aid, self-defense and a lesson on reporters' rights, and will emphasize practical tips for dealing with police and escaping confrontations, ideally with equipment intact and detention avoided.

Frank Smyth is pictured with riot shields used for realistic training simulations. Courtesy Photo

“You may have a right to be there, but your demeanor may dictate whether you’re getting arrested,” Smyth says.

Smyth’s group is staffed with former military personnel and employs professional actors and reserve police for simulations. It specializes in teaching first-world professionals to respond to machine gun fire, kidnapping attempts and demands for bribes. Training on decision-making under stress often wins positive reviews, he says.

The convention course is a modified version of the group's civil unrest training and intends to be equally applicable to the Democratic convention in Philadelphia.

Unlike the nation’s capital, where police generally avoid confrontation with activists, allowing impromptu marches down city streets and, recently, a large marijuana-smoke-out at the White House, most U.S. cities – including Cleveland – enforce requirements for permits to protest.

Cleveland recently took steps to soften its protest rules and refined mass arrest guidelines, requiring a timestamp sticker and prompt processing, but apparently anticipating problematic arrests and lawsuits, authorities are investing $1.5 million in a "protest insurance" policy.

Though cable TV programs mostly focus on events within convention halls, on the streets outside there's generally intense boundary-testing by activists being trailed or blocked by police armed with riot gear.

Baton-swinging police made the 1968 Democratic convention the most famous modern example of convention chaos, but large-scale confrontations and mass arrests are routine.

Nearly 2,000 people were arrested at the 2004 GOP convention in New York City, and four years later in Minneapolis at least 19 journalists – including two from The Associated Press – were arrested covering a single protest. Days earlier, police arrested an AP photographer and three journalists from Democracy Now!, who later won a lawsuit settlement.

Since 2000, anti-war protests have been a major draw, but with Trump’s potential nomination, activists incensed with proposals to deport illegal immigrants and temporarily ban Muslim immigration may outnumber peace advocates.