August 23, 2022

Top stories

■ People of color at 'New York Times' get lower ratings in job reviews, union says (NPR) / 'Pay attention to who is walking through your local newsroom doors. Pay more attention to who has walked out — often quietly. "Although the company workforce experienced a drop in attrition in 2020, Black/African and Latino/Hispanic colleagues [left] at elevated rates."' (Helen Ubiñas) / ‘"Being Hispanic reduced the odds of receiving a high score by about 60%, and being Black cut the chances of high scores by nearly 50%."’ (Gabe Rosenberg) / 'Around 300 members of the New York Times 1,400-person editorial union sent emails to the highest levels of the Times' management team on Monday in an effort to pressure the company over stalled contract negotiation talks, according to sources familiar with the effort and copies of emails obtained by Axios.' (Axios)  


■ Which news audiences are underserved? (Nieman Journalism Lab) 


■ U.S.' largest newspaper owner cuts Iowa staff, leaving small papers' futures in question (Iowa Public Radio) 


■ Lawmakers debut updated news competition bill modeled after Australia (Axios) / Bargaining bill for news companies still needs improvements (NewsGuild-CWA) 


■ 'Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a likely presidential candidate in 2024, scheduled a trip to Ohio Friday to stump for Senate candidate J.D. Vance, and our [Cleveland Plain Dealer] reporters were not there because of ridiculous restrictions that DeSantis and Vance placed on anyone covering the event.' (cleveland.com) / Earlier:Journalists must agree to give access to their footage to the event organizer, pro-Trump GOP youth group Turning Point USA, and explain how they intend to use it.’ (Washington Post)


■ Ron DeSantis’s ‘Top Gov.’ ad attacking the media goes viral for all the wrong reasons (Mediaite) 


■ Atlanta TV station news analyst fired for mocking Trump’s ‘looming orange face’ on air (The Wrap) 


■ YouTube hit Channel 5 News is ‘reporting for people who don’t watch the news’ (Nieman Journalism Lab) 


■ To fight election falsehoods, social media companies ready a familiar playbook (New York Times) / In new election, Big Tech uses old strategies to fight 'big lie' (Washington Post) / Register now: How psychological research can help journalists combat midterm election misinformation (NPCJI)


■ UNC student newspaper unpublishes opinion piece about studying abroad in Israel after writer’s family is threatened (The Daily Tar Heel) / Earlier: Unprepared for unpublishing? Here’s how some newsrooms are rethinking what lasts forever (Nieman Journalism Lab) / Resource: Unpublishing the News 


■ With Brian Stelter’s ‘Reliable Sources’ canceled, who’s left to keep tabs on the media? (Variety) / Brian Stelter’s departure is just the latest blow against media commentary (Dan Kennedy) / ‘Reliable Sources’ draws 769,000 viewers in final week as CNN’s top Sunday show (Deadline) 


■ How a photo of a woman yelling in a guy's ear became a viral meme (Washington Post) 


■ DNA from letter sent to local newspaper helps solve 34-year-old cold case murder (Sky News via Yahoo!)


Press freedom


■ Journalist killed in Mexico, becoming the 15th media worker to die in the country this year (AP via CBS News) 


■ ‘This month, three dozen news organizations signed a letter sent by the Reporters Committee for the Freedom of the Press to the city of Medford, urging the city to dismiss a criminal charge against reporter April Ehrlich, who was arrested while reporting on a homeless encampment sweep in a public park.’ (The Oregonian)


■ 'News Corp co-chairman Lachlan Murdoch has filed defamation proceedings against Crikey over an article naming his family as “unindicted co-conspirators” of former US president Donald Trump following the deadly 2021 US Capitol riots.' (Sydney Morning Herald)

Covering Food Insecurity: Access, hunger, and empathetic reporting about a basic need

Most people know what it is to get hungry. But persistent hunger and a lack of access to convenient and affordable healthy foods is something much more, disproportionately affecting communities already underrepresented in news coverage. Food insecurity can be difficult for journalists to cover consistently because of its seeming invisibility. 


Food deserts and insecurity throughout the U.S. are growing and have gained attention as cities have experienced higher rates of food insecurity during the coronavirus pandemic. As school-age students return to classrooms this fall, they’ll do so without the universal meal waivers that have helped struggling families through the last two years. And the May 14 mass shooting at a Tops Friendly Markets store in Buffalo, NY, brought attention to food inequities in the predominantly Black community while the store remained closed after the attack. 


These communities are in your coverage area, and reporting this deeply important, fundamental access issue is critical to finding solutions. Register today to join the National Press Club Journalism Institute at 11:30 a.m. ET on Friday, Oct. 21 for this discussion about what journalists can cover at the intersection of food access, community impact, and systemic racism. 

Register now

Participants will learn how to: 


  • Identify food deserts and food insecurity issues within your community and their root causes
  • Shift from reactive to proactive coverage
  • Consistently connect food insecurity stories to root causes in coverage
  • Cover food insecurity issues with empathy and care for individuals
  • Keep up to date with resources and tools to report on the issue


Panelists currently include: 



We hope you’ll join us for this important conversation, supported with funding from the Gannett Foundation. Please email Beth Francesco, deputy executive director for the Institute, with questions.

Manager's Minute: When your team is exhausted, how can managers lift them up?

Jill Geisler, Bill Plante Chair in Leadership & Media Integrity at Loyola University Chicago and Freedom Forum Fellow, describes the ways that managers can help their exhausted team members.

Manager's Minute: When your team is exhausted, how can managers lift them up?

Watch next: Is your team exhausted?


Get more career advice: Read Jill's columns | Watch Manager's Minute videos

Resources

This newsletter is written & edited by the National Press Club Journalism Institute staff: Beth Francesco, Holly Butcher Grant, and Julie Moos. Send us your questions and suggestions for topics to cover.

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The National Press Club Journalism Institute promotes an engaged global citizenry through an independent and free press, and equips journalists with skills and standards to inform the public in ways that inspire a more representative democracy. As the non-profit affiliate of the National Press Club, the Institute powers journalism in the public interest.