December 3, 2021

Top stories

■ ‘New: @stevenportnoy says in email to White House Correspondents Association members that a "a member of Monday’s in-town pool received a positive test result for COVID-19 this morning, following mild symptoms that began on Wednesday.” The person was in the briefing room Monday.’ (Oliver Darcy) / White House Correspondents’ Association plans return of annual dinner in 2022, with all guests vaccinated (Deadline)  ■ Former Bush official Michael Smerconish to take Chris Cuomo's CNN primetime slot next week (The Wrap)  ■ Fauci criticizes Fox News for silence after pundit Lara Logan compares him to Nazi doctor (Washington Post) ■ New York Times says it's reviewing journalist who curses gun rights association in alleged voicemail: 'You f---ing a--holes’ (Fox News)  ■ Senators propose sanctions against Iran over alleged plot to kidnap US journalist (The Hill)   ■ Lee says no to Alden Global Capital's attempt to nominate directors (Poynter)  ■ Court allows Maria Ressa to go to Oslo for Nobel prize (Rappler) ■ ‘My favorite image today: New York Times reporter @jasonshorowitz gives Pope Francis a dreidel and wishes him a Happy Hanukkah in Italian.’ (Carolyn Ryan) / ‘Here it is world, the moment I gave Pope Francis a dreidel and Hanukkah gelt and suggested he play a round with the cardinals.’ (Jason Horowitz)

"One thing that I try to do if it's a community that is less familiar with the media or speaking with journalists, I try to point them to our past coverage. ... It shows them that you're not just caring about them today, you've reached out to them before, you've shown interest in them before, and you've done it in a respectful way. And often that will help ease any anxieties or nervousness because it's something tangible that they can use as a reference and say, okay this person gets it." -- Delece Smith-Barrow, education editor at POLITICO, from NPCJI panel on diversifying education stories

Managers: Raise your credibility by closing the loop Closing the loop means providing answers to requests or inquiries as quickly as possible, especially when they are communicated to you by email, text or chat. Good loop-closers take the extra step of re-titling the subject line on message threads when the conversation has shifted to another topic. And they never, ever send a message without a subject line, which leaves people guessing and makes saved messages harder to find. World class loop-closing leaders do something even more important. They think about communication from the other person’s perspective. They consider how important the issue at hand is to that individual. Might a slow reply make them feel unimportant or even disrespected? If the response is prompt and personalized, will it lift that person up? They customize replies accordingly. Read next: Here’s a simple hack to improve your communication -- Jill Geisler, Bill Plante Chair in Leadership & Media Integrity at Loyola University Chicago and Freedom Forum Fellow in Women’s Leadership Get more career advice: Read Jill's columns | Watch Manager's Minute videos

Resources Business tools for newsrooms Covering Poverty: Tips, tutorials and resources to write and report on poverty  COVID vaccine education toolkit for journalists

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. Get this from a friend? Subscribe, and view the archives.

‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

SUPPORT THE INSTITUTE 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 civic engagement. NPCJI is the nonprofit affiliate of the National Press Club. If you value this newsletter, consider supporting The Latest with a tax-deductible, recurring gift to the Institute: Even $5 a month will help fund the technology and time it takes to provide this important service.