Clad in riot gear, police officers on horseback sent tear gas wafting through the streets and fired rubber bullets into a line of marchers, pinging off buildings, cars and flesh. As I watched this all unfold, I marveled at how any journalist who looks like I do could walk among our people, protesting the murder
This week, demonstrations broke out in dozens of cities across America in response to a painful legacy of police violence against African Americans in the U.S. Against the backdrop of a global pandemic which has disproportionately affected communities of color, the inequities and divisions that our country faces feel starker than ever. At The GroundTruth
Report for America was created to help save local news. It was launched long before COVID-19, yet the signs of local journalism’s collapse were quite evident even in 2014. The pandemic has accelerated the decline and created an imminent crisis. Even before COVID-19, local newspapers had lost more than half their jobs since 2008—about the
Report for America is pleased to welcome five new corps excellence regional managers to its staff: Jason Blakeney, Sergio R. Bustos, Pam Fine, Teri Hayt and Robert Naylor—combined, they bring more than a century of award-winning journalism experience to their new roles. The group includes former leaders of professional organizations like the News Leaders Association
Camille von Kaenel is a 2019-20 Report for America corps member, covering wildfire recovery for the Chico-Enterprise Record in Northern California, focusing on a region that was devastated by 2018’s deadly Camp Fire. As of June 2020, she is covering growth and development in San Diego County’s backcountry for inewssource. “I wish I knew that
When Report for America announced the selection of 225 journalists for its 2020-21 reporting corps recently, it shared welcomed news for those calling on newsrooms to better reflect the diversity of the communities they serve: 42 percent of this year’s corps are persons of color. This stands in contrast to the reality that people of
Meet the 2020-21 corps >> Report for America today announced the selection of 225 journalists for its 2020 reporting corps. The new cohort will be placed with more than 160 local news organizations across 46 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. These reporting positions come at a time when local journalism is already reeling from
This piece ran in Columbia Journalism Review. I’m using this space to elaborate on some of the ideas. DISCUSSIONS OF HOW TO SAVE LOCAL NEWS now need to balance two awkward realities. On the one hand, local news organizations need urgent help in order to keep their doors open and provide information to residents. No, it doesn’t
Keeping these news sources afloat needs to be part of the governmental and philanthropic response to the pandemic. Reprinted from The Atlantic By Steven Waldman. and Charles Sennott Among the important steps you should take during this crisis: Wash your hands. Don’t touch your face. And buy a subscription to your local newspaper. The coronavirus
Updated March 24, 2020 The World Health Organization’s official declaration that COVID-19 is a pandemic serves as a powerful reminder for us all of how connected we are as a planet. The measures adopted in Asia and Europe inform the local response to the virus, as America starts to see an increase of cases and