It’s been a busy week here at Poynter College Programming HQ, so we’re going to get right into the news. This newsletter and its author will be off for Thanksgiving this week, so we’ll see you back online Dec. 5. I hope you and your students have a restful and happy Thanksgiving.
Straight to my Goodreads
I was thrilled to see news of this new book, “Chasing the Truth: A Young Journalist’s Guide to Investigative Reporting,” by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey. Kantor says in a Twitter thread promoting the book, “… going into journalism can be intimidating, especially for anyone who isn’t already well-connected. We want a certain kind of kid — curious, omnivorous — to feel welcome in this profession.”
I can’t help but think this would make a great gift to the aspiring young journalists in your life. Hardcover price on Amazon is $15.49.
One for your toolbox
The Global Investigative Journalism Network just had a huge conference, and one of the many excellent compilations to come out of that event is “Resilient Reporting: Tips on How to Cope with Burnout and Trauma.” It’s a super current list from the folks at the Dart Center that you can use to help your students as they continue to do good work in these challenging times.
I like your style
I’m co-teaching (read: mostly watching Dr. Earnest Perry in awe) in this semester’s cohort of Diversity Across the Curriculum. One of the students reminded us about the Conscious Style Guide in our chat. There’s a lot in there to consider and talk about in your own classes.
The research backs up the anecdotes
Here’s an interesting read about some research: “Journalism internships are an education — in precarious work” from Neiman Lab and RQ1.
College headlines
- How Tiktok and Snapchat Became the Surveillance State in the Classroom (Mel Magazine)
- Howard U. Student-Housing Protest Ends After 34 Days (Chronicle of Higher Education)
- I’m president of a college that found slave artifacts on campus. Here’s how we responded. (USA Today)
Great journalism to share with your students
- Marilyn Manson: The Monster Hiding in Plain Sight (Rolling Stone)
- Why Health-Care Workers Are Quitting In Droves (The Atlantic)
Diverse headlines
One valuable way that you can reinforce diversity, equity and inclusion in your classroom is by sharing journalism about, by and for diverse communities — not just stories that are predominantly by and about cisgender white people. Consider ways in which you could use these stories in your curriculum. Here are a few examples I saw this week. I also include headlines about DEI news and issues.
- Underdog No More, a Deaf Football Team Takes California by Storm (New York Times)
- Racial covenants, a relic of the past, are still on the books across the country (NPR)
- Wake Forest Makes Tailgates More Inclusive (Inside Higher Ed)
The Lead
In this week’s issue of The Lead, we asked student journalists to consider how they might answer ethical questions in “How to create an ethics handbook for your student newsroom — and why you should.”
Subscribe to The Lead, Poynter’s weekly newsletter for student journalists, and encourage your students to do the same.
This week’s Professor’s Press Pass
In this week’s Professor’s Press Pass, we ask students to examine the case of James O’Keefe, the founder of Project Veritas, a media organization with an unsavory reputation among ethical journalists. O’Keefe’s home was recently raided by the FBI, and more traditional journalists — many of whom are usually deeply at odds with him — came to his defense in what they claimed was potential governmental overreach. Was it? And do people who call themselves journalists but who fail to subscribe to widely held ethical standards deserve the same freedoms as “real” journalists?
One last thing
I’ve been sharing this video anywhere and everywhere I can. I hope you get a good laugh out of it, too.
Resources for journalists
- Get access to a growing library of case studies — Professor’s Press Pass
- Language, Math and News Literacy Certificate (Webinar series) Start anytime
- Midterms are coming. Subscribe to PolitiFact’s newsletter for the week’s top fact-checks of U.S. officials – and those campaigning to flip their seats. Sign up.
