First, a little housekeeping: This will be the final newsletter of this week. We will return next Monday, Dec. 2. With that, let me wish you:
Happy Thanksgiving!
Ever since I started this newsletter in 2019, I’ve had a tradition of asking many of my Poynter colleagues to share what they’re thankful for at this time of year.
Almost always, my co-workers are eager and quick to share their thoughts. This year, however, I must admit that there was a different vibe, a more somber feeling.
It has been a rough year and, in particular, a very tough past few months. There was a contentious election, followed by an equally contentious postelection. Journalism is under attack by the former and soon-to-be-again president of the United States. The country is divided. The news industry continues to fight strong headwinds.
In moments like these, it can be difficult to find things to be thankful for. Initially, many of my colleagues said something along the lines of, “I am having a hard time thinking of something.”
But true to the optimistic spirit in most of us, my co-workers rallied and offered some wonderful things to be thankful about as we enter the holiday season. In some ways, perhaps these hard times make us even more appreciative of the positive things in our lives.
So, here’s what we’re thankful for in media in 2024.
The persistence of print
Ren LaForme, Poynter managing editor
My 2-year-old is a quintessential Generation Alpha kid. His favorite musician is an energetic YouTuber named Danny Go. He knows just where to tap on a phone screen to skip ads. He may have appeared on more video calls in his short life than I have in my much longer one.
Yet, once a month, courtesy of his nana and papa, he receives what feels like a relic in the mail: a print edition of Highlights magazine. He often won’t put it down for days.
The hidden pictures centerfold is his favorite (why is it so difficult?), but he also enjoys the short stories, vibrant images, and notes from other kiddos who subscribe.
And don’t get me started on the toy catalogs he’s been getting lately. The page with the build-your-own marble run kit is so worn that my wife had to tape it to a piece of printer paper to reinforce its structural integrity.
My point is one that’s been made before: Print isn’t dead. It’s just not what it used to be. As screens proliferate in every corner of life (will someone shut up the gas pumps, please?!), I’m thankful for a few quiet moments with my little boy who’s growing up too fast — moments gifted to me through the persistence of print.
Local reporters nationwide
Amy Sherman, PolitiFact senior correspondent
I am thankful for local reporters nationwide. The Springfield News-Sun’s coverage of its Haitian immigrant community helped us understand the community so we could fact-check claims about immigration. Our partners at WRAL in Raleigh, North Carolina, helped us fact-check claims about the hurricane. Articles by Lancaster Online in Pennsylvania provided frequent updates that we used to fact-check claims about an investigation into voter registration applications. Every year, I have contacted local reporters whom I had never met to ask a question about a news development in their community, and usually these were reporters I had never met before. They are invaluable resources and know their communities better than I ever can from afar.
Student journalism that holds the powerful accountable
Kelly McBride, Poynter senior vice president and ethics chair
It gives me hope to see so much excellent student journalism holding the powerful accountable. Reporters at the Independent Florida Alligator broke exclusive after exclusive about former UF president Ben Sasse, including stories that documented how he tripled spending over his predecessor, hired his former Senate staff and colleagues as remote employees and was pushed out of his job. The work prompted Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to call for an investigation.
Just this month, the journalists at the Alligator documented several student allegations of unwanted sexual advances coming from the men’s basketball head coach.
Great investigations happen at colleges all over the place. Students at City University of New York did a deep dive into shady funeral home practices. The Stanford Daily exposed research misconduct, leading their president to resign.
I find it deeply reassuring that every year, student journalists dig up stories that expose abuses of power.
The persistence of local news
Kristen Hare, director of craft and local news
This year, while there are certainly things to be thankful for in local news, I found it tough to feel that for some of the local news I really value after a round of buyouts from the Tampa Bay Times, which Poynter owns. With those buyouts, the community I live in lost both institutional knowledge and coverage I really valued that doesn’t exist elsewhere. But then those talented folks reminded me again and again through their work why they still belong in my thankful category (and in my “journalism I’m willing to pay for” category). Beginning with Hurricane Helene and through Hurricane Milton, their work asked tough questions and captured a shared experience. I was grateful a few weeks later for their voter guide, which helped me sift through a lot of noise and head to the polls feeling informed. And when I saw that reporting from former Times reporter Olivia George led to the righting of a wrong, I knew I wasn’t the only one in my community grateful for local journalists.
News organizations trying to reach people where they are on social media
Ellen Hine, PolitiFact senior audience engagement producer
I’m thankful for news organizations trying to reach people where they are on social media, especially in ways that break the mold of “traditional” journalism. Humor and creative storytelling can be a powerful tool to help our audiences understand complex news topics. This year, I completely fell in love with Morning Brew’s approach to TikTok and YouTube. Their bitingly funny videos helped me understand financial news as someone who doesn’t follow it closely while also keeping me entertained and engaged. (And it was a relief to find out that no one can really explain what a consultant does.)
Co-workers and editors at PolitiFact
Maria Briceño, PolitiFact reporter/staff writer
I am thankful for my co-workers and editors at PolitiFact who not only supported me and encouraged me to do my best, but who also believed in me to fact-check important topics during this election cycle. I am very grateful to have covered my first election with a team that gave me many wonderful tips and had so much patience as I learned the ropes of being an election reporter. I am also thankful for our audience who followed our fact checks and kept asking us insightful questions.
A colleague who knows his stuff about AI
Jennifer Orsi, vice president, publishing and local news initiatives
Well, a little sheepishly because I’m promoting a Poynter colleague, I’ll say I’m thankful this year for MediaWise director and Poynter faculty member Alex Mahadevan. I feel like Alex has been my personal guide to understanding and processing the world of artificial intelligence, especially its use and effects on the news industry. Just about every time I hear of some new development or tool, Alex is posting about it on social media to explain it, or writing a piece for our website Poynter.org to help me understand it.
He’s told me about ChatGPT’s attempt at competing with Google on search, about a reporting scandal involving AI-fabricated quotes, even about what the dustup over the edited Princess Kate photo said about election misinformation. Alex was a driving force behind Poynter’s June Summit on AI, Ethics and Journalism and produced a report filled with audience research, AI product experimentation and ethical guidelines surrounding AI.
AI aside, Alex tracks misinformation trends online and runs MediaWise, which promotes media literacy to people of all ages, though I’m partial to the work it does with teen fact-checkers. He makes me smarter, and I appreciate it.
Friends and colleagues in the business
Nicole Slaughter Graham, newsletter and social media specialist to the NPR Public Editor and contributor to Poynter
As a journalist, I’m thankful for friends and colleagues in the business. For over a decade, I made my career as a freelance journalist, and while it came with many rewards, it was largely a solitary endeavor. My role at Poynter, however, has transformed my experience as a journalist, mostly because of the community and knowledge I’m now surrounded by as a team member. I am working with colleagues who love the profession as much as I do, even when it’s difficult, and it’s been a much-welcomed camaraderie. I am also thankful for friends in the industry — the ones who have been by my side through all of the career ups, downs, shifts and changes — who have commiserated, trudged, triumphed and celebrated with me and allowed me to do the same with them.
As a journalism consumer, I’m thankful for this story by Tampa Bay Times reporter Christopher Spata, which put into words everything I’d been feeling this hurricane season as a fourth-generation Floridian. I’m also grateful for the in-depth reporting on NPR’s “Throughline” podcast and the way Vox’s Sean Illing dives into complicated topics with an open-minded curiosity on “The Gray Area.”
The journalists working to make sense of Donald Trump
Rick Edmonds, Poynter media business analyst and opinion columnist
Despite another discouraging year, I’m thankful for those journalists and their employers who stick with it and try again. Nope, I’m not talking about my main area of focus, the financial crisis of the news industry. But rather those marking a decade of trying to make sense of Donald Trump and Trumpism. I have sympathy, without fully agreeing, both with those advocating day-after-day resistance and the opposite perspective of covering the traditional nuts and bolts of a new administration. Go ahead, call that normalizing. Most of all, I want to see deeper and broader reporting on what attracts MAGA voters — the 77 million Americans who backed the Republican ticket. Reporting on the 2024 campaign seemed to be getting closer to making sense of their views. I still don’t get it, though.
Teammates at PolitiFact
Matthew Crowley, PolitiFact copy chief
I’m thankful for my PolitiFact teammates. 2024 was a sprint from the New Hampshire primary in January through the summer conventions, two debates and the election homestretch. We did live blogs, analyzed dozens of recorded speeches, kept our eyes on state congressional races and worked weekends from September through Nov. 5. And even when we were tired, we dug deep and shined, producing top-quality dailies and enterprise stories we could all celebrate. We rose individually; we rose together. We had an effect beyond our channels, as PBS, Al Jazeera and a host of regional partners shared our work.
Newsy TikTok influencers
TyLisa C. Johnson, Poynter audience engagement producer
I’m grateful for newsy TikTok influencers who are using their platforms to keep us informed in engaging, creative and accessible ways. They offer such a fresh perspective and style, and many of them have contributed to transforming how we consume news. These influencers have become vital in bridging news gaps for a digital-first generation and I’m grateful to see them giving diverse options for audiences to receive their news.
I’m also thankful to have joined Poynter, an organization that truly lives its mission of promoting excellence in journalism. The opportunity to work alongside such dedicated professionals has been deeply inspiring, and I’m grateful for the chance to contribute to an institution that prioritizes ethics, integrity, learning, and the future of the media industry.
Everyone working to elevate factual, well-sourced information
Angie Drobnic Holan, director, International Fact-Checking Network
I’m grateful for everyone working to elevate factual, well-sourced information that helps people make good decisions in their daily lives. That includes fact-checkers who enrich public conversations by adding context and evidence to all the claims they look at. Their work embodies the essence of free speech — the right to seek, receive and share information across borders. I’m thankful for the journalists, researchers, and news organizations, especially the ones facing harassment and threats, that continue to verify claims and add to public knowledge. As AI creates new challenges for information accuracy, I’m especially grateful for those who help navigate this landscape while upholding both truth and freedom of expression as complementary rather than competing values.
The Onion’s roaring return
Alex Mahadevan, MediaWise director and Poynter faculty
In 2021, one of my favorite articles vanished from the Internet.
“Mr. Autumn Man Walking Down Street With Cup Of Coffee, Wearing Sweater Over Plaid Collared Shirt,” was the headline, with a smug white guy in the hero image. The 2012 Onion skewering of Those Dudes who emerge every October had died of link rot, a few years after the maligned G/O Media took over.
But this year, I noticed something beautiful: Mr. Autumn Man has reappeared. And The Onion is under new ownership, complete with a relaunch of its news network (featuring Joshua Johnson!) and a print product (yes, print!). And it’s on the verge of buying InfoWars (yes, that InfoWars!)
This is a dark time for our industry. But I am finding some peace in the chance to see more work from the site that brought you “Man Says ‘— It,’ Eats Lunch At 10:58 A.M.,” “CIA Realizes It’s Been Using Black Highlighters All These Years” and of course, “‘No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens.”
I’ve long been a fan of the Onion’s CEO, Ben Collins, who covered disinformation for NBC News when I started here at MediaWise. And I am thankful for whatever Global Tetrahedron does with America’s Finest News Source.
Colleagues and sources who showed grace to a tired mom
Amaris Castillo, research/writing assistant to NPR Public Editor and contributor to Poynter
I am thankful for my Poynter colleagues and sources, who have shown me tremendous grace this year. I don’t have to speak for myself when I say 2024 was incredibly stressful with hurricanes (for Florida folks), a presidential election, work deadlines, and the predictably unpredictable ups and downs of life (see: sick children). Sometimes it felt like just scheduling a phone interview was like playing Tetris. A few times I had to ask people if we could reschedule an interview because life be lifing. And, each time, they worked with me. I want to express my deep gratitude for working with an amazing group of people, and for interacting with some pretty great journalists as part of my job. Thanks for collaborating again and again with this very tired mom. I’m also grateful for my lunches with a few of my colleagues! They are bright lights during my workweek. I love a good lunch over good conversation. So, thanks for joining me for lunch.
The reporters who do the tough but meaningful work
Aaron Sharockman, executive director, PolitiFact, and vice president for sales and strategic partnerships, Poynter
Here in Tampa Bay, there’s been an ongoing, protracted discussion about building a new baseball stadium for the Tampa Bay Rays. Think I’m exaggerating?
I broke the story about the original plan for a new ballpark in — not a typo — 2007, as a city government reporter for the Tampa Bay Times.
Seventeen years later, the governments here are still arguing about it. The price tag has more than doubled since 2007, swelling to over $1 billion. And the debate is just as feverish.
I’m glad I don’t have to sit through those hourslong meetings anymore. And I am immensely thankful that journalists are there on our behalf. I followed the most recent discussion through the social feeds of Times reporter Colleen Wright.
There’s a story like that in most every city in this country. A reporter with a notepad, in a place we don’t really want to be, helping us understand issues that are surely important to us.
Those who stepped up to help fact-checkers
Loreben Tuquero, PolitiFact staff writer
I’m grateful for the organizations and experts who stepped up to provide timely responses to journalists fact-checking election misinformation. The Votebeat Expert Desk on Slack was a great resource where journalists could send out a query and get a response within minutes. This was especially useful in the days leading up to Election Day, when false and misleading claims about voting processes kept popping up on social media.
The 100th episode of the ‘This is Love’ podcast
Alanna Dvorak, international training manager, IFCN
One of the worst burdens that many of us will have to bear is that eventually, if things work out the way they are supposed to, we will have to bury our parents. While my parents are in good health — and, in fact, my mother is a 20-year cancer survivor this year — the prospect of this eventuality cripples me with anxiety.
I’ve listened to Phoebe Judge and Lauren Spohrer’s podcast “Criminal” since its inception in 2014. And while I don’t always listen to their other podcast, “This is Love,” last month they cross-posted its 100th episode: Valentine. A tribute to Phoebe Judge’s mother, who passed away from pancreatic cancer in May, the hourlong episode documents both Valentine Judge’s final months and Phoebe Judge’s efforts at navigating and coming to terms with her mother dying. While heart-wrenching, I’m grateful to the Judge family’s vulnerability and willingness to let us into such an intimate moment. I can only hope to provide such a tribute when called to do so.
‘The Bill Simmons Podcast’ and little moments of escape
Tom Jones, Poynter senior media writer and author of The Poynter Report newsletter
It’s been a stressful year, hasn’t it? Politics have divided the country like we’ve rarely, if ever, seen. Every day, it seemed, new controversies were further dividing our country. And as someone who often writes about the intersection of the media and politics, it was hard to escape the relentless news cycle.
But, I do find a necessary escape. Every Monday morning, I take between an hour and two to go on a long walk to clear my mind before attacking the week. To help me clear it, I listen to “The Bill Simmons Podcast.” It’s especially enjoyable during the NFL season when Simmons and Cousin Sal review the Sunday games, offering light yet informative analysis and lots of humor. They do imitations, they talk gambling, they talk football and more. They close each show with “Parent Corner,” telling the latest (and usually hilarious) stories about the trials and tribulations of being a parent.
It’s just what I need.
We all have our little moments of escape. Maybe it’s a podcast. Maybe it’s a Netflix series. Maybe it’s a blog or newsletter. These are the things that help us get through life’s more serious moments. And for that, I’m thankful.
More resources for journalists
- Lead With Influence is for leaders who manage big responsibilities but have no direct reports.
- Are you an up-and-coming newsroom manager?
- Encourage an outstanding colleague to apply for Leadership Academy for Women in Media.
Have feedback or a tip? Email Poynter senior media writer Tom Jones at tjones@poynter.org.
The Poynter Report is our daily media newsletter. To have it delivered to your inbox Monday-Friday, sign up here.
