Translation, support for ethnic media, training and legal resources highlight 2020 election support in New Jersey

The 2020 U.S. elections came at a time of deep partisan divide amid a global pandemic and a painful national reckoning with racism.

Misinformation and disinformation coursed through social media platforms. The stakes could not have been higher. The pandemic dramatically changed the way politicians campaigned and how people voted, adding more stress to an already chaotic-feeling time.

News organizations around the country focused much more attention on the voting process in 2020, as mail-in ballots became commonplace in many states. In New Jersey, it was the first time that every registered voter was sent a mail-in ballot. While coverage of down-ballot races and ballot questions were important to statewide and local news organizations, the presidential election overshadowed many other things. Security was a big concern, as well — the security of the election itself, and security for journalists who would be covering it.

In seeking to support our news partners across New Jersey, the Center for Cooperative Media at Montclair State University put early emphasis on helping news organizations understand and explain the voting process. Additional training was offered, and incentives were provided to ethnic media and mainstream media to promote collaboration. Then in late fall, content sharing was added to the mix with the launch of Votebeat.

Among the initiatives that the Center spearheaded were:

• An arrangement with NJ Spotlight News to make its statewide “How to vote in New Jersey” story and video about mail-in ballots available for republication; social graphics about the voting process were also created and shared with NJ News Commons members.
• Translation of the NJ Spotlight News “How to vote in New Jersey” piece from English into an additional 10 languages; the article was then published by 10 ethnic media outlets.
• Creation of a pop-up newsletter to share content produced by Votebeat with NJ News Commons members for republication.
• Fellowships with five ethnic and community media reporters to allow them to do additional election-related reporting.
• Telebriefings and training webinars, including one about disaster planning with Election SOS.
• The provision of legal help on and after Election Day for journalists facing legal issues regarding reporting at polling stations or covering protests or celebrations.

The Center’s translation initiative resulted in a collaborative reporting project with Reporte Hispano and NJ.com. Two in-depth stories, focusing on the Latinx community in the state, were produced and written in Spanish and English and simultaneously published in The Star-Ledger and Reporte Hispano.

Additionally, a total of 12 NorthJersey.com election-related stories, videos and social graphics were translated into Korean, and all of the stories were published in The Korea Daily.

To read the Center’s full report about Election 2020 work, click here to access and download the PDF.

Stefanie Murray is the director of the Center for Cooperative Media at Montclair State University. Contact her at murrayst@montclair.edu.

About the Center for Cooperative Media: The Center is a grant-funded program of the School of Communication and Media at Montclair State University. Its mission is to grow and strengthen local journalism, and in doing so serve New Jersey residents. The Center is supported with funding from Montclair State University, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Democracy Fund, the New Jersey Local News Lab (a partnership of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Democracy Fund, and Community Foundation of New Jersey), and the Abrams Foundation. For more information, visit CenterforCooperativeMedia.org.