Threats to environmental journalists, media literacy in 2018, and how to avoid spreading Trump’s lies
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Published in
3 min readNov 23, 2018
edited by Marco Nurra
- Jim Acosta’s hollow victory. The decision to restore Jim Acosta’s pass did not come without conditions. The White House laid out a series of briefing room rules they say journalists must obey going forward; if they do not, they risk the “suspension or revocation” of their credentials. The rules state that reporters may ask only one question before yielding the floor; that follow-up questions may only be permitted at the discretion of the White House.
- Trump’s lies are a virus, and news organizations are the host. Journalists have become complicit in spreading the president’s falsehoods and conspiracy theories. Here’s how they can do better.
- Nicaragua isn’t normal: journalists in a ‘totalitarian state’. On April 18, protestors — sparked by a pension reform widely seen as unjust and emblematic of corruption under President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo — took to the streets of every major city and town. Since then, hundreds of protesters, deemed “terrorists” by their government, have been arrested and tortured. The media, dominated by the state, has nevertheless told a story, echoed by much of the international press, of a poor Central American nation guided by a left-wing revolutionary turned business-friendly centrist, a place blissfully on its way to being a premier destination for tourists and foreign investment. That narrative, which continues to dominate Nicaragua’s airwaves, is now at striking odds with the violent reality.
- Why covering the environment is one of the most dangerous beats in journalism. One hard fact is that those who cover it are at heightened risk of murder, arrest, assault, threats, self-exile, lawsuits and harassment. In both wealthy and developing countries, journalists covering these issues find themselves in the cross-hairs. Most survive, but many undergo severe trauma, with profound effects on their careers.
- What is it like to be a young, female photojournalist in a male-dominated industry? Reuters’ photojournalist Hannah McKay talks about winning the Pulitzer Prize for reporting on the Rohingya refugee crisis and the upsides — and downsides — of being a 30-year-old female news photographer in a male-dominated industry.
- Wikipedia’s co-founder wanted to let readers edit the news… Almost a year ago, crowdsourced news site WikiTribune launched with much fanfare. But earlier this month, it hit a roadblock and laid off its entire team of about a dozen professional journalists. Mathew Ingram speaks to Jimmy Wales on what went wrong.
- BuzzFeed’s big dea? A merger with rivals. Jonah Peretti, the chief executive, says BuzzFeed could eventually merge with other online publishers in order to negotiate better terms with tech platforms like Facebook.
- Is it finally time for media companies to adopt a common publishing platform? Media companies are each independently trying to solve the same technical problems, rather than focusing on competing with Facebook.
- Here’s a roundup of the most interesting new digital and social media research published this autumn, including research into how Twitter impacts reporters’ news judgment, how often we remember where we read something, and why Facebook makes you feel bad.
- Media literacy education in 2018: holistic curriculum or fake news spotting? “While media literacy is being publicly discussed more than ever now, I’m worried the conversations being had are creating a greater misunderstanding of media literacy and media literacy education,” said Media Literacy educator Alan Berry.
- 41 must-read websites and newsletters for journalists interested in social media. Edited by Damian Radcliffe, Professor of Journalism at the University of Oregon.
- A tiered approach to researching and pitching investigative stories for freelance writers. Freelancers get paid upon publication, but investigations can take up to a year to produce, or longer. Freelance investigative reporter Samantha Sunne offers some tips in mapping investigative stories against a freelance reality.
Did you miss any #ijf18 sessions? No problem! Our video platform provides videos of all 2018 festival sessions. Plus an archive of all sessions from previous festivals back to 2013. Here you can find some recommendations.