A media business analysis: Rick Edmonds sees gains in broadcasting, weaker newspapers and digital sites.
“My version of a partial silver lining: the 22,000 professional journalists left at newspaper organizations (even after 33,000 such jobs have vanished) continue to find ways to do outstanding work,” he writes. “And will in 2019, too.”
American bias: David W. Moore explores American racism.
“It is in the realm of possibility, I think, to suggest that most of us, and maybe all of us, are afflicted to some degree with implicit bias — but the notion that we all share the same biases seems completely implausible,” he writes. There may be a dominant culture related to race, but there also are many subcultures that produce different feelings.
Conceptual scoops and wit: Essential to thinking in new ways about a familiar issue is wit, writes James Geary.
“Journalists need to be witty to bear witness to the connections others don’t see — or don’t want to see,” he writes, adding that as journalists come under attack, “we need to keep our wits about us.”:
Reporters making statements: CNN’s Jim Acosta lost press credentials after questions for Trump ended with a statement, note Al Tompkins and Kelly McBride.
“Ask tough questions, avoid making statements or arguing during a press event and report the news, don’t become the news,” they write.
Covering elections: The Reporters Committee For Freedom Of The Press offers an election legal guide.
“Generally, the First Amendment protects journalists’ right to gather news outside of polling places for the purpose of reporting on early election results,” says the exit polling guideline.
News media found more divisive than Trump: A POLITICO/Morning Consult poll compares President Trump with national news media, writes Steven Shepard.
Fifty-six percent say Trump divides the country, writes Shepard. “Even more voters, 64 percent, said the media have done more to divide the country….”
Criticizing journalists responsibly: Don’t make it personal, writes Philip Eil.
“In all cases, stick to the work, not the person,” he writes. Journalists are perfectionists. If your goal is to cause emotional pain, pointing to flaws in their work is often more upsetting than a personal attack.
It’s “a good time for a refresher for citizens on what constitutes a healthy, constructive conversation about the work we produce,” Eil writes.
How rape is covered by news media: News reflects rape culture, or local norms toward sexual assault, writes Meg Dalton.
“Rape culture is difficult to measure,” she writes, “but there are a few common characteristics like victim blaming, implying victim consent, questioning victim credibility and empathy for the alleged perpetrator.”
Medill spotlights local news collapse: As newsroom jobs disappear, writes Mark Jacob, some areas of the country are virtually uncovered by journalism and plagues all news consumers with more superficiality and mistakes.
“Which means there’s plenty to read and view, but it might not tell us very much,” he writes on the local news crisis as part of the Local News Initiative at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism.
Rage and the media: There is some merit to Trump’s claim that the media contributed to the current climate of fear and anger, writes Matt Lewis.
“Tell the truth, but in a way that is responsible,” he writes. “Eschew things that are salacious or done simply to gin up excitement. Exercise restraint and forbearance. The onus is on us to police ourselves. With great power comes great responsibility.”
Ethics AdviceLine for Journalists 