The Latest: Media identity crisis; What’s next for the PRESS Act?; The Fox-to-Trump pipeline

Over the past week, journalists across the country have worked long shifts to cover the election results while grappling with what their profession might look like under a second Trump administration — one that poses a real threat to fact-based journalism, according to several press freedom groups.

To learn more about how journalists are experiencing this moment, the Institute reached out to Vox Senior Politics Reporter Christian Paz to ask about what concerns he has for the next four years and how he’s handled working at such a fast pace.

What questions are you grappling with as it relates to the journalism industry following Donald Trump’s re-election?

Paz: I'm concerned that we won't see the same kind of pro-journalism tilt from the electorate that we saw in the wake of the last Trump presidency. I'm worried about the economics of journalism.

I'm not even as worried about my own fatigue and exhaustion — I think I will rally and bounce back. I'm not even at the point of thinking about what D.C. itself will feel like under a second Trump presidency. I do have to admit, I'll have to consider if I should stay within the city or move over the city lines, though.

How are you coping with the stress of this moment? What is keeping you going this week?

Paz: Honestly, I'm personally doing okay. I’m just so tired. I love data and try to integrate it into all of my work. So going through counties, crunching numbers, trying to see trends if there are any — it's that curiosity that's keeping me going this week.

Talking about the election results on podcasts and radio has also been a great way to process what I'm seeing, almost in real time. I've been covering these trends for a while and get to do, not exactly a victory lap, but a, "Look over here — we were explaining a lot of what was happening with young voters and voters of color for the last year at least."

Are there any resources you'd recommend for working journalists to support their work or health right now?

Paz: I do think it's important to take care of our physical health. I don't know how much sleep I've been getting, but it's not enough. I know I haven't been eating normally, for sure.

But I think it's going to be so important to lean on both our peers in the industry and also on our non-journalist friends. I've always been worried about living in a bubble. Perhaps one way to deal with mental health and stress is to build community outside of politics and journalism.

How are you or your newsroom adjusting to cover post-election issues within your community? Let us know at institute@press.org to share your practices and advice with The Latest readers.

Why the end of ‘paying your dues’ is long overdue

“Local reporting has long been the off-off-Broadway of journalism — a staging ground for young talent to establish a beat and gather experience as the first act of a career in the field. Chat with Boomer-era journalists about their beginnings, and they'll likely reminisce about their time in small newsrooms, recalling long hours and stale coffee — a romantic recasting of a period that was really about plotting an escape to greener, higher-profile pastures. But employing young people under the guise of setting them up for a bigger future in journalism elsewhere is outdated . I'm now on my third editor this year; each before him/her was on the sunny side of 25 — burnt out and underpaid.”

-- Lynn Hallarman , journalist and former director of palliative care at Stony Brook University, excerpt from “Why I became a local reporter at the age of 60 ” (Boston Globe)

The case for a ‘groceries’ vertical in local news

“What if local news organizations around the country made it part of their mission to help readers compare grocery prices around town? … Local news outlets cannot change grocery prices. But they can help their readers deal with them — and, in doing so, perhaps increase their readership and draw in people who never would have read them otherwise. Not everybody reads news, but everybody needs to eat.”

-- Laura Hazard Owen , editor of Nieman Journalism Lab, excerpt from "People care about grocery prices a lot. Local news should seize the opportunity." (Nieman Journalism Lab)

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This newsletter is written & edited by the National Press Club Journalism Institute staff: Beth Francesco, Holly Butcher Grant, Elliot C. Williams, and Mitch Harle. Send us your questions and suggestions for topics to cover.

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The National Press Club Journalism Institute promotes an engaged global citizenry through an independent and free press, and equips journalists with skills and standards to inform the public in ways that inspire a more representative democracy. As the non-profit affiliate of the National Press Club, the Institute powers journalism in the public interest. The Institute's tax ID number is 52-1750908.