January 25, 2023

Top stories

■ ‘Within a day, 22 Post employees signed up for the Guild ... 75 percent of the newsroom’s eligible employees are now members, the highest percentage in decades.’ (Paul Kane) / ‘We’ll continue to hold the company accountable and fight these seemingly arbitrary terminations in every way we can — including helping our colleagues find other jobs within the newsroom and securing the severance packages they deserve.’ (Washington Post Guild) / ICYMI: About one-in-six U.S. journalists at news outlets are part of a union; many more would join one if they could (Pew Research Center)


■ The first newspaper strike of the digital age stretches into a new year (Nieman Journalism Lab) 


■ Rupert Murdoch backtracks on plan to merge Fox and News Corp (New York Times) 


■ DirecTV drops Newsmax Channel in dispute over fees (Bloomberg) / The RNC wants its 2024 candidates out of the bubble (Semafor) 


■ NPR and New York Times ask judge to unseal documents in Fox defamation case (NPR)


■ Ex-Fox News employee Laura Luhn sues network over Roger Ailes' sexual harassment and blackmail (Hollywood Reporter)


■ Guardian US announces Margaret Sullivan as new weekly columnist (The Guardian) / ‘This makes it official. I promise to take no prisoners.’ (Margaret Sullivan)


■ News crisis: Can local public radio help fill the news gap created by the decline of local newspapers? (Shorenstein Center) / Northern Va. lawmaker suggests tax credits to incentivize local journalism (WTOP News) 


■ Asian American journalists reflect on mass shootings (WBUR) / Stress and strain suffered by journalists comes under the spotlight (EU Reporter) / You can’t ignore mental health at work. (Workweek)


■ Archives weighs asking past presidents, VPs to look for classified items (Washington Post) / Congressman wants a tracking system for US classified documents (Scripps News)


■ CNET corrected most of its AI-written articles (Engadget via Yahoo News)


■ Super Bowl streak comes to an end for Jerry Green, 94 and longtime Detroit sports journalist (CBS Detroit)


■ Congressman George Santos ‘surprises’ journalists with coffee, doughnuts outside Washington, D.C. office (CBS New York) / ‘George Santos has now brought Chick Fil A for everyone staking out his office’ (Caitlin Huey-Burns)


Press Freedom 


■ Judge denies RJ request for sanctions against Metro over search of slain reporter's phone (Las Vegas Review-Journal)


■ Citizen journalist’s lawsuit heard by federal appeals court (Associated Press via ABC 8News WRIC)


■ Reporters Shield: New program launches to help investigative reporters tackle lawsuits (Global Investigative Journalism Network)


■ Censorship, arrests, power cuts. India scrambles to block BBC documentary (Washington Post)

Hate in the Headlines: Journalism and the challenge of extremism

As extremism has increasingly penetrated mainstream politics, journalists, especially political reporters, face new challenges.


Some news organizations have dramatically reframed coverage and created new beats to track the surge in extremism, but fundamental changes are still needed if audiences are to get a full and accurate view of how anti-democratic forces are infusing civic life, from local school board meetings to nationwide elections.


A recent report published by PEN America, Hate in the Headlines, found that without hypervigilance from journalists and editors, propaganda and disinformation can slide into reporters’ stories, especially as extremists deliberately target them to convey their messages to the broader public. But the report also identified lessons learned as journalists have reckoned with this shifting political landscape, and from reporters who have long covered extremism.


Join PEN America and the National Press Club Journalism Institute on Tuesday, Jan. 31 at 1:30 p.m. ET for a virtual discussion of how the mainstreaming of political extremism is affecting journalism, and how journalists and newsrooms are–or could be–shifting their practices in response.

Register now

Speakers include:



More speakers to be announced soon.

Applying for a journalism job? Try this.


"The world of journalism in general is small. ... Figure out if you know someone who may work [where you applied]. Have someone vouch for you if you're going for a position. That's something that can really help. If you're applying for something, just get someone to send an email or a text: ‘Hey, so-and-so is applying for this. I used to work with them. They're great. Check them out.' That can make a big difference for the hiring manager and also just getting your application up higher in a pile.”


-- Priska Neely, managing editor, Gulf States Newsroom, from NPCJI career workshop on what hiring managers want you to know

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This newsletter is written & edited by the National Press Club Journalism Institute staff: Beth Francesco and Holly Butcher Grant. 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.