June 21, 2022

■ Behind the Associated Press' decision to appoint a democracy editor: 'This is a very crucial beat' (CNN) / He used to edit political stories at the Chicago Tribune. Now he says the press is failing our democracy. (PressThink) 

■ Peter and Steve Doocy talk journalism careers at The Hill and Fox News, family, and that time Peter became the story (The Hill) 

■ Stephen Colbert defends staffers after Capitol arrest: 'Hijinks with intent to goof' (The Hill) / Trevor Noah to host ‘The Daily Show’ from Atlanta during midterm elections (The Wrap) 

■ Washington Post's new leader, one year in: Mean tweets, internal battles, finding direction (POLITICO) / The Washington Post wants to give you a good deal on a digital subscription — from now until 2072 (Nieman Journalism Lab) / Jeff Bezos's next monopoly: The Press; 'With his vast investment in The Washington Post’s digital publishing technology, the Amazon founder could soon control the backbone of most large American newspapers.' (Washington Monthly) 

■ Journalist auctions Nobel Peace Prize for record $103.5M to benefit Ukraine’s kids (AP) 

■ Fox News paid Melissa Francis $15 million after pay disparity claim (Washington Post) 

■ Amy's story: After escaping domestic violence, sportswriter's ex-wife speaks out to help others (Los Angeles Times)

■ Truthful climate reporting shifts viewpoints, but only briefly, study finds (The Guardian) / Photographer recreates 1918 photo to reveal alarming glacier retreat (Peta Pixel) 

■ Remembering longtime NewsHour political analyst Mark Shields (PBS) / Mark Shields' passing mourned by long-time National Press Club members (NPC) 

Press freedom

■ Opinion: From ‘pariah’ to ‘move past it’: How Biden set aside press freedom (Washington Post) 

■ Journalist Dom Phillips was ‘collateral damage’ in drunken ambush, claims Brazil vice-president (The Guardian) / Dom Phillips and Bruno Pereira’s Last Journey: A suspect has admitted to killing the journalist and Indigenous expert while they were reporting in the Amazon. Agência Pública retraces the steps of their final trip. (NACLA) 

■ The killing of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh: Tracing a bullet to an Israeli convoy (The New York Times)

"The point of alt text is not to describe every single detail in an image, but to give users enough information about the image so they’re not missing out on the context. ... Ask yourself why the image is on the page in the first place, and what is the vital information it provides for people who can see it. That will help you identify what details you need to put in the alt text and what information you can leave out."

-- Patrick Garvin, front-end developer and educator, "How to write effective alt text, for journalists"

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More than 75 percent of Americans say religion is an important part of their lives. How do these Americans see themselves and their faith reflected in news coverage? What does reporting on faith get right and wrong? How do editors and reporters think about who they’re reaching with these stories and who they’ve lost? And how might this coverage build trust in journalism among communities who have been historically misrepresented?

Registration is open for this program, which will take place on Friday, June 24 at 11:30 a.m. ET. Participants will learn:

• How journalists of faith navigate challenges from inside their newsrooms and from inside their faith communities
• Whose faith is centered in coverage and whose is marginalized, mischaracterized, or misunderstood
• Which best practices can help extend our community’s understanding of itself

Panelists include:

• Dawn Araujo-Hawkins, news editor at Christian Century; vice president at Religion News Association
• Alison Bethel, vice president of corps excellence at Report for America
• Sarah Breger, editor at Moment Magazine
• McKay Coppins, staff writer at The Atlantic
• Richard Flory, executive director at USC Center for Religion and Civic Culture
• Aysha Khan, journalist and Harvard Divinity School student
• Holly Meyer, religion news editor at The Associated Press
• Bill Mitchell, publisher, CEO, and president at the National Catholic Reporter
• Paul O’Donnell, editor-in-chief at Religion News Service

The conversation will be moderated by Julie Moos, the Institute’s Executive Director, and is supported by an operational grant from the Deseret Management Corporation.