Community Media

Code for Journalists

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Article in Columbia Journalism Review by Liz Skalka, 8/10/26

Headline:  “Revising the Ethics Code”

Subhead: “The Society of Professional Journalists is taking a red pencil to its ethics guidelines—the first update since 2014.”

“The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), a more than century-old industry organization. . . might be best known for its code of ethics, a set of bullet-pointed precepts that can fit on a poster designed to hang in journalism classrooms and newsrooms: ‘Seek Truth and Report It’; ‘Minimize Harm’; ‘Act Independently’; ‘Be Accountable and Transparent.’ . . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.cjr.org/feature/society-professional-journalists-spj-revising-the-ethics-code-ethical-precepts-ai-voice-content-creators.php

Progressive Media Growing

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Article in Reuters by Helen Coster, 8/6/26

Headline:  “How the new generation of left-wing US media is powering progressive candidates “

“. . .This fast-growing world of left-wing websites, podcasters, YouTube hosts and livestreamers – many of whom blend opinion journalism and activism – affords candidates a sympathetic space to sharpen their message and mobilize grassroots support. But it also risks deepening the fissures in the Democratic Party, analysts say, and alienating moderates in the coalition. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/how-new-generation-left-wing-us-media-is-powering-progressive-candidates-2026-08-06/

After CECOT – LULAC Begins News

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Article in FAIR by Carolina Abbott Galvão. 8/4/26

Headline: ‘The Most Accurate Truth’

Subhead: “After CBS News hit the brakes on a 60 Minutes story about CECOT prison, the League of Latin American Citizens decided it was time to start their own newsroom. Within months, El Grito Media has become a definitive resource.”

“n July 7 in Houston, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent shot and killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a fifty-two-year-old Mexican man. Audrey Colocho and Katherine Torres of El Grito Media—which this spring started publishing stories directly on Instagram, X, YouTube, and TikTok instead of on a dedicated site—tried to piece together what happened, beginning with a social media post. Soon, they had collected more footage, from more angles—providing a definitive account that became a source for major news outlets. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.cjr.org/getting-the-story/the-most-accurate-truth-el-grito-media-ice-salgado-killing-shooting-cecot-el-salvador-venezuela-60-minutes-cbs-news.php

Local Owned Doesn’t Guarantee Local News

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Article in Poynter by Jennifer Nehrer, 7/29/26

Headline:  “A community can have local newspapers and still lack local news”

Subhead:  “California’s local news landscape — from a thriving weekly in Carmel to a one-reporter newsroom in Merced — shows why counting newspapers isn’t enough”

“. . .At first glance, California’s local news landscape seems to be thriving. Even the state’s least populous areas compare favorably to some of the United States’ largest regions by one common measure. . .”

“Matt Pearce, director of policy at Rebuild Local News, prefers to add a second statistic to present a fuller picture of who is bringing local news to California communities: the ‘Local Journalist Index,’ a tool that analyzes the number of ‘Local Journalist Equivalents’ in each U.S. county. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2026/how-to-measure-local-news/

In Crisis, Collaborating Important

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Article in Columbia Journalism Review by Irene Romulo and Nina Weingrill, 7/28/26

Headline:  “In a Fast-Moving Crisis, What Is the Role of Journalism?”

Subhead:  “Community news organizations, enmeshed in an information ecosystem on social media and messaging apps, can verify, clarify, and connect.”

“. . .A Media Impact Funders report argues that journalism needs to build infrastructure that is ‘shared, long-term, coordinated, and system-oriented,’ rather than episodic or project-bound. That includes adding coordination roles, offering community training, building trusted networks, and maintaining relationships with community organizations between crises. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.cjr.org/analysis/in-a-fast-moving-crisis-what-is-the-role-of-journalism-brazil-flood-venezuela-earthquake-whatsapp-signal-rapid-response-immigration-customs-enforcement-ice-information-sharing-ecosystems.php

Covering a Local Disaster

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Article in Poynter by Amaris Castillo, 7/24/26

Headline:  “When the Boundary Waters burned, local journalists answered the call”

Subhead:  “As wildfires spread through one of America’s most cherished wilderness areas, small Minnesota newsrooms became essential for residents and visitors”

“. . .The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness spans more than 1 million acres of forests, glacial lakes and streams in northeastern Minnesota. It is one of the nation’s most cherished wilderness areas. . .”

“As firefighters battled the blazes in an area that is already hard to access, local journalists mobilized to provide their audiences with up-to-date information. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2026/boundary-waters-wildfires-local-journalism-minnesota/

 

Local News is Important

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Article in Poynter by Phoenix Chapital, 7/16/25

Headline: “When the World Cup came to Kansas City, local journalists stayed local”

Subhead: “As global media descended on the city, Kansas City reporters found stories only local journalists could tell”

“As international media outlets flocked to Kansas City to cover the World Cup, local journalists responded to the global event by leaning even harder into what they do best: covering their own communities.

“Rather than trying to match the international press corps, Kansas City’s newsrooms found their advantage in telling stories only local journalists could tell. . .”

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2026/local-news-coverage-world-cup-kansas-city/

Editor’s Words Still Ring True

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Article in Poynter by Staff, 7/4/26

Headline: “A message about the importance of the free press”

Subhead:  “On America’s 250th birthday, we reprint the words of the late Poynter chairman Eugene C. Patterson”

“Eugene C. Patterson fought Nazis as a tank platoon leader in World War II. He fought for civil rights as a crusading editor at The Atlanta Constitution in the 1960s. He fought for high standards and ethical journalism in all his roles as a newspaper editor, including as CEO and chairman of the St. Petersburg Times. . .”

“He wrote these words, which in 1984 were published in a book by the Society for Professional Journalists. . .” [words are above]

Read the full article at:

https://www.poynter.org/ethics-trust/2026/eugene-patterson-free-press-message/

Justice With Satire

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Article in AP by Frey Collins, 7/1/26

Headline:   “The Onion’s new parody of Alex Jones’ Infowars starts with $100,000 to Sandy Hook families”

“The satirical news site The Onion isn’t waiting to take possession of Infowars to launch a parody of Alex Jones ’ conspiracy platform.

“More than a year after first trying to buy Infowars, The Onion on Thursday will debut a send-up under its own website with plans to give some of the revenue to families of the victims in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

“The families have still received no money from Jones since courts ordered him to pay more than $1 billion for falsely calling the 2012 shooting a hoax. . .’

Read the full article at:

https://apnews.com/article/infowars-alex-jones-newtown-shooting-onion-e38e5447435e6dc117e1ce996a58ac5c