Journalism Today. 31 Jan 2025
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism
Exploring the future of journalism worldwide through engagement, debate and research. Based at University of Oxford.
By Matthew Leake and Marina Adami
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Three years, eight countries. On Wednesday next week we are hosting an important discussion around how the news media can best engage audiences with stories around climate change. We will cover findings from our recent yearly report tracking how people receive climate news, who they trust to tell the story, perceptions of misinformation, and experiences of climate change and extreme weather. The event takes place on Zoom and will also be livestreamed across social media. | More info
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??? 3 Top News Stories
1. Settlement of a Trump/media lawsuit. CBS’ parent company Paramount Global is ready to settle a lawsuit brought by Donald Trump over an interview it aired with Kamala Harris on 60 Minutes. Trump says Harris’s answers were edited to give a deceptive view of the former vice-president. Paramount had claimed her answers were edited for time purposes. However, with a proposed merger with Skydance Media on the line, which would require regulatory approval by the Federal Communications Commission headed up by Trump appointee Brendan Carr, Paramount is interested in settling the case. | Read
More broadcasters under fire. Carr is also taking aim at US public broadcasters PBS and NPR. In a letter sent to the stations he said he is “concerned that NPR and PBS broadcasts could be violating federal law by airing commercials.” NPR’s president and CEO Katherine Maher told the Hill that it “complies with federal regulations, including the FCC guidelines on underwriting messages for noncommercial educational broadcasters,” while a PBS representative said: “We work diligently to comply with the FCC’s underwriting regulations.” | Read
2. A pioneering voice for the community. India’s first all female community radio station, run by women from the most marginalised Dalit class, has become an indispensable voice for its rural audience, writes Uday Narayanan in this profile of the team at Sangham Radio led by ‘General’ Narsamma. The station, established in 2008, reaches around 40 villages and covers a range of topics from farming techniques, to folklore to women’s rights. It also airs recorded voices of departed villagers handing down their knowledge of the community’s traditions. “When I listen to the radio, I feel connected to my roots. It’s like hearing the voice of our ancestors,” says one listener. | Read
?? From our archive. Feminism in India is a bilingual feminist media platform that aims to have more Indian feminist content on the internet written by Indian women for Indian women. In this interview, our contributor Raksha spoke to its founder Japleen Pasricha who says she wants to move beyond seeing only a narrow set of subjects such as maternal mortality and sexual violence which are often the focus of ‘women’s issues’. “Those are crucial, but we want to ensure every story has a strong gender perspective,” she says. | Read
3. BBC apologises over Brand. The BBC has apologised to staff who said they feared raising their concerns about the behaviour of Russell Brand while he was at the broadcaster. The apology comes after an internal review into Brand’s time as a star radio presenter from 2006 to 2008. The investigation was launched after separate allegations of rape, sexual assaults and emotional abuse against Brand in 2023.
??? From our archive. Ros Urwin, one of the journalists who broke the more recent allegations against Russell Brand spoke to us about lessons she learnt covering the #MeToo movement about how the new media investigates and reports such stories, and dealing with the potential backlash | Read a summary
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?? Applications for our Journalist Fellowships are now open. The deadline to apply is 13 February at 23:59 UK time. Here are the key links: All you need to know | How to apply | Projects from our Fellows | Our funders | Our current Fellows?
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领英推荐
?? Chart of the day
?? Perceived false or misleading climate news. The proportion of people who think they have seen false or misleading climate information in the last week has remained fairly stable over the last two years. On average, a quarter of people across the countries sampled believe they have recently seen false or misleading climate news, with the highest country-level proportion in India at 43%. A decline in the US could be explained by a lack of focus on climate issues in last year’s presidential race. | Read the report
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? Coffee break
Russia issued an arrest warrant for a British journalist. Jerome Starkey, defence editor at the Sun, was put on an international wanted list for allegedly illegally crossing into Russia. The UK government said this was an example of “desperate rhetoric” from Putin. | Read
US policy decisions and cabinet leaders may turn into ‘content’ in the new Trump-led administration. Wired’s Makena Kelly points out how some new appointees have already filmed videos of themselves carrying out new policies, and, with many having a background of media appearances, they may become a sort of ‘influencer’. | Read
The UK’s Daily Mail will merge its print and online teams. The Mail on Sunday will also be more closely integrated with the rest of the newsroom. The plans will result in fewer than 100 job losses, according to the FT’s Daniel Thomas and Emma Dunkley. | Read
Jobs were cut at Abu Dhabi’s The National newspaper in a restructuring of the publication. 28 journalists from desks including multimedia, digital and foreign news lost their jobs at the English-language newspaper. | Read
The US news industry could face more and longer strikes following Trump’s changes to the National Labor Relations Board, which mediates between employers and employees. | Read
The reporter’s notebook is disappearing in the digital age. NiemanReports’ Gabe Bullard looked into the history and present of what used to be an essential tool for journalists. “Facts are facts, journalists just use fewer notebooks now,” said journalist Nic Garcia. | Read
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?? One piece from our archive
Italy’s media environment is changing. In October last year, we published this piece by Marina Adami looking at changes that have taken place in the Italian media ecosystem since Giorgia Meloni’s hard right government was elected into power. Some journalists and media observers have voiced concerns about freedom of speech amid an increase in SLAPPs and political involvement in the public broadcaster. | Read
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