Poynter

Plus, free live training in NYC, opportunities for public media, our Beat Academy bops along, and more.

Weekly Training Digest - Advance Your Skills With Training And Resources

How does a newsroom shift its coverage of public safety from a law enforcement narrative to one driven by the community?

It starts by refusing to publish stories where your only sources are police.

"'Comma, police said' is a huge problem in crime reporting," said Kelly McBride, Poynter senior vice president and chair of the Craig Newmark Center for Ethics and Leadership, in a live Twitter event Monday. "What we have learned is that police have a very specific perspective and agenda when they are writing a police report or a press release. And when you do further reporting, you often find different perspectives."

McBride and Cheryl Thompson-Morton, Black Media Initiative director for the Center for Community Media at the Newmark J-School, led the Twitter conversation ahead of the application deadline for Transforming Crime Reporting Into Public Safety Journalism, a Poynter course they are co-teaching.

The deadline to apply is Friday.

McBride said newsrooms need to make sure that the people most affected by crime are represented in stories about their communities. She also said it's important not to let the police define what the most newsworthy or important crimes are.

"(Get) more data, more analysis, more criminologists, more community voices into your choices as a newsroom about which stories you cover."

Thompson-Morton added, “When you're thinking about the community and what actually serves them, what resources do you give to someone who actually has been shot? Is there anything in your story that speaks to that? Or for someone who is a co-victim and has lost someone to gun violence?”

As a former police reporter who admits she was once "part of the problem," McBride’s passion around this training is clear. She has also written recently about evolving crime coverage: "Local newsrooms want to stop sensationalizing crime, but it’s hard" and "Newsrooms struggle over how to cover crime." Read up on how you can improve your own newsroom's coverage, or scroll down for more.

FEATURED TRAINING

Transforming Crime Coverage Into Public Safety Journalism

Online seminar, May-November 2023

Applications are due this Friday!

In this 24-week online seminar, you and a team from within your newsroom will transform your outlet's reporting on crime and criminal justice. Let Poynter guide you through a process to reimagine your work and its impact, and help you craft a strategy that elevates your public safety reporting and better serves your audience.

Your team should consist of three to six people, including a frontline reporter or producer currently responsible for telling stories about law enforcement and crime, and an editor or manager with the authority to implement editorial policies.

Cost: $1,000 per newsroom team. Apply by April 21.

APPLY NOW

Telling Stories of Faith and the Faithful

In person, Friday, May 12, New York City, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

Registration deadline is this Friday!

This program is designed for working journalists — not just religion reporters, but writers, editors, photographers, videographers, producers and others who want a deeper understanding of how faith is among the most important forces shaping our communities.

During a daylong series of speakers, panels and peer work, participants will learn where and how to find faith communities in their coverage area; find connections within those communities to their leaders and citizens; learn how to build source lists and create relationships before news breaks; think through how people of faith (whether religious leaders or believers) can be incorporated into everyday stories; and more.

Cost: Free. Breakfast and lunch provided. Register by April 21.

Beat Academy

Webinar series, now through Oct. 19

Our first full Beat Academy topic is a wrap, but you can still enroll to watch replays of our three fascinating sessions on private equity (and apply for one of three $20,000 grants).

This month, we're taking on climate change, a local phenomenon as well as a global one, with three 90-minute webinars. It's got grants, too!

In Beat Academy, you'll get tips, sources, inspiration and ideas to cover emerging newsroom beats including:

🤑 The growing reach of private equity (replays available)

🌊 Preparing for climate change (April 6, 13, 27)

💸 Tracking ARPA funds near you (May 4, 18)

🌎 New immigration patterns and challenges (June 8, 15)

🦺 Bringing a community focus to crime reporting (July 13, 20)

✏️ Roy Peter Clark's writing tips for beat reporters (July 27, Aug. 3)

🩺 Health care trends in non-metro areas (Sept. 7, 21)

✅ Misinformation (Oct. 5, 19)

Attend all 18 sessions over eight months or pick the ones you need the most. Sessions are for individual journalists or entire newsrooms. Recordings are available so even if you miss a session, it’s easy to catch up.

Cost: $75 for individuals. Group discounts available.

Editorial Integrity and Leadership Initiative

In person and online, September 2023 through April 2024

Funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, this fellowship for public media journalists is designed to strengthen news leadership skills and the ability to make ethical decisions. Over nine months, participants will receive individual coaching, learn from industry experts, collaborate in small peer groups, and work on a personal project that will benefit their newsroom and their own leadership. Fellows will also participate in online workshops twice a month, and meet with peer groups and coaches.

The fellowship kicks off with a one-week conference at Poynter HQ in St. Petersburg, Florida, this September.

Cost: Free. Apply by May 15.

APPLY NOW

UPCOMING TRAINING

Executive Leadership Summit
Online program, Oct. 18-21
This is a three-day, online gathering designed for top-level media leaders who can set the tone and vision for the future of their enterprise. Poynter’s Sitara Nieves will be the lead faculty. Applications will open soon. See the 2022 program page here.

Level Up: Critical Skills for Local Reporters

Online program, October TBD
We launched this master-class level program for reporters in 2022, and we’re excited to host it again in October 2023. Poynter’s Kristen Hare will lead the program. Registration will open soon. See the 2022 program here.

Power of Diverse Voices: Writing Workshop for Journalists of Color
In-person program, Nov. 15-18, St. Petersburg, Florida
One of our hallmark programs, this writing workshop will return in 2023. Tom Huang will lead the program. Applications will open soon. Review the 2022 program page here.

EVENTS

SABEW23: Navigating Beyond the Pandemic
In person in St. Petersburg, Florida, April 20-22
This year’s SABEW conference, themed “Navigating beyond the pandemic,” will bring newsmakers, economists and top business journalists together at Poynter to discuss the future of business journalism in a post-pandemic world. Register now.

An Evening with Denis Phillips
In person at the Straz Center in Tampa, Florida, May 12
Join Poynter at The Straz for a special evening with the weatherman who keeps Tampa Bay cool: ABC Action News Chief Meteorologist Denis Phillips. Get to know this local icon, learn the complexities of climate and its effect on Floridians and prepare for the upcoming hurricane season. Get tickets.

The Bowtie Ball
In person in Tampa, Florida, Nov. 18
The Bowtie Ball is Poynter’s largest annual celebration of journalistic excellence that recognizes the contributions of the brightest and liveliest minds in the industry to democracies worldwide. Get tickets.