Providing a lifeline for educators 

Teachapalooza offered six presentations and 17 breakout sessions for college educators in one full day of dynamic learning. (Screenshot)

COVID-19 has created a crisis in higher education. This week, Poynter offered refuge and resources through a virtual conference for college educators who teach journalism and communications classes. 

Aptly named Teachapalooza, the conference helped more than 300 educators catch up, power up and reignite their passion for teaching. Sessions included practical ways to move classroom teaching online, strategies for teaching students about race and representation in media, and covering the 2020 election without students on campus. 

Analyzing the economic effects of the pandemic

A man looks at signs at a store closed due to COVID-19 in Niles, Illinois. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

After a much-needed, long holiday weekend, this week we continued to see COVID-19 cases increase throughout the U.S. — a stark reminder that this pandemic is not going away anytime soon. What is going away soon are the weekly $600 unemployment checks that millions of Americans have been receiving, which are set to end next month.

Of the Americans who are lucky enough to remain employed, millions of workers have taken pay cuts to keep their jobs. Workers are twice as likely to get a pay cut now than they were during the Great Recession.

Which industry is experiencing the most salary cuts? And will Congress extend these unemployment benefits past July? Poynter’s Al Tompkins answers these questions and more in his exploration of the pandemic’s continued effect on our economy.

Remembering our fallen journalists

Balloons are released on Wednesday, April 8, by the relatives of a Belgian woman who died from COVID-19. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

After enduring the overwhelming effects of the coronavirus pandemic these past four months, it’s easy to become numb to all of it. As we begin the latter half of 2020, we want to remember these essential workers: the journalists who lost their lives while providing us with the critical facts we all need to stay healthy and navigate this unprecedented crisis. Poynter’s Kristen Hare shares with you this updated collection of obituaries and stories of the journalists and those employed by the media around the world who’ve died because of the coronavirus.

Fact-checking the drama, debates and history of “Hamilton”

Were you one of the gazillion people who recently watched the musical “Hamilton” on Disney+? I certainly was. In fact, I’m still humming the tunes of “Satisfied” and “The Room Where It Happens.” If you’re a history buff like me, you’re probably curious as to the accuracy of this musical biography of Alexander Hamilton.

Our PolitiFact team helps you sort out the facts from the dramatic liberties on slavery, our founding fathers and the presidential election of 1800. 

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Be well,


Josh Herrington
Development Director
[email protected]

Poynter Foundation Board Members: 

Brian Tierney, CEO, Brian Communications
Michael Dreyer, President, Tampa Bay Trust Company
Frank “Sandy” Rief III, Attorney, Allen Dell, Attorneys at Law
Liz Sembler, Board Member, Corporation for Public Broadcasting