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3 more considerations for building credibility with the communities you cover
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In my last newsletter, I talked to reporters who felt their newsrooms’ histories and coverage decisions hurt their credibility with the communities they cover. I spoke with Carla Murphy, who told me that community mistrust of the media is a collective action problem and therefore not something any single reporter can solve. She also shared so many other bits of wisdom that didn’t make it into the original column:
Communities want to be represented in the media. “This relationship between a news outlet and community members is highly elastic and highly repairable. I think that's important to understand about the relationship between these two things, because people, communities want to be covered. People want to see themselves reflected in the news.”
Taking responsibility to change a community’s narrative at an outlet can be a recipe for burnout. “I have to go through editors. I'm not framing the story. That doesn't happen at the reporter level. You're just one person up against the institution. You're giving yourself a really, really big task. And then you have to ask yourself, is it right for me to give myself that task? Or is it right for an editor to give me that task of representing a population?”
When you see your power accurately, you can use it to accomplish your mission in a way that reaches your community and also protects you. “For me, the goal is to expand the system. It's to put more air in the system. More outlets that are for communities of color, for example, or for low wealth or for rural populations — not just about them. |
In every other newsletter issue, I’m going to be highlighting someone who is looking for a journalism job. If you’d like to submit yourself to be featured, fill out this Google Form!
This month’s featured job seeker is Aliya Chaudhry (she/her). She’s looking for full-time work, she would need sponsorship for a work visa, and she’s open to international opportunities. |
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Aliya Chaudhry (she/her) |
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Here’s what she had to say:
I'm a music and internet culture journalist. I graduated with a degree in English from the University of Pennsylvania in 2018 and then received my master's in journalism from Columbia Journalism School in 2019. I interned at The Verge writing tech news and commerce content. I also worked as a news writer for Kerrang! before being hired as a staff writer for The Verge, writing how-tos and reporting on internet culture. For the last year, I've been freelance, writing about music and internet culture for publications such as Vice, Slate, Billboard, Stereogum and MTV News. I specialize in covering rock music and TikTok.
Work I'm most proud of: Meet the musicians working behind the scenes for the NHS during the pandemic
Get in touch with Aliya here! |
| If this year, you’ve resolved to amp up your journalism tool kit, check out these upcoming Poynter programs! |
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Lead With Influence — deadline Feb. 11 (online, for women and nonbinary people who manage programs, products or processes) |
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