Collaborative journalism contest accepting pitches, stories [Worldwide]

Professional and amateur journalists can compete in this contest.

Hostwriter, a platform that lets vetted journalists contact each other for collaboration opportunities, will award cash prizes for works of collaborative journalism and for a promising story pitch. 

There are two prize categories: the story prize for collaborative pieces researched and published by July 31 and the pitch prize for journalists with an idea for a story that would be realized with at least one other colleague.

The contest is open to teams of two or more journalists who have worked or will work on a story together and have used or will use Hostwriter in some way during the research.

Works may be in any language, but the application must be in English, German, Spanish, French or Portuguese.

The first and second prizes consist of EUR2,000 (US$2,285) and EUR1,000 (US$1,142), respectively. Two winners of the pitch prize will each receive EUR1,000 (US$1,142).

The deadline is July 31.

For more information, click here. 

Grist Fellowship Program open [US]

Budding journalists interested in environmental issues can apply for a fellowship in Seattle.

Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization, offers justice and video fellowships for October 2017.

Fellows work full time, making daily contributions to Grist’s editorial operations including (but not limited to) research, reporting, story ideas, writing and multimedia experiments. The justice fellow can choose to work out of Grist’s Seattle office or work remotely.

The fellowship pays US$2,600 per month. Fellows must make a six-month commitment, with the possibility of an extension.

Writers, reporters and editors, as well as all-stars in fields such as video, audio and multimedia, are encouraged to apply.

The deadline is July 31.

For more information, click here. 

Study seeks 1,300 journalists' opinions on improving coverage of mass shootings

by Nicole Smith Dahmen 

Mass shootings are commonplace in the United States—according to one estimate, there have already been 173 in the year 2017 alone. Early Saturday morning, 25 people were shot in a nightclub in Little Rock, Arkansas. In mid-June, U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise was one of the five people shot on a baseball field in Alexandria, Virginia. Scalise’s high-profile status led to intense media coverage of this particular incident, once again spurring debate about gun violence and gun control in the U.S.

Equally important, we must consider the reporting of mass shootings. Certain journalists and scholars — and even former U.S. President Barack Obama — suggest that the routine nature of mass shooting coverage contributes to “compassion fatigue,” a dulled sensitivity to crisis.

Research also indicates a connection between intense media coverage, “fame-seeking” perpetrators and subsequent mass shootings — termed the “copycat” effect. As a result of these disturbing findings, some organizations (such as No Notoriety), law enforcement officials, government officials and journalists are making the conscious choice to not name the perpetrators of mass shootings.

But certainly the decision to “not name” the perpetrator is atypical in journalistic coverage.

A recently published study — a collaboration from myself and three other media scholars — examined this issue and other attitudes toward news coverage of mass shootings, using data from a national survey of more than 1,300 U.S. newspaper/online journalists. Key study findings follow:

• Despite existing research showing a connection between news media coverage and a copycat effect, journalists were largely ambivalent about such a connection.
• Most journalists supported typical perpetrator coverage, including naming and publishing photos of the perpetrator, as well as a perpetrator’s statements, videos and/or manifestos.
• At the same time, journalists expressed strong support for stories that focused on survivors and community resilience in the aftermath of mass shootings. Journalists also largely supported longer-term coverage and coverage of potential solutions.

Study findings also examined how individual characteristics, journalistic practices and organizational factors influence attitudes.

• Editors were more satisfied with the current state of mass shooting coverage than both reporters and photographers. Editors were also more supportive of perpetrator coverage than all other types of news workers.
• Older journalists held a more favorable opinion of the state of mass shooting coverage and more strongly supported coverage of perpetrators.
• Non-white respondents were more likely to be critical of current practices of mass shooting coverage.
• Journalists at larger newspapers generally thought that the media were doing a “good job” covering mass shootings.
• Journalists who reflect contextualist values — journalists who emphasize longer-term coverage, social responsibility and responsible reporting — strongly supported coverage of victims and survivors.

Taken together, study results show that journalists generally supported a breadth of mass shooting coverage with the implication that citizens will use that information to make responsible choices. Accordingly, most journalists were in favor of perpetrator coverage and did not acknowledge a copycat effect. Indeed, it is a grim realization to think that the product of one’s work potentially contributes to further mass shootings. But given research findings supporting a copycat effect, journalists should be aware that their perceptions of their work don’t always match the work’s actual impact. A useful comparison in this case may be suicide coverage.

Zeynep Tufekci, a media and technology scholar, argues that naming or showing a photograph of the perpetrator once is not the issue; the real problem is that news media continuously loop perpetrator’s names, faces and manifestos. As such, Tufekci proposes that the news media develop “sensible guidelines” to covering mass shootings, much in the same way that they cover suicides.

Recognizing a copycat suicide effect, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends avoiding the following in news coverage of suicides: simplistic explanations; repetitive, ongoing or excessive reporting; sensational coverage; “how-to” descriptions; glorification; and a focus on community expressions of grief. Instead, the CDC recommends that news coverage focus on help and support available in the community, tips and information about how to identify people who are at risk and/or information about risk factors. The adoption of these practices in covering mass shootings may help reduce the risk of a copycat effect.

And certainly some journalists in the survey acknowledged a copycat effect, reflecting a tension between those journalists who favor a more progressive approach and those who hold more traditional journalistic ideas.

Equally important, study findings show support for longer-term coverage and coverage of both community resilience and solutions. This finding is indicative of the growing practices of constructive journalism and solutions journalism.

Research findings suggest that those journalists who reflect contextualist values — as a more progressive approach to coverage — could play an important role in advancing changed reporting practices for mass shooting coverage.

Nicole Smith Dahmen is an assistant professor of visual communication at the University of Oregon.

Main image CC-licensed by Flickr via EUPOL Afghanistan

Reporting fellowship brings international journalists to US [MENA]

Early to mid career journalists who are citizens of Muslim-majority countries can apply for this fellowship.

The Alfred Friendly Press Partners seeks applicants for the 2018 Daniel Pearl Fellowship, a program that will place successful candidates at American news organizations to learn practices, standards and values of U.S. journalism which they can adapt, share and apply in their own countries.

Journalists from the following countries are eligible: Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Mali, Morocco, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, the Palestinian Territories, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, UAE and Yemen. 

Applicants must be proficient in English, between 25 and 35 years old and have at least three years of journalism experience. Journalists must currently work full time for the news or editorial departments of independent newspapers, magazines, wire services or online publications of general public interest.

The fellowship covers all costs of program-related international and domestic U.S. travel, health insurance and basic living expenses.

The deadline is Aug. 31.

For more information, click here.

Thomson Reuters seeks correspondent [China]

Experienced journalists fluent in English and Mandarin can apply for this position.

Thomson Reuters is hiring a company news correspondent in Beijing. 

The correspondent will cover China’s auto industry as well as the biggest changes in consumption patterns driven by innovations in technology and the country's shifting spending habits.

The successful candidate will have at least three years of experience in financial journalism. Strong knowledge of China’s auto and consumer sectors will be an advantage.

For more information, click here.