
RECENT ARTICLES

Times public editor: The readers versus the masthead
The voice of journalismAugust 6, 2019ICYMI: between those energized readers and manyICYMI:ICYMI: Editors note: CJR has appointed its own outside public editors for four vital news outlets — The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN and MSNBC — that currently lack any public ombudsman. You can reach them at publiceditors@cjr.org. (Any messages will be treated as off-the-record unless otherwise agreed.)Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by .Gabriel Snyder is a contributing editor to CJR.TOP IMAGE: (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)Ten days ago, a...…The voice of journalismAugust 6, 2019ICYMI: between those energized readers and manyICYMI:ICYMI: Editors note: CJR has appointed its own outside public editors for four vital news outlets — The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN and MSNBC — that currently lack any public ombudsman. You can reach them at publiceditors@cjr.org. (Any messages will be treated as off-the-record unless otherwise agreed.)Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by .Gabriel Snyder is a contributing editor to CJR.TOP IMAGE: (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)Ten days ago, a...WW…

Media amnesia and the Facebook News Tab
The voice of journalismOctober 25, 2019ICYMI: ICYMI:Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by .Emily Bell is a frequent CJR contributor and the director of Columbia’s Tow Center for Digital Journalism. Previously, she oversaw digital publishing at The Guardian.TOP IMAGE: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Robert Thomson, CEO of News Corp. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)On Saturday, September 3, the body of Jeff German, an investigative reporter at the Las Vegas Review-Journal, was found outside his home. He had been stabbed to death in an altercation nearly twenty-four...…The voice of journalismOctober 25, 2019ICYMI: ICYMI:Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by .Emily Bell is a frequent CJR contributor and the director of Columbia’s Tow Center for Digital Journalism. Previously, she oversaw digital publishing at The Guardian.TOP IMAGE: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Robert Thomson, CEO of News Corp. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)On Saturday, September 3, the body of Jeff German, an investigative reporter at the Las Vegas Review-Journal, was found outside his home. He had been stabbed to death in an altercation nearly twenty-four...WW…

Washington Post public editor: The bright side of 2020? Less campaign froth
The voice of journalismAugust 13, 2020It is August of 2020, in an alternate and more predictable reality. We are closing in on the second full year of presidential campaign coverage. The headlines of the Washington Post, the New York Times, CNN, and any magazines that remain in business are dominated by horse race coverage of political pettiness. “Trump Names Eighth Campaign Manager.” “Biden Confuses Snickers Bar for Cell Phone.” Pundits briefly acknowledge the latest plan to imprison or humiliate refugees before droning on at excruciating length about upcoming debates and strategic vice...…The voice of journalismAugust 13, 2020It is August of 2020, in an alternate and more predictable reality. We are closing in on the second full year of presidential campaign coverage. The headlines of the Washington Post, the New York Times, CNN, and any magazines that remain in business are dominated by horse race coverage of political pettiness. “Trump Names Eighth Campaign Manager.” “Biden Confuses Snickers Bar for Cell Phone.” Pundits briefly acknowledge the latest plan to imprison or humiliate refugees before droning on at excruciating length about upcoming debates and strategic vice...WW…

The logistical and ethical challenges of sports reporters’ restart
The voice of journalismJuly 28, 2020In mid-March, Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League, and Major League Soccer issued a joint statement: members of the media would henceforth be barred from locker rooms and clubhouses, to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The leagues pledged to make players and staff available in more socially-distanced settings, , warning against “unnecessary” limits on their hard-won access, and pointing out that the leagues still intended to let fans attend games. The latter objection, at least, was quickly...…The voice of journalismJuly 28, 2020In mid-March, Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League, and Major League Soccer issued a joint statement: members of the media would henceforth be barred from locker rooms and clubhouses, to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The leagues pledged to make players and staff available in more socially-distanced settings, , warning against “unnecessary” limits on their hard-won access, and pointing out that the leagues still intended to let fans attend games. The latter objection, at least, was quickly...WW…

Ronan Farrow, Ben Smith, and the problem of the superstar journalist
The voice of journalismMay 19, 2020“Is Ronan Farrow too good to be true?” With that question—which, let’s be honest, we’ve all thought at one point or another—Ben Smith, the New York Times media columnist, made the case that the answer is “yes,” and launched a New York media spat for the ages. , Smith allowed that he’d long “marveled” over Farrow’s ability “to shine a light on some of the defining stories of our time,” but that “some aspects of his work made me wonder if Mr. Farrow didn’t, at times, fly a little too close to the sun.” He then proceeded to comb through Farrow’s back...…The voice of journalismMay 19, 2020“Is Ronan Farrow too good to be true?” With that question—which, let’s be honest, we’ve all thought at one point or another—Ben Smith, the New York Times media columnist, made the case that the answer is “yes,” and launched a New York media spat for the ages. , Smith allowed that he’d long “marveled” over Farrow’s ability “to shine a light on some of the defining stories of our time,” but that “some aspects of his work made me wonder if Mr. Farrow didn’t, at times, fly a little too close to the sun.” He then proceeded to comb through Farrow’s back...WW…

The good-news trend: Uplifting? Delusional? Both?
The voice of journalismApril 21, 2020ICYMI: Other notable storiesICYMI: Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by .Mathew Ingram is CJR’s chief digital writer. Previously, he was a senior writer with Fortune magazine. He has written about the intersection between media and technology since the earliest days of the commercial internet. His writing has been published in the Washington Post and the Financial Times as well as by Reuters and Bloomberg.Ten days ago, a public-records request came to light involving the Columbia Missourian, a newspaper that...…The voice of journalismApril 21, 2020ICYMI: Other notable storiesICYMI: Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by .Mathew Ingram is CJR’s chief digital writer. Previously, he was a senior writer with Fortune magazine. He has written about the intersection between media and technology since the earliest days of the commercial internet. His writing has been published in the Washington Post and the Financial Times as well as by Reuters and Bloomberg.Ten days ago, a public-records request came to light involving the Columbia Missourian, a newspaper that...WW…

The Doctor vs. #MeToo
January 19, 2021One man told the reporters that, during the ordeal, he sat still and waited for it to be over. He needed his medicine. Until 2019, almost nothing had been published in the German mainstream media about sexual assault in the gay community. Precisely because the articles had presented such a massive amount of detailed evidence against Jessen, the judges said, no reader could come to the conclusion that he was innocent. The reporting was ‘not balanced.’ ‘How are you supposed to write about sexual misconduct if you don’t write about the sexual misconduct?’ Löffler...…January 19, 2021One man told the reporters that, during the ordeal, he sat still and waited for it to be over. He needed his medicine. Until 2019, almost nothing had been published in the German mainstream media about sexual assault in the gay community. Precisely because the articles had presented such a massive amount of detailed evidence against Jessen, the judges said, no reader could come to the conclusion that he was innocent. The reporting was ‘not balanced.’ ‘How are you supposed to write about sexual misconduct if you don’t write about the sexual misconduct?’ Löffler...WW…

The best journalism of 2020: Covering the pandemic
The voice of journalismDecember 15, 2020 By Donald G. McNeil, Jr. By Ed Yong By Sui-Lee Wee and Vivian Wang By Sheri Fink, Emily Rhyne and Erin Schaff By Tim Mak By Robert Faturechi and Derek Willis By Lachlan Markay, William Bredderman, Sam Brodey By Liz Essley Whyte By Kyung Lah and Rob Kuznia . By Sally Beauvais and Mitchell Ferman By Mary Annette Pember By John Woodrow Cox and photojournalist Salwan Georges By Sarah Kaplan By Jesmyn...…The voice of journalismDecember 15, 2020 By Donald G. McNeil, Jr. By Ed Yong By Sui-Lee Wee and Vivian Wang By Sheri Fink, Emily Rhyne and Erin Schaff By Tim Mak By Robert Faturechi and Derek Willis By Lachlan Markay, William Bredderman, Sam Brodey By Liz Essley Whyte By Kyung Lah and Rob Kuznia . By Sally Beauvais and Mitchell Ferman By Mary Annette Pember By John Woodrow Cox and photojournalist Salwan Georges By Sarah Kaplan By Jesmyn...WW…

Journalism’s Gates keepers
The voice of journalismAugust 21, 2020Last August,RELATED: In the same way that the news media has given Gates an outsize voice in the pandemic, the foundation has long used its charitable giving to shape the public discourse on everything from global health to education to agriculture..ICYMI:Correction: An earlier version of this story referred to an investment the foundation had made in a company, CureVax. It is, in fact, CureVac. Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by .Tim Schwab is a freelance journalist based in Washington, DC.TOP IMAGE: Bill...…The voice of journalismAugust 21, 2020Last August,RELATED: In the same way that the news media has given Gates an outsize voice in the pandemic, the foundation has long used its charitable giving to shape the public discourse on everything from global health to education to agriculture..ICYMI:Correction: An earlier version of this story referred to an investment the foundation had made in a company, CureVax. It is, in fact, CureVac. Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by .Tim Schwab is a freelance journalist based in Washington, DC.TOP IMAGE: Bill...WW…

Gabriel Snyder

Emily Bell

Mathew Ingram
Zoë Beery

Jon Allsop

James C. Goodale
