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Newsroom diversity: Microsoft joins our students of color journalism training program in Fresno
We are thrilled to announce that Microsoft has become a major sponsor of our program to diversify Fresno-area newsrooms by training students of color in our community to become journalists. Microsoft joins the California Endowment and the James B. McClatchy Foundation as major supporters of this diversity effort. We appreciate Microsoft’s commitment to our five-year… Read more
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Some writers have a natural talent, but the rest of us can be very good writers if we work at it on a daily basis
In my journalism classes at Fresno State, we commit ourselves to improving our writing by working at it on a daily basis. As we tap out sentences on our keyboards, we think about how the words that we use sound to others. That’s important because we are not writing for ourselves. In newswriting, our goal… Read more
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We’re celebrating our 3rd birthday with an increased focus on improving media literacy and exposing disinformation
When we established the Institute for Media and Public Trust at Fresno State three years ago, I was asked if our work to identify fake news and promote media literacy represented short-term problems that would sort themselves out in a few years on their own. We now know that these challenges not only aren’t going… Read more
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Media literacy is crucial for anyone who uses a digital device. It should be an educational priority in K-12 schools.
In our 21st century society, we use computers to access almost everything we do. Consider how many times that you’ve logged onto the internet today to shop, check bank account balances, use social networks and work remotely from home. But the problem for many is that they have little understanding of how their personal information… Read more
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We’ve compiled 8 tips for identifying false content that you may encounter on the Internet. Use them to be a smart media consumer.
Look past your personal political biases. This is crucial in sorting out news content. We often believe the worst about people or politicians we despise. Those biases can blind us to what we are sharing on social media, even if there are red flags that suggest the stories may not be factual. Do you recognize the… Read more
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A major failure of U.S. media organizations has been their inability (or unwillingness) to diversify their reporting staffs
It has been more than 40 years since the American Society of News Editors adopted a goal of having newsrooms match the racial and ethnic make-up of the general population. Clearly, media outlets have had more than enough time to determine a strategy to hire journalists that reflect the diversity of their communities. But the much-discussed… Read more
Institute for Media and Public Trust at Fresno State 