Editorial boards that look nothing like their cities shouldn’t speak for them

Why do editorial boards look nothing like their communities? For decades, one organization has comprehensively tracked newsroom’s hiring, retention, and diversity efforts. The American Society of News Editors’ annual survey has always painted an occasionally hopeful but dim-in-aggregate picture of American newsrooms. Across the board, newsrooms often reflect the diversity of the country and their … Continued

A Trusting News analysis: What news consumers say they trust

Trusting News Project ReportDownload Fundamentally, news consumers trust journalism that they find to be balanced, in-depth, honest and reputable.  Those qualities appeared over and over in an analysis of 81 in-depth interviews our newsroom partners conducted with members of their communities. And when asked directly about what defines quality journalism, they were at the top … Continued

Putting Mayer’s research to work

Around 2012, Jodi Gersh was travelling to various large Gannett newsrooms and running engagement workshops. She had recently pioneered the first social media position inside Gannett, and now she was helping the company figure out how it could meet its readers on these powerful platforms they were using. She used Joy Mayer’s Community Engagement: A … Continued

Building trust one idea at a time

“One of the things I appreciated most about the Trusting News project is that Joy takes this big hairy topic of “trust in the media” and breaks it down into actionable steps,” says Sarah Binder, the former community engagement manager at the Cedar Rapids Gazette. Binder led the newsroom’s partnership with Trusting News in early 2018. The … Continued

Putting Mayer’s research to work

Around 2012, Jodi Gersh was traveling to various large Gannett newsrooms and running engagement workshops. She had recently pioneered the first social media position inside Gannett, and now she was helping the company figure out how it could meet its readers on these powerful platforms they were using. She used Joy Mayer’s Community Engagement: A Practical Conversation for Newsrooms as a kind … Continued

Getting engaged. No diamond ring required

Some folks might think it’s a bit unusual for a print design professor to segue to a career researching and improving the relationships journalists have with their communities. Joy Mayer never gave it a second thought.

Trusting News project expands research and training through University of Georgia partnership

Trusting News, a project intended to empower journalists to earn consumers’ trust, is adding research and training support from a partnership with the University of Georgia Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. The Trusting News project, which was founded at the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute, where it receives continued support, has worked with more than 50 news … Continued

Journalists: Defend your work through action, not just with editorials

The Trusting News project, staffed by Joy Mayer and Lynn Walsh, is designed to demystify the issue of trust in journalism. They research how people decide what news is credible, then turn that knowledge into actionable strategies for journalists. The project is funded by the Reynolds Journalism Institute, the Knight Foundation and Democracy Fund.