Mira Lowe, University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications assistant dean for student experiences and Innovation News Center director, and Jasmine McNealy, CJC Telecommunication associate professor, are featured in Nieman Lab Predictions for Journalism 2020. The annual edition features predictions for 2020 from “some of the smartest people in journalism and digital media.”

According to Lowe, in “The Year of Student-Powered Journalism,” student journalists will increasingly cover social and political issues affecting community and states. They will fill the void caused by layoffs, newsroom closures and media consolidation.

“Academic institutions will continue to become local journalism hubs, particularly in news deserts where there is no daily news outlet or in areas with diminished coverage. The uptick in enrollment in journalism programs will fuel this trend,” Lowe said. “Watch for expanded community and investigative reporting as well as longform storytelling being published across English-speaking and bilingual platforms alike. Watch for election-year political coverage through the lens of a younger demographic.

She adds, “All of this and more will be powered by college students guided by educators, who were once stalwart professionals who moved from newsrooms to the academy. As we enter a new decade, expect this to be a golden one for emerging journalists as they report, write, produce, and disseminate stories like no other generation.”

McNealy shared her predictions in “A Call for Context.” She states that “proper context will require that news outlets understand the political, economic, historical, and social environments of the places, people, and events that they report on.”

According to McNealy, “Context is ever more important in this era of data-driven elections, social media, and emerging technology. While rapid and iterative distribution, data journalism, and hot takes are now normal parts of how we get information, the sheer speed of delivery is in no way a replacement for providing a holistic view of the events, occurrences, activities, and other things that make the news.”

She adds that “a holistic approach, one that grounds data — reporting — in the particular social environment, would go a long way in reversing the loss of trust in mainstream journalism.” A lack of understanding the historic foundations of communities has impeded a complete interpretation of the political environment.

“Journalism that allows for the creation of a ‘more full picture,’ a better understanding of the topic of focus, matters more for our being able to grasp why things are the way that they are,” she said.

Posted: January 6, 2020
Category: College News, Marion B. Brechner First Amendment Project News
Tagged as: Jasmine McNealy, Mira Lowe, Nieman Lab