Journalism

Between Us, a digital-only series from Al Jazeera, aims to generate “more of a human story” from veteran correspondents using animation, illustration and other novel storytelling tools.

Despite all the impassioned pleas to salvage local news coverage, the reality is there’s a demand-side problem.

Veteran CNN correspondent told viewers Monday that she recently had surgery for ovarian cancer and will undergo chemotherapy for a period of weeks. Amanapour, who has not been hosting her program for CNN’s international outlets for the past four weeks, returned to the air Monday and opened her program with remarks about her condition.

The Society of Professional Journalists has announced the recipients of the 2020 Sigma Delta Chi Awards for excellence in journalism. Founded in 1909 as Sigma Delta Chi, SPJ promotes the free flow of information vital to a well-informed citizenry; works to inspire and educate the next generation of journalists; and protects First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech and press.

Accelerating climate change and its far-flung effects have  fast become the most important story in the news cycle. But that isn’t always the stuff that gets talked about or tweeted — or the biggest ratings. Now the Weather Channel is making climate change a bigger part of its overall focus. The cable network over the next several months plans to infuse climate coverage into its morning, afternoon and even  entertainment programs in a way that Nora Zimmett, the outlet’s chief content officer, believes will make for reports that audiences won’t be able to ignore.

Today, some of the largest newspaper groups in the country —such as Tribune, McClatchy and Media News Group — are owned, controlled by or in debt to hedge funds or private equity groups. In fact, hedge funds and other financial firms control half of the daily newspapers in the United States.

New jobs posted to TVNewsCheck’s Media Job Center this week include openings for a multimedia sales account exec, a news producer, a general manager, a national sales manager, a broadcast technology manager, a senior account exec and a digital sales director.

Government leak hunters have been ratcheting up pressure on the ability of journalists to do their jobs for a generation — a push fueled by changing technology and fraught national-security issues that arose after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Now, those tensions have reached an inflection point.

“It is a tremendous honor to win not only one, but two Pulitzer Prizes for photography, and a true testament to the talent and dedication of AP photojournalists,” said AP President-CEO Gary Pruitt. “These photographers told the stories of the year through remarkable and unforgettable images that resonated around the world.”

Next week, Gray’s Memphis NBC affiliate WMC is expected to launch (very softly) a new digital channel called WMC Plus — or in effect two digital channels. A linear version will be broadcast over the air while an on-demand version streams on the station’s OTT app. WMC Plus won’t officially kick off with a full slate of original programs until September, but the project is already a model of collaboration and innovation that balances technical challenges, creativity and experimentation with careful planning and cost controls.

During its months-long investigation, the TMJ4 I-Team regularly reported on Wisconsin’s overly complicated and neglected unemployment system, which collapsed under the pressure of the pandemic. It helped 83 people collect nearly $400,000 in unemployment back pay.

The news director at the company’s flagship station, WCVB Boston, moves into a corporate role. She succeeds Andrew Vrees, who recently was named GM of Hearst’s WMUR Manchester, N.H.

Join Dalet on June 23 for a live keynote presented by Raoul Cospen, director of product strategy, news at Dalet, who will be interviewed by TVNewsCheck Editor Michael Depp. They will discuss the next generation of storycentric workflows and how you can supercharge your newsroom’s performance. Register here.

Streaming executives from CBS News Digital, Fox Television Stations, Gray Television and KSL Salt Lake City say live and local content, good UX and quality control are key factors in finding and retaining audiences in the highly competitive OTT space.