Journalism

Bridging the Great Health Divide is an ambitious new experiment in collaborative journalism that Gray Television plans to start rolling out in March. Supported by $200,000 from the Google News Initiative, its multiplatform coverage will take a fresh look at the longtime health disparities in both Appalachia and the Mississippi Delta, two sprawling regions where health indicators and outcomes are far worse than the national average — and where the group has more than 25 TV stations serving affected communities.

Oliver Darcy: “As we cover D.C. politics and the fallout from last week’s attack, we should not forget that thousands of Americans continue to lose their lives each day to this ruthless virus. And while the vaccine rollout is gradually improving, the situation right now is, frankly, very alarming and urgent.”

Simmering tensions between journalists and managers at Voice of America grew into open rebellion Thursday, with more than two dozen newsroom employees signing a petition demanding the immediate resignation of their new director and his top deputy.

Sinclair’s ABC affiliate in North Carolina’s Triad is debuting 6 and 11 p.m. newscasts on Jan. 18.

As the historic events unfolded on Capitol Hill during the afternoon and evening of Jan. 6, people around the world tuned into news networks and social media to follow what was happening. The TV networks also harnessed social platforms such as YouTube to share breaking news, videos and more as the Capitol was thrown into chaos.

CNN led the way in cable news ratings during Wednesday’s impeachment of outgoing President Donald Trump, according to early Nielsen Media Research data. According to Nielsen, from 12:30 p.m. ET to 4:45 p.m. Wednesday, CNN brought in a total of 3.804 million average viewers. MSNBC was in second place among the big three cable news networks, pulling in an average of 2.581 million. Fox News delivered 1.391 million average total viewers in that time period.

The National Association of Broadcasters joined in a letter from a coalition of news organizations to federal law enforcement agencies Thursday, saying they wanted more information about the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol as well as the potential for further violence around the inauguration of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.

ABC News is promoting 20/20 Senior Producer Janice Johnston to the role of executive producer. She will be just the fourth person to lead 20/20 as executive producer in nearly 43 years.

No-holds-barred reportage has been given more of a spotlight in the Zucker era, but there are concerns his time may be nearing an end. A Zucker farewell is a real possibility, according to four people familiar with the matter, spurring no small amount of hand-wringing at the AT&T-owned news stalwart. The executive has indicated he’s unsure if he wants to continue much longer, these people say, citing his eight years managing the outlet during one of the most intense news cycles in recent memory.

Nexstar Media Group’s cable network WGN America has reached a multi-year comprehensive agreement with Vidgo, and will be carried by the live TV streaming platform beginning on Jan. 15. In […]

She is tapped to oversee the station group’s digital content teams as senior director and managing editor.

Scripps and the News Literacy Project launch a creative campaign ahead of the second annual National News Literacy Week, Jan. 25-29.

Margaret Sullivan: “What’s happened in the journalism sphere is complicated. Tragically, crucial sources of local news have withered, while the toxic media of the radical right thrives. The reality-based national press, though flawed and stuck for too long in outdated conventions, has managed to do its job — with dedication and with bravery, given the dangers created by Trump’s antipathy to what he calls ‘the enemy of the people.’ ”

As the Murdoch tabloid navigates a fraught political moment, high-level editors instructed reporters not to base articles on reporting by four news outlets that President Trump has falsely labeled “fake news.”

NAB President Gordon Smith: “The work of the press to keep the American public informed during these dark times has been admirable, valuable and — because of an unacceptable and alarming lack of information provided by law enforcement officials — necessary. It is imperative that law enforcement not only address the American people about the possibility of danger in the days ahead, but also provide security briefings to news media to help keep journalists safe while reporting from the field.”

From the ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic and George Floyd protests around the world to the contested 2020 presidential election and last week’s storming of the U.S. Capitol by insurgents, O’Donnell says “journalism is more important than ever. There’s a thirst for information because there’s so much going on in the world.”

Doocy’s new position begins Jan. 20. Kristin Fisher will continue as White House Correspondent.

Americans are losing trust in leaders across every area of their lives — and the information coming from every source of their news, according to the 21st annual Edelman Trust Barometer, out Wednesday, which measures trust in institutions globally. The sobering report shows that people crave facts more than ever, but most have bad habits and a growing distrust of everything from journalists to vaccines and contact tracing.

CNN averaged 5.2 million viewers last Wednesday, eclipsing its previous high of 5.1 million on Election Day 2016, Nielsen said. NBC, led by a strong NFL playoff game Sunday night between the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers, was the top broadcast network last week, averaging 8.6 million viewers in primetime. CBS had 5.7 million, ABC had 3.8 million, Fox had 2.5 million, Univision had 1.4 million, Ion Television had 1.1 million and Telemundo had 920,000.

Margaret Kreger Ashburn has been assistant news director for the last two years at the Graham Media NBC affiliate in Roanoke, Va.