The Indiana Publisher

Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust $1,000 Environmental Journalism Award Hoosier State Press Association Foundation The Nina Mason Pulliam Environmental Award was created through a grant by the Pulliam Trust to the Hoosier State Press Association Foundation to recognize Indiana journalists for outstanding reporting on environmental issues. Beginning in 2018, the annual award will be a part of the HSPA Better Newspaper Contest. It will be presented at the Newsroom Seminar where Indiana newspaper journalists are honored each December. About 40 individuals attended this week's "The More You (F)Actually Know: Media Literacy and Why It Matters" panel discus- sion in Indianapolis' Central Library and the audience was restless. Panelists Matt Shafer Powell of WFYI and Lynn Sygiel, former director of Y-Press, the youth media organization that produced content for The Indianapolis Star, were interrupted early by one gray-haired individual who was my age that almost angrily demanded the panel- ists to explain why "fake news" was even an issue. I can appreciate why he was frus- trated. Growing up in Indianapolis, fake news was never an issue. There were three national TV net- works and in my family home, it was Walter Cronkite who informed us of what was happening nation- ally and globally. My parents subscribed to The Indianapolis Star and The Indianapolis Times, until its demise, and then The Indianapolis News as the second newspaper. These sourc- es of local news were supplemented by the evening local newscasts. We followed Howard Caldwell and later Mike Ahern. When in the car, it was the news team at WIBC that alerted us to breaking news. All of the above were credible, reliable sources of news. Fake news wasn't a thing. You knew that political opinion would be found on the Editorial Page or through the work of columnists. When sta- tion manager Lee Giles was on air, there was a box on the TV screen that told everyone he was giving an editorial, not news. We understood the role of journal- ists, which was driven home by the work of The Washington Post fol- lowing the Watergate break-in. And we understood the three branches of government through civic education lessons in grade school or classes in high school on world or U.S. history. Decades later, the world is a dif- ferent place. The explosion of chan- nels through cable TV followed by news options through the Internet and now social media allows each of us to customize where we turn for the news. A creature of habit, I still largely rely upon traditional media outlets who I trust to employ journalistic ethics in their creation of news stories. I still grab My Indianapolis Star off the driveway in the morn- ing and try to catch the evening newscasts. I have added a couple of shows, time allowed, in the evening off of cable TV understanding that The 11th Hour or Rachel Maddow Show is more political commentary than news. Unfortunately, I believe many Americans don't understand the dif- ference between cable TV political news commentary and journalistic reporting of news. Maybe it's because civics has become an after- thought in our educational system – electives like history, journalism, the arts are being pushed aside because schools must teach to the test (English and math) so that their numbers look good when graded by the state. This civic and journalistic illit- eracy is reflected in a study by two professors associated with New York University and Stanford University published in The Journal of Economic Perspectives. They found that the most important source of Election News in 2016 was Cable TV at 23.8 percent. Social media came in at 13.8 per- cent. I add it because fake news websites relied upon social media for 41.8 percent of its traffic. Without the training to differenti- ate between journalistic-produced news, political commentary or fake news, is it any wonder that the pub- lic's trust of the media has fallen, according to Gallup polls, from 53 percent in 1997 to 32 percent in 2016. It's worth noting that the drop among Republicans over that period has dropped from 41 percent to 14 percent. So what can we as a news indus- try do? We can no longer assume our readers, whether in print or elec- tronically, understand how we produce the news. We must take every opportunity to explain how we verify information, seek out the truth through multiple sources and separate news coverage from edito- rial opinion. We should encourage local dis- tricts to not neglect, but encourage high school journalism programs and civic education. If Americans don't understand the three branches of government and the concept of separation of powers, they'll never appreciate the role of an indepen- dent press (media) as the watchdog for democracy. Page 4 Key Points Steve Key We can no longer assume readers understand how we produce news November 2017 Employee Sought Managing Editor – Are you comfort- able with telling stories in multiple ways? Do you like to dig into a subject to learn more than what's on the surface? Do you thrive in an environment with a creative team ready to present your work on a vari- ety of platforms? The Kokomo Tribune, one of the 10 largest daily newspapers in Indiana and just hour north of downtown Indianapolis, is looking for an experienced managing editor to join its team. Kokomo is north central Indiana's hub for employment, retail and medical care. There is no shortage of good stories here. Daily work will be balanced with the chance to really explore a topic through regular enterprise. We recognize the need to tell stories in many ways and have the expertise, including a staff videographer, to make that happen. From our incredibly talented photographers to our website wiz, we have all the tools to share stories how- ever they should be told. Prior experience as a section editor is a must. Email a resume, a cover letter and three of the best enterprise pieces you wrote or directed, preferably in digital form, to Editor Jeff Kovaleski at jeff.kovaleski@kokomotribune.com Multi-Media Account Executive – If you would enjoy being part of a positive professional environment where your income is determined by your success, and if you recognize that hard work pre- cedes rewards, apply today. Successful candidates should have: • Enthusiasm and drive to get the job done • Be goal-oriented and self-directed • The ability to work in Excel, Word, PowerPoint • The ability to keep both internal and external customers happy • Attention to detail • Great organizational skills, and the ability to prioritize several projects at once • And above all – a positive and profes- sional attitude This full-time position offers base pay plus an aggressive monthly bonus pro- gram. Your earnings will be commensurate with your success! If this seems like the kind of opportunity you are looking for, please send a resume, cover letter to: Mark Sheridan Regional Director of Sales Southeastern Indiana Media Mark.sheridan@indianamediagroup.com Post and read employment notices at hspa.com/jobs. Direct questions about posting jobs to news@hspa.com. • Data-driven sales and pricing strategies • See how your market compares to others • Plan, build and map advertising proposals • Identify new business prospects Actionable business intelligence and results-driven tools For more information, contact: Mike Petrak: mpetrak@tacticianmedia.com or (303) 253-5333 Lisa Szal: lszal@tacticianmedia.com or (636) 534-4493

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