Journalism In the Time of Crisis

is an international symposium to be hosted online this Oct. 22-23 by the Journalism program at Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication. We will engage with a global network of experts to examine the nexus between journalism and the COVID-19 pandemic to find lessons for journalism practice and study in the future.

Seizing upon the greatest international crisis in a generation, the main goal of the event is to identify the role played by journalism, how the crisis itself has shaped journalism and how best to absorb the lessons learned.

You can register for the event now using this Eventbrite site. Prior to the event, registrants will be directed to the Socio platform that will be used by participants to engage with the speakers and panel discussions.

Carleton’s journalism school, the oldest in Canada, was founded in October 1945 in the wake of the Second World War; we are launching events marking this 75th anniversary with this virtual gathering of experts and practitioners to share insights about journalism’s role in another global crisis. The symposium will be convened on the Socio platform to maximize the ability of registrants to engage with the experts during more than 20 panels and keynote presentations over two days. The online forum will also feature an international town hall for journalism students and discussion of how journalism education can foster essential skills for crisis reporting among students and practicing journalists.

Journalism as an industry and a profession was already experiencing a crisis when the COVID-19 pandemic plunged the world into a state of deep uncertainty. And yet, people around the world have turned to journalists to help them make sense of the most significant social and economic crisis of our generation. The symposium will explore the fascinating intersection of journalism and the COVID-19 crisis to assess both short and long-term impacts. We will examine such issues as the role journalists have played during the pandemic, the impact of the crisis on journalism practice and business models, the future of local news, the ongoing contest between journalism and misinformation, threats to global media freedom, the impact in the global south and the implications for journalism education.

Speakers:

The full agenda will be posted soon. Featured speakers and panelists scheduled to take part include:

• Ed Yong, The Atlantic
• Andre Picard, Globe and Mail health reporter and columnist
• Richard Fletcher, Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, University of Oxford
• Teresa Tam, Chief Public Health Officer of Canada
• Daniel Dale, CNN
• Althia Raj, Huffington Post Canada
• Obi Anyadike, The New Humanitarian
• Jayme Poisson, Front Burner, CBC
• Laxmi Parthasarathy, Global Press Institute
• Anthony Feinstein, University of Toronto
• Erin Ailworth, Wall Street Journal
• Adrienne Arsenault, CBC’s The National
• Peter Van Dusen, CPAC
• Vera Etches, Medical Officer of Health, Ottawa
• Joel Eastwood, Wall Street Journal
• Patti Sonntag, Project Pandemic, Concordia University
• Alberto Cairo, University of Miami
• Tara Kirk Sell, John Hopkins University
• Phillip Crawley, Globe and Mail
• Alan Soon, Spice Media, Singapore
• Alison Uncles, Maclean’s
• Cheryl McKenize, APTN
• Charelle Evelyn, The Hill Times
• Julie Posetti, ICFJ
• Adrian Harewood, CBC Ottawa
• Danielle Kilgo, University of Minnesota
• Vik Adhopia, CBC
• Helen Branswell, STAT News
• Brian Goldman, CBC
• April Lindgren, Ryerson University
• Jennifer Leask, Langara College
• Maryn McKenna, Knight Foundation/Emory University

This project is supported by Canada’s Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). Carleton’s journalism program is partnering for this event with the Centre of International Governance Innovation (CIGI), the American Press Institute (API), the Center for International Media Assistance (CIMA) and the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ).