Q: What is a whistleblower and how does a journalist work with one? A: A whistleblower is a person who reveals information about wrongdoing in an […]

Q: Should journalists take sides or be independent? A: Many journalists try to be objective in their work, which means they don’t take s […]

Q: Can AI be used to create misinformation? A: ChatGPT and other AI writing tools have the potential to revolutionize many areas of our world, but […]

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There is some evidence that it can, and two political scientists recently performed an interesting experiment to find out. David Broockman of the University of California at Berkeley and Joshua Kalla of […]

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Chances are we all know someone – a family member, a friend, a classmate, or a co-worker – who believes in conspiracy theories. In fact, more than half of Americans believe in at least one conspiracy the […]

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There are two distinct situations that could lead to this scenario. In one, a reporter is working on a story but one of the sources is questionable. Perhaps the source’s story doesn’t add up, or facts can’ […]

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Citizen journalism, particularly the recording of breaking news through photos and video, is an essential part of modern reporting. But it is only half of the work. It is the job of journalists to put this […]

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Let’s start by breaking down that question. What is the media? That term is so broad, it includes news organizations, entertainment companies, and social media influencers. 

We recently learned the de […]

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You are absolutely correct. I am often amazed at how quickly an interesting story that impacts a huge number of people drops off the radar. 

When a story has developments that feed the coverage over […]

TV stations don’t spy on each other with secret cameras or listening devices — but they do keep close tabs on each other. Producers and assignment desk editors typically watch multiple broadcasts at a time wh […]

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Surprisingly, yes. Last year, hackers managed to take over some verified accounts on Twitter and change the handle — but keep the blue checkmark. This allowed them to very effectively impersonate other […]

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Deepfake videos, which superimpose images on videos that aren’t real, are becoming more sophisticated. Jordan Peele made one of President Barack Obama (which was shown in class) to illustrate the dangers. O […]

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Specifically enough to show the source has credibility without being so specific that the source is inadvertently identified. The Associated Press offers guidance on this. According to the AP […]

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Much like on the schoolyard, there are no “take-backs.” If a source is talking to a reporter, it is presumed to be on the record unless otherwise stated. If a source says something he or she later regr […]

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This is a question of transparency and journalism ethics. And yes, some journalists and news organizations have been criticized and held responsible in court for just this situation.

In fact, […]

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The first step is to realize that an algorithm is determining what news you see (and what you don’t). That is true on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Google News, Apple News, Google search and many other n […]

A: Raw information can be very valuable. Often when news breaks, tweets and other social media posts with photos, video, and eyewitness observations are the first indications of what has happened. 

However, […]

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It’s not easy, but verifying information in places where it is logistically and politically difficult — and sometimes dangerous — is the job of foreign correspondents. They develop sources in the g […]

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A new report issued Wednesday by the Committee to Protect Journalists says the countries that censor journalists the most are Eritrea, North Korea, and Turkmenistan. It was the first time the CPJ has […]