For responsible election coverage, local news can lead the way
As the smoke clears from the political conventions and the nation lurches toward Nov. 3, all eyes will be on the media and the way it covers the race for the White House and congress.

Some of those eyes will be turned to bitterly partisan media that plays to its base. If you’re enamored with Sean Hannity on Fox or Rachel Maddow on MSNBC, the odds that you’re still persuadable in terms of your presidential choice are extremely low.  

That said, there is still an opportunity for media in the middle of the political spectrum (ABC, CBS, NPR) and especially local media to report the election in a responsible, bipartisan way that informs and empowers viewers rather than polarizing and angering them.

Local media are especially well-positioned to inform skeptical voters. According to a 2019 Gallup poll, 45% of Americans trust reporting by local news organizations “a great deal” or “quite a lot,” compared with 31% for national news organizations. In fact, 54% of respondents said local media did an excellent or good job of “making sure people in your local area have the knowledge they need to be informed about public affairs.” 

Local media, then, can leverage this trust to produce electoral reporting that presents reports that tell audiences what to think about, rather than what to think, in a non-partisan, balanced, and objective way. In a perusal of KC television news websites on Aug, 31, there are locally produced news stories that fit this criteria, like several from Fox 4 KC (“Two Kansas doctors but differing Covid 19 takes in Senate race”; 2020 Voter guide focuses on issues of importance for Kansas kids”; “National get out the vote campaigns cause confusion locally”). On KCTV’s website, there are a few Covid stories, but no stories directly related to the election. (However, there is lots of crime coverage). On KSHB’s site, there is an Election 2020 navigation bar at the top. On the elections page, there is a handy guide that categorized election news by subject (economy, race relations, coronavirus, etc.) There are also local stories on the Kansas senate race, and voter confusion in Johnson County. On the KMBC website, under local news, there were a few Covid stories, but no election-related news.

Exemplary, responsible local broadcast coverage can be found on KCUR 90.3fm and at KCUR.org. Recent “Up to Date” talk show segments have included reports on voting with the Missouri secretary of state, interviews with area RNC and DNC delegates, and ongoing coverage of Black Lives Matter and its impact on local and national politics. Under the local news tab on KCUR.org, there is an Election 2020 header that has useful information on how to vote absentee or in advance, and a “meet the candidates” story on those running for a Missouri state senate seat.

While there is a lot of good information out there, both local and national media can better serve the public by downplaying the ubiquitous and ultimately unproductive flood of stories about which candidate is ahead in the latest poll. A study of the 2016 presidential campaign by the Harvard Shorenstein Center found that, in five major newspapers, “almost half of each candidate’s coverage focused on the horse race (43% for Hillary Clinton and 42% for Donald Trump), much more than was devoted to their policy stands (9% for Clinton and 12% for Trump).” 

Horse race coverage, according to Harvard University researcher and professor Dr. Thomas Patterson, is linked to an uninformed electorate as well as distrust in politicians and media outlets. In addition, such coverage shortchanges female candidates who rely on policy positions to build credibility, and third party candidates who aren’t seen as legitimate. (Link)

Finally, recognizing the increasing political polarization, the responsible journalist would give a voice to the politically voiceless—in this case, the moderates and compromisers, instead of exclusively spotlighting the extreme, divisive voices on either end of the political spectrum.

So while we can’t expect much to change on cable TV, local media particularly can play an important role in producing a more thoughtful, and less emotional and reflexively partisan, electorate.

Zoom seminar reaches, energizes 255 Sudanese journalists
I’ve given perhaps a hundred peace journalism seminars and workshops in 27 countries around the world. The seminar I presented for Sudanese journalists last week, sponsored by the U.S. Embassy and U.S. State Dept., was perhaps the most interesting, and definitely the most unique.

First, the three day workshop was presented entirely via Zoom. Secondly, the seminar set a record for the largest single peace journalism seminar with 255 participants from 15 of the 18 regions of Sudan. The participant-journalists were mostly gathered at universities. And third, despite the size and virtual nature of the seminar, the participants were unusually eager to share their viewpoints and experiences.

The first day of the seminar featured an introduction to peace journalism. I led a discussion about what responsible journalism should do, and should look like, in Sudan. Several participants discussed the importance of freedom of the press as a prerequisite to improving journalism, and hoped that the 2019 revolution will pave the way for expanded press freedoms. There is still substantial improvement needed in this area, however. Human Rights Watch and others have reported on recent efforts by the army to threaten and muzzle critical journalists using the same anti-freedom laws wielded by the previous autocratic Sudanese regime. 

Several other journalists mentioned the important role journalism should play in “celebrating diversity” and rejecting traditional “us vs. them” narratives, one of the cornerstones of peace journalism.  Others still emphasized the importance of being unbiased, and that this is especially important in reporting about other ethnic groups.

The most interesting question of the day was whether it is okay for journalists to exaggerate a story if this exaggeration would create greater awareness of a vitally important issue. My response invoked “the boy who cried wolf.” What happens, I asked, when there is a story of great importance? Will the public think we’re exaggerating it? Every time we exaggerate and sensationalize, we lose our credibility, I noted.

On day two, we discussed social media and its central role in the revolution. One participant said that using social media, “People promoting the revolution were guiding the narrative…They were aware of what was happening in real spaces. They conveyed the information. Traditional journalism was limited by the security apparatus and couldn’t participate as fully as they would have liked.”

We also discussed the central role of media in reconciliation processes. Journalists from Gedarif University said in the chat room, “The media has a vanguard role in resolving conflicts and ethnic and racial differences by proposing continuous awareness programs to leave differences and look to the future of the specific region to achieve security and peace through coexistence and acceptance of the other, as well as producing interactive programs for the local community on conflicts and disagreements that divide society.”

There were also many interesting interactions during the third and final day of the seminar.

We discussed coverage of the conflict in Darfur. One participant said that the coverage was completely biased, and hindered by multiple obstacles. “Journalists tried to highlight events, but were coerced (by authorities) to highlight alternative narratives and forced to show a state narrative,” she said.

“We couldn’t maintain neutrality,” said another journalist. There were ethnic cleavages, but journalists were “not able to cover them adequately.”

In terms of reporting about the civic unrest that led to the overthrow of the Bashir regime in 2019, journalists noted that “official media was very limited and diminished in its capacity…to convey demands of the people.” Others agreed, noting that the State acted “with a fist of iron.” Those who spoke agreed that social media was best able to present the news and the “peaceful nature of the revolution.”

The seminar was made possible by the civilian-led transitional government (CLTG) and the United States Embassy, which share a “ number one priority to establish peace” in Sudan, according to Public Affairs Officer Keith Hughes. Since Covid -19 made my travel impossible, the decision was made to hold the seminars virtually. Further, holding the seminar required the State Dept. and CLTG to convince Zoom executives to life the block on Sudanese IP addresses using Zoom.

It is my plan to make a face to face visit to Sudan to continue our discussions about peace journalism sometime in 2021—inshallah, as they say in Arabic.

 Sudan peace journalism seminar

The world's largest PJ seminar--255 participants--is being held on Zoom this week (Monday, Thursday, Friday). So far, so great--a very active, vibrant group; no technical glitches; reasonably coherent presentations (by me).

Stay tuned for details--I'll blog about this on Monday.

Call for Papers-The Peace Journalist

I hope this message finds you and your loved ones safe and healthy.

The Peace Journalist magazine is seeking submissions for our October, 2020 edition. 

The Peace Journalist is a semi-annual publication (print and .pdf) of the Center for Global Peace Journalism at Park University in Parkville, Missouri. The Peace Journalist is dedicated to disseminating news and information for and about teachers, students, and practitioners of peace and conflict sensitive journalism.

Submissions are welcome from all. We seek submissions of 500-1500 words about peace media, peace and conflict sensitive journalism projects, and research into peace journalism and media and conflict.

Please submit your article via email to steve.youngblood@park.edu. 

Your article must have a strong media/peace, media/peacebuilding, and/or conflict sensitive journalism angle. The Peace Journalist does not run general articles about peace initiatives or projects.

The submission deadline is Sept. 3. However, it’s advisable to submit your article early, since space is always an issue.

To see copies of the most recent Peace Journalist, and to peruse past issues, go to:

https://www.park.edu/academics/explore-majors-programs/peace-studies-minor/center-global-peace-journalism-2/peace-journalist/

Thank you in advance for your interest in the Peace Journalist.

Steven Youngblood
Editor, The Peace Journalist

Director, Center for Global Peace Journalism

Park University

Parkville, MO USA

www.park.edu/peacecenter

Twitter: @PeaceJourn