In the wake of how the news media covered last week’s presidential and down-ballot elections and their aftermaths, you may want to revisit the News Engagement Day panel discussion in early October that dealt with whether facts still matter in political coverage.
In that discussion – co-sponsored by the Chippewa Valley Post and Wisconsin Public Radio – panelists noted that 2020 political campaign coverage faced challenges ranging from disinformation on social media to the need for news media to build trust with their audiences.
They also noted – accurately – that the outcome of the presidential race was likely to remain unclear for at least several days after Nov. 3.
The online discussion was recorded and can be viewed at https://youtu.be/t69cquZ7s2c.
Other topics that received attention from the panelists included the election’s impact on state redistricting following the 2020 census and the need to include diverse perspectives in political reporting.
The CVPost account of the panel can be found here.
News Engagement Day is aimed at getting people of all ages involved with “news” in some way. Its goal is also to serve as a reminder of the important role that free news media play in a democracy.
Panel participants included Julian Emerson, now a reporter for UpNorthNews after a lengthy stint at the Eau Claire Leader-Telegram; Rich Kremer, a reporter for Wisconsin Public Radio; Prof. Geoff Peterson, chair of the UW-Eau Claire Political Science department; and Kristen Shill, news director at WQOW-TV in Eau Claire. Prof. Jan Larson, chair of the UW-EC Communication and Journalism department, was the moderator.