The Observatory
Mechanical Band-Aids
Press wrestles with techno-optimism while BP seeks to stop oil spill
By Curtis Brainard Jun 3, 2010 at 03:06 PM
Thank God or whomever. The nuclear option has never been, and never will be, on the table amongst other options... More
Seeping Questions
What do you want to know about the Gulf oil spill?
By The Editors Jun 2, 2010 at 02:32 PM
Six weeks after the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has... More
See No Evil, Report No Evil
Covering the oil spill, reporters must ensure that what’s out of sight isn’t out of mind
By Brett Norman May 28, 2010 at 03:37 PM
The gall of BP and their federal overseers in withholding the fact that the “top kill” effort was suspended for... More
Muddling On
Lukewarm media reception to comprehensive new reports on climate change
By Brett Norman May 21, 2010 at 12:26 PM
The Earth is warming thanks to the human industrial complex, we must price carbon emissions in some way and soon... More
Who’s Watching the World, Now?
Changes in media climate snuff out two in-depth environmental reporting outlets
By Brett Norman May 18, 2010 at 02:23 PM
With untold millions of gallons of crude oil spewing into the Gulf and a troubling outlook for energy legislation in... More
Go Fish
Have reporters paid sufficient attention to the Gulf spill’s impact on marine life?
By Curtis Brainard May 12, 2010 at 03:40 PM
On Tuesday morning, Agence France-Presse reported that “Louisiana's charter fishermen are slamming media coverage of the Gulf oil spill for... More
EPA Officials Demand Anonymity
“Hush-hush” conference calls anger reporters
By Curtis Brainard May 7, 2010 at 02:47 PM
Twice in the last three months, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has ordered reporters not to name the agency officials... More
A “Slick” Numbers Game
Fixation on exact spill rate belies worrisome uncertainties
By Brett Norman May 4, 2010 at 05:36 PM
Monday night, Jon Stewart laid into coverage of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, noting the disaster... More
Crude Coverage at the Times
News analysis displays gross lack of concern about Gulf spill
By Curtis Brainard May 4, 2010 at 03:30 PM
The Deepwater Horizon drilling rig that exploded on April 20, causing the massive oil spill currently unfolding in the Gulf... More
Paper or Pixels?
News Corp.’s efforts to go carbon-neutral raise questions about the future of sustainable publishing
By Thomas K. Zellers Apr 30, 2010 at 05:40 PM
Amidst the steady decline of newspaper circulation in the U.S., could industry concern for carbon emissions affect the relationship between... More
Green Like Money
Earth Day coverage shows how much the environmental movement has changed
By Brett Norman Apr 28, 2010 at 03:57 PM
Earth Day rose from a powerfully anti-corporate, grassroots movement, revved up on 1960s idealism and genuine fear inspired by books... More
The Voice of the Affected
How the media are improving humanitarian aid post-Haiti
By Curtis Brainard Apr 26, 2010 at 10:25 AM
A team of media-development experts that has been working with radio stations in earthquake-damaged Haiti to provide critical information to... More
To Inspire and Explain
With NASA’s future uncertain, press must weigh science versus exploration
By Brett Norman Apr 23, 2010 at 07:30 AM
[Editor’s note: This is the second in a two-part series examining recent coverage of President Obama’s plans for the future... More
Spaceballs
Fox News article about NASA’s future stokes Cold War fears with false experts
By Brett Norman Apr 21, 2010 at 01:55 AM
[Editor’s note: This is the first in a two-part series examining recent coverage of President Obama’s plans for the future... More
Will Collaborative Climate Coverage Work?
Mother Jones and six other outlets step into the unknown
By Thomas K. Zellers Apr 19, 2010 at 02:52 PM
With the Senate poised for an “uphill push” to pass climate and energy legislation, and numerous surveys saying that Americans’... More
#Realtalk: This isn’t another ‘golden age’ for print - But it is one for media
Social media in smaller markets - How three social media managers deal with smaller markets and more local coverage.
A rally for laid-off Sun-Times photogs - A protest Thursday morning drew about 150 picketers to the newspaper’s headquarters
Reporting, or illegal hacking - Scripps reporters are accused of violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act
Exchange Watch: California Dreaming - Low healthcare premiums on the West Coast were trumpeted as a big, good-news Obamacare story. But: “Compared to what?”
Rolling Stone remembers Michael Hastings, dead at 33
The bold journalist died in a car accident in Los Angeles
On the journalistic value of being “a dick”
Buzzfeed’s statement on the death of its reporter
The disappearance of ‘Sports of the Times’
CJR’s panel discussion on coverage of gay marriage
On the eve of two related SCOTUS decisions, how should journalists be covering the issue?
CJR's Guide to Online News Startups
Uptown Messenger – Hyperlocal news for a neighborhood in New Orleans
Who Owns What
The Business of Digital Journalism
A report from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
Questions and exercises for journalism students.
