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The Scripps Howard Fund is investing $3 million to help student journalists learn how to cover under-reported communities while combatting misinformation and providing important journalism.
The Fund selected The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) to host the Roy Howard Community Journalism Center. USM, which plans to launch the center during the 2024-25 academic year, will receive $1 million per year for three years to create and operate the center.
The center was established in honor of Roy W. Howard, former chairman of the Scripps Howard newspaper chain. Led by a team of professional journalists and instructors, the center will help students provide reliable reporting in their community while building relationships and trust. As part of their coverage, students also will debunk false information and seek to expose the sources of misinformation for their audiences.
Canan, director of journalism strategies for the Scripps Howard Fund, said: “The expansion of news deserts across the country is having a profound impact on the people who live in these communities. Student journalists — who are the future of the profession — have a chance to help solve that problem. We believe the investment in the Community Journalism Center at USM will provide essential news coverage in the entire Southeast Mississippi region. It also will help students learn how to reach people living in places that no longer have news coverage and might not be eager to trust journalists.”
The Roy Howard Community Journalism Center at USM will include:
Experiential learning: USM will develop