New Today: NPR checks in with our research director
Our director of research Dr. Jessica Beard discusses harmful gun violence reporting on Consider This. (Jump to 4:05 for Dr. Beard or listen to the whole report.)
Meeting with journalists
From left: Maxayn Gooden, Hanae Mason, Oronde McClain and Yvonne Latty
Two of our staffers and two critical partners participated in a session on preventing harmful gun violence reporting on Saturday, January 28 at the Klein Camp news innovation unconference at Temple University.
Our Credible Messenger Community Manager Maxayn Gooden and Credible Messenger Newsroom Liaison Oronde McClain took part, along with Hanae Mason, who led the “Thriving” storytelling initiative at Technically Philly.
Gun violence survivors identify harmful media coverage: New study
Above: Our research collaborative met at Temple University last year.
Reliving the trauma. Frustrated with inaccuracies. Feeling dehumanized. These were just some of the harmful effects that gun violence survivors described when asked how they perceived news media reporting about their injuries and about gun violence in their communities.
That’s according to a new study from a collaborative of Philadelphia researchers coordinated by our Director of Research, Dr. Jessica Beard.
“These interviews reveal the need for journalists to stop episodic snapshot reporting of individual incidents of interpersonal firearm violence and concentrate on producing more in-depth reporting that presents root causes and solutions, and gives voice to those who are directly impacted,” said Dr. Beard. “It’s time for reporting on firearm violence to be part of the solution,” she added.
Twenty-six gunshot patients participated in this study. Of these, half were aware of TV, newspaper or social media coverage of their shooting though none had been interviewed by a journalist.
The harmful reporting illuminated by this study demonstrates the need for ethical guidelines and recommendations for best practices specific to covering gun violence.
Our team participated in “Changing the Narrative on Gun Violence: The Role of Media,” a new webinar from the Stoneleigh Foundation, where they are now also seeking are seeking applications from organizations interested in hosting an Emerging Leader Fellowship focused on addressing gun violence. WATCH THE VIDEO |MORE INFO
What’s Been Done & What’s To Come
As we begin the new year, it’s appropriate to pause and reflect on all that has been accomplished in 2022. Our work won’t be finished soon but we are proud of victories at The Center and those in the larger ecosystem. READ MORE
New. Needed. Now.
This campaign will profile those working with The Center to advance empathic, ethical, and impactful journalism through research, improved journalistic practices, credible messenger reporting, and solutions-oriented convenings about Philadelphia’s gun violence crisis . Please consider making a gift today.
New. Needed. Now. – Purposeful Partnership with Yvonne Latty
New. Needed. Now. – Asking Questions with Dr. Jessica Beard.
One day, when you watch the local news, you might not see those pictures of chalk markings and police tape. You might think back to the time when episodic coverage of violence – rather than a public health approach – was the norm. You might even wonder why things changed. READ MORE
New. Needed. Now. – Endings and Beginnings with Maxayn Gooden
She helps build healing communities. She keeps her son’s legacy alive. And, much of that great work has roots in the days following Jahsun’s death. READ MORE
New. Needed. Now. – Oronde’s Time of Transformation.
Many people already know Oronde McClain’s story. In fact, Cherri Gregg of WHYY is one of the journalists that has shared it. Shortly after being interviewed by Cherri, Oronde returned with a different request. He wanted her help doing some of his own reporting. READ MORE
Better Gun Violence Reporting Workshop
Nearly 60 Philadelphia TV news journalists, community leaders and other experts came together to imagine how we can lead the way in our city to advance the most ethical, empathetic and impactful reporting possible. READ MORE
Our director of research Dr. Jessica Beard discussed our work on Trauma Code at WBAI in New York.
Credible Messenger Film Festival, 2022
We weld our first-ever Credible Messenger Film Festival last summer, screened every short documentary we have supported to date, and followed each screening with a panel discussion including some of the community journalists, producers and professional partners behind each production as well as some of the people who appeared. READ MORE
Audio documentary
Tashawn Strother, a community journalist from our Credible Messenger Reporting Project, hosts an audio documentary sharing her family’s journey after her son Walter Willis was shot and critically wounded on New Year’s Eve in 2019. Voices include our Director of Research Dr. Jessica Beard, who is also the trauma surgeon who cared for Walter – and Walter himself. LISTEN: BEHIND THE SCENES INTERVIEWS
Our Director of Research Dr. Jessica Beard participated in this media panel addressing the role and responsibilities of the media. Click to play now, read about the event at Billy Penn and feel free to embed this video from YouTube.
Better Gun Violence Reporting Summit
We organized the inaugural Better Gun Violence Reporting Summit at WHYY in Philadelphia shortly in late 2019. Nearly 250 people attended from around the city and across the nation. VIEW THE INTERACTIVE AGENDA
Community Conversations Day
In advance of the Summit, we invited 15 Philadelphia journalists who play some role covering gun violence to spend a day with 30 residents from core communities impacted by the problem in the city. READ MORE
Honored
The Center has been recognized as “Nontraditional News Provider of the Year” in the 2023 Philly News Awards from the Pen and Pencil Club, Philadelphia’s press club. We accept this honor on behalf of the dozens of gun violence survivors, co-victims and others who have participated in our Credible Messenger Reporting Project.
The Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting was launched to explore the hypotheses that changing the way some journalists and news organizations cover gun violence can prevent shootings and save lives. Since then, our research collaborative has refined this focus by identifying harmful reporting practices, asking what best practices would look like and how they could be implemented. Now, we have organized our work into three closely-aligned programs:
CREDIBLE MESSENGER REPORTING: Our community reporting project empowers people impacted by gun violence to report on root causes, lived experience and possible solutions from the community perspective. Credible Messengers are paired with advanced professional journalists to learn from each other and leverage their combined authority to produce and distribute independent news reports. READ MORE
RESEARCH AT THE CENTER: We facilitate an interdisciplinary research collaborative that is exploring the intersection of gun violence, impacted communities and the media. Our Director or Research Dr. Jessica Beard presented our work last spring at the SAVIR conference in Washington. Dr. Jennifer Midberry presented at ICA in Paris. READ MORE
BETTER GUN VIOLENCE REPORTING: What does the most ethical, impactful and empathetic reporting look like when covering community gun violence? We collaborate with journalists, community representatives and other experts to advance reporting practices. READ MORE
Dr. Jennifer Midberry of Lehigh University reports on what’s happening in our research collaborative for the Temple University Faculty Herald. READ MORE
Alert: Due to the instability at Twitter, we are now posting to Mastodon as well. Follow us at: mstdn.social/@PCGVR
Search this site
Lifelines
If you or someone you know is suicidal, in crisis, or in need of general mental health support, please know help is available. You can contact your physician, local hospital emergency room, or any of the hotlines, text lines, web chats, and support groups listed below. Most are free and confidential resources. Many are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Each Wednesday morning we share news, research, data, opinions and community responses related to gun violence and prevention in Philadelphia. You can subscribe for free.
