Educators Call on Researchers to Study Media Coverage of Armed Conflicts
We, the boards of directors of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication and the Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communication, are writing in strong support of the safety, security and well-being of the citizens and residents of Ukraine and those fleeing the country. As we write this, Russian military forces are invading the independent nation, which has had noted promise for building a pluralistic democracy.
As academic organizations that support scholarship, education and professional practice – which focus in part on media ethics, media criticism, diversity, equity, inclusion and public service – we point out the importance of news media coverage in the fog of armed conflict and information warfare. We stand in solidarity with the people of Ukraine and the brave journalists who are reporting from the ground, bringing to light news and information to citizens of the world – or wishing that the political contexts in which they work allowed them to do so.
We note the risks of mis/disinformation in this global context. We are cognizant of the importance of language when reporting on conflicts and conducting subsequent research. We warn against use of language in reporting and research that humanizes some civilians yet dehumanizes, marginalizes or excludes some peoples.
Ultimately, we acknowledge the importance of news media coverage of the conflict and research on the short- and long-term impact of the coverage. Going forward, we encourage critical media coverage and research on other invasions and the nearly three dozen armed conflicts presently going on around the world.
As organizations that support diversity in scholarship and thought, we call on researchers around the world to study media coverage of stakeholders in this conflict from local and global contexts.
Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC)
The Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) is a nonprofit organization comprised of educators, students and practitioners from around the globe. Founded in 1912, by Willard Grosvenor Bleyer, the first president (1912-13) of the American Association of Teachers of Journalism, as it was then known, AEJMC is the oldest and largest alliance of journalism and mass communication educators and administrators at the college level. AEJMC's mission is to promote the highest possible standards for journalism and mass communication education, to encourage the widest possible range of communication research, to encourage the implementation of a multi-cultural society in the classroom and curriculum, and to defend and maintain freedom of communication in an effort to achieve better professional practice, a better informed public, and wider human understanding. Find out more about AEJMC here.
Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communication (ASJMC)
ASJMC is a non-profit, educational association composed of some 190 JMC programs at the college level. The majority of the association's members are in the United States and Canada. ASJMC promotes excellence in journalism and mass communication education. Founded in 1917, ASJMC works to support the purposes of schools of journalism and mass communication in order to achieve the following goals: to foster, encourage and facilitate high standards and effective practices in the process and administration of education for journalism and mass communication in institutions of higher learning; to cooperate with journalism and mass communication organizations in efforts to raise professional standards and promote a public understanding of the role of journalism and mass communication in a democratic society; and to support and participate in the accreditation process of journalism and mass communication units through the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC). Find out more about ASJMC here.
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