Local Journalists to Dialogue about ‘The Changing Face of Journalism’ Thursday at Central Library
Contributions from FāVS from readers like you make this news story possible. Thank you.
News Story by Cassy Benefield
Journalism is changing. But how exactly is what the Spokane Public Library will be exploring Thursday, from 6:30-8 p.m., at their event “The Changing Face of Journalism: A Dialogue Across Generations.”
“I think Spokane punches way above its weight in terms of its local journalism, at least relatively speaking,” said Shane Gronholz, SPL’s current affairs specialist and coordinator of the event. “I qualify that because I know the industry is facing challenges — and Spokane isn’t necessarily an exception — but I am just extremely impressed with our local journalists.”
The idea for the event first came to Gronholz through a personal connection. He knows Karen Dorn-Steele, one of the speakers at the discussion, who according to the event’s description on SPL’s website is a “renowned investigative journalist, known for her groundbreaking work on nuclear secrecy.”
Gronholz began thinking how he could get Dorn-Steele and other journalists together in the same room to talk about all the changes to journalism since Dorn-Steele’s day, mainly the rise of technology and the internet.
“So I just put all that together and thought we could do something unique by getting journalists of various generations together to talk about the way the field has changed and evolved,” Gronholz said.
An Example of the Upcoming Discussion
FāVS.News’ Editor, Founder and Executive Director Tracy Simmons looks forward to being able to share the successes and challenges of her religion news and commentary website, which is just over 10 years old.
As a non-profit, funding has been their biggest challenge, she said. Funders tend to confuse their straight news “religion” reporting as “religious” reporting, or denominational-based reporting, such as the Episcopal News Service, Baptist News Global, etc.
“We report for a non-sectarian perspective, yet funders still stay far away from us, which is too bad. It’s too bad because we are doing really good work,” Simmons said. “Not only are we reporting on stories no one else is telling, but we give voice to nearly 40 diverse regional columnists and are building a beautiful interfaith community.”
She also sees a great need for dedicated religion journalists because religion stories are everywhere and values are what shape us.
“Instead of just letting them trickle throughout our publications at random, we should have dedicated reporters covering the faith and values beat — people who are trained in religion and know what to look for and how to break theology down for a diverse readership,” Simmons said. “My experience is that readers are interested in this and want to learn about the belief systems in their communities.”
More to Explore
Simmons and the other panelists will not only explore the challenges and opportunities within modern journalism, but also how the field has evolved and what the future might hold for journalism in the digital age, according to the event description.
Gronholz thought it was also important that the panelists represent a range of journalism in the community.
“The reason I thought it was important to have a broad representation was to showcase the different ways in which journalism exists and thrives today. We have a mix of traditional and new media, different platforms and formats, all brought together in this panel,” Gronholz said.
He added, “In this era of rapidly changing media landscapes, I think it’s important to appreciate the multiplicity and diversity of voices in journalism.”
Attenders can expect the journalists to share personal anecdotes, experiences and observations that have guided their paths in journalism.
The discussion will be moderated by Shawn Vestal of The Spokesman-Review at SPL’s Central Library (906 W. Main Ave.) in nx?yx?yetk? Hall.
The Panelists
- Karen Dorn Steele, a renowned investigative journalist for The Spokesman-Review, known for her groundbreaking work on nuclear secrecy, for which she has won numerous national awards. She is also widely seen as a pillar in the community for her social justice advocacy.
- Samantha Wohlfeil, a dedicated journalist at The Inlander, focusing on environmental, rural and cultural issues. She has been recognized for her sensitive investigative reporting since joining the team in 2017.
- Tracy Simmons, executive director of FāVS.News, a non-profit digital journalism platform focusing on faith and values news. She also serves as a scholarly assistant professor of journalism at Washington State University.
- Amanda Roley, a reporter from KREM TV news. Her work has brought critical news stories to Spokane’s television audience with clarity and poise.
- Valerie Osier, a journalist with RANGE Media, who discovered her passion for journalism during her community college years and currently serves as the audience and membership editor at RANGE.
- Emma Epperly, known for her timely and accurate reporting for The Spokesman-Review since arriving as an intern in 2019.
- Leonard Kransdorf, formerly a journalist with a varied career in newspapers from Florida to North Dakota, now a library clerical assistant. His diverse journalistic experience across multiple beats adds to the wealth of perspectives on the panel.
