COLLEGE PARK — The University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism has launched “Covering Crime & Justice,” an expansive new resource for journalists assigned to crime, courts and related beats, as well as others seeking crime data and guidance on how to use it.
“Covering Crime & Justice” was made possible by a $150,000 gift from Ted Gest, founder and president of the nonprofit organization Criminal Justice Journalists. The resource marks a new phase for the organization, which has been under the leadership of Gest for more than two decades. It separately publishes a daily news digest, Crime and Justice News.
The new website provides best practices, field guides, data and data guides to help journalists cover their communities and broader criminal justice topics. The resource will also be useful to nonprofits, researchers, activists and others who want to learn where to gather crime data and how to analyze it.
Adam Marton, a longtime data journalist and senior lecturer at Merrill College, leads the project as site editor. “Covering Crime & Justice” was built in collaboration with Merrill College’s Capital News Service, produced by students, faculty and staff with contributions from longtime Washington Post crime reporter Clarence Williams, an adjunct lecturer at the college.
“We are thankful that Ted Gest, who has long recognized the need for better crime and justice coverage, has entrusted Merrill College with this project,” Dean Rafael Lorente said. “Far too often, crime and justice coverage paints an inaccurate picture of many of our communities, doing a disservice to the people who live there. Through research, partnerships and the dissemination of best practices, our faculty and students hope to help change that.”
Crime journalism in the United States has long been criticized for being sensationalistic, lacking a foundation of reliable data and negatively affecting vulnerable populations. “Covering Crime & Justice” aims to help combat this by providing journalists with resources to cover their beats in a data-forward and equitable manner.
The mission of the site is for reporters to understand modern reporting best practices and to provide guidance on how to use data effectively, including understanding the limitations and pitfalls of available data sets.
“Covering Crime & Justice” additionally launched a LinkedIn Group to connect criminal justice journalists with each other, and will send a newsletter once each semester with the latest stories and resources — both led by Merrill College faculty member Stacey Decker, the CNS audience engagement bureau director.
"Crime coverage shapes how people see their neighbors and their cities," Marton said. "But too often it gets those communities wrong. The police report becomes the whole story, and the people who live there drop out of the picture. 'Covering Crime & Justice' gives reporters practical help with the language they use, the data they rely on and the choices they make on deadline. The goal is crime coverage that's accurate and fair."
"Covering Crime & Justice" will be guided by an advisory board chaired by Gest. The board includes Jonah Bromwich (The New York Times), Mark Fazlollah (freelance), Sarah Ganim (Switchboard magazine), Sadie Gurman (The Wall Street Journal), Marisa Lagos (KQED), Gregg Leslie (Arizona State University), Hurubie Meko (The New York Times), Jon Schuppe (NBC News), Julie Small (KQED) and Kevin Vaughan (KUSA-TV 9 News).
For more information, contact:
Josh Land, Director of Communications
joshland@umd.edu