Media Insider: Prioritizing Women Journalists’ Safety, Smartphone Newsgathering in India, SportsCenter on Snapchat

Welcome to Media Insider, PR Newswire’s round-up of media stories from the week.

MEDIA SHIFT | ELIZA LEES MUNOZ
Why We Should Prioritize Women Journalists’ Safety

Violence against female reporters is on the rise, MediaShift reports. According to the article, 13 female journalists have been killed so far in 2017, compared to nine in 2014/2015. On average, four women journalists were killed per year between 2006 and 2013, according to a 2016 report of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC). While both female and male journalists are trained on how to survive life-threatening situations in the field, Munoz believes there is still more to be done. She maintains that “gender balance and safety” must be emphasized to ensure no voice is silenced.

How do journalists protect themselves against cyberattacks? See how this female journalist survived an email bombing.

THE GUARDIAN | SAM LEVIN
‘Way too little, way too late’: Facebook’s factcheckers say effort is failing

Journalists partnering with Facebook don’t believe the company’s efforts are working when it comes to stopping the spread of misinformation, reports The Guardian. Criticism has followed the social media giant ever since it admitted that Russia tried to use the platform to interfere with the 2016 US presidential election. Partnering with third-party fact-checkers and journalists was an attempt to prevent that level of manipulation from happening in the future. However, Levin writes, some journalists and factcheckers think their relationship with the company might actually be making it more difficult for journalists to remain objective in the fight against misinformation.

Did you know? Misinformation played an important role in at least 18 elections this past year.

AXIOS | SARA FISCHER
ESPN launches SportsCenter on Snapchat

SportsCenter will replace ESPN’s Publisher Story on Snapchat, says Axios. The shift is important for both Snapchat and ESPN, writes Fischer. It gives ESPN the opportunity to appeal to millennial sports fans, and allows Snapchat to cultivate its first daily live sports program on Discover. The three-to-five minute show, which launched last Monday, will consist of the latest sports news and highlights. It’s available twice-daily on weekdays and once-daily on weekends.

FYI: Snapchat is making some changes after a disappointing earnings report sent the company’s stock plummeting.

NEIMANLAB | RICARDO BILTON
A regular New York Times kids’ section and a kids’ version of The Daily are on the way this month

The New York Times is appealing to its youngest audience with a kids’ section and a kids’ version of The Daily, NeimanLab reports. After publishing a one-off kids’ section in May, the Times received overwhelmingly positive feedback from both children and parents. According to the article, the section will differ slightly from the original project, and will seek to use a younger point of view to inform kids about current events, without dumbing down the topics covered. Coverage will include a social advice column, how schools cope with natural disasters, the science behind gene editing, and explanations of the voting process and gerrymandering.

ICYMI: Some news organizations are already teaching kids how to spot fake news.

MEDIASHIFT | LYNN KENNETH PACKER
Why an Indian TV Station Went All-In on Smartphone Newsgathering

Smartphones may take the place of traditional Electronic Newsgathering (ENG) equipment, according to MediaShift. While cameras have served the broadcasting industry for four decades, the move to smartphones is inevitable, writes Kenneth Packer. Smartphones are small, mobile, and easy to use — allowing journalists to shoot and edit their own footage wirelessly. NDTV in New Delhi, India, is already using a mobile journalism model that requires its reporters shoot and edit their own videos. “Mobile journalism means reports are lightning-quick and much more efficiently produced—a priority for any news company,” the station announced. “It would be irresponsible to viewers and to shareholders, as well as (being) archaic, to maintain decades-old templates of how to shoot and edit.”

Newsrooms around the world are struggling to stay relevant. Here are 8 helpful strategies for saving local newsrooms.

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Jessica (Davids) Barry is Customer Content Specialist at PR Newswire. Newly married, she loves cooking with her husband and spends the rest of her free time drawing.