The Roy Howard Community Journalism Center at The University of Southern Mississippi
The Roy Howard Community Journalism Center (RHCJC) emerged from a conversation among Liz, Roy, Jay and Jake at a prior Androcles board meeting. Created as a response to the pervasive challenges of misinformation and disinformation, it aims to restore trust in media through a unique lens that leverages the foundation's area of expertise and builds upon the pioneering efforts of the Howard Centers for Investigative Journalism.
Request for Proposals
The RHCJC initiative began by identifying four regions classified as "news deserts" in states burdened with a high prevalence of "pink slime" websites. These regions are:
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West Texas
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Northern Southwest
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Appalachia
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Deep South
A select group of universities from each region was invited to engage in the initial application process, ensuring a focused and strategic approach to addressing these areas most affected by inadequate news coverage.
Review Committee
A nine-member Review Committee comprised of journalism professionals, legal advisors, family members and educators, meticulously reviewed letters of intent from 12 schools. Through their comprehensive evaluation and collaborative efforts, the committee selected six schools to receive design grants.
Semi-Finalists
By the deadline of July, 31, 2023, the six semi-finalist schools had submitted detailed proposals, collectively spanning over 669 pages filled with innovative ideas to address news deserts and enhance student education. For the universities that were not chosen, each submission still contributes to the greater good. There is a realistic hope that Androcles' $90,000 investment in design grants will spur further significant investments from aligned key funders like the Press Forward Initiative, potentially channeling millions of dollars into these crucial initiatives.
Site Visits
From October 25, 2023, to November 2, 2023, members of the Review Committee visited each university under consideration. During these site visits, they engaged with university staff, students, and local community members, including local newspapers eager to partner with a new Roy Howard Community Journalism Center program.
Winner
Among three exceptional candidates, the University of Southern Mississippi was selected for its dedicated, purpose-driven staff and enthusiastic student body. As the inaugural site the RHCJC, USM is poised to redefine the standards for regional journalism education. It is actively addressing the challenges of news deserts and misinformation in the Deep South, a region where such initiatives are critically needed.
University of New Mexico. Louisiana State University. University of Southern Mississippi.
Site Visits
The Winner
University of Southern Mississippi
The Winner
University of Southern Mississippi
University of Southern Mississippi
A transformational development in how the School of Media and Communication at The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) trains journalists to bring coverage to under-reported communities in the state and battle disinformation across multiple media platforms will launch in fall 2024 with the establishment of the Roy Howard Community Journalism Center.
Named in honor of Roy W. Howard, former chairman of the Scripps Howard newspaper chain, the Roy Howard Community Journalism Center at USM will help educate student journalists in providing important, fact-based reporting for their readers while also engaging in efforts to dispel disinformation infecting news cycles; the Scripps Howard Fund is investing in $3 million in the initiative, with the University receiving $1 million per year for three years to create and operate the Center.
USM School of Media and Communication Home to New
Roy Howard Community Journalism Center (Press Release)
RHCJC
Cheers to new beginnings!
The mission: The Roy Howard Community Journalism Center at USM is charged with transparently producing people-Centered, issue oriented reporting, courageously tackling mis- and disinformation, and sharing high quality news across media platforms. The Center is operated through a collaboration between professional guided student teams, a supervising director, and a partner-dominated advisory board.
Roy W. Howard
Ecosystem