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White Paper

The Research-Practice
Gap in Journalism:
Why It Exists and How We Can Address It

Academic researchers can help journalists, publishers and content producers through the massive shifts in their industry. There is, however, palpable disconnect between the academy and those within the field.

 

We call this disconnect the “research-practice gap in journalism” — and it’s a gap that we argue must be bridged.

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Written by a passionate group of journalists and academics, this report examines the gap as it exists in the U.S., and proposes ways to bridge it.

 

We imagine a future where evidence, data, and peer assessment support decision-making in journalism — whether by reporters, editors, or news executives — and where journalism better informs the questions researchers ask. 

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While academic studies have their place as the focus of journalists’ reporting, we’re concerned with what research can tell us about how journalism should be practiced and produced.

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Table of contents:

Executive summary
Introduction
Why does the gap exist?
Why it matters
The landscape
Past & present efforts
Lessons from other fields
Ways forward
Conclusion
Contributors and thank-yous
 

Download the entire white paper PDF below.

Authors & Credits

For the Journalism Bridging Project:
 
Editor: 
Tamar Wilner, Assistant Professor, University of Kansas
 
Deputy Editor: 
Heather Muse, Journalist and Audience Strategist
 
Section Editors:
Mark Coddington, Associate Professor, Washington and Lee University
Francia García Hernández, Freelance Reporter
Patrick Johnson, Assistant Professor, Marquette University
Dylan McLemore, Associate Professor, Oklahoma State University
Ashley Muddiman, Associate Professor, University of Kansas; Faculty Research Associate, Center for Media Engagement
Steve Rhodes, Features Editor, CQ Researcher
Nisha Sridharan, Assistant Professor, Temple University
 
Section Writers:
Alyssa Appelman, Associate Professor, University of Kansas
Christopher T. Assaf, Assistant Professor, University of North Texas
John Bentley, Supervising Field Producer, NBC News
Enrique Núñez-Mussa, Ph.D. Candidate, Michigan State University
 
Graphic Designer:
Nisha Sridharan, Assistant Professor, Temple University
 
Reviewers and editors-at-large
Lindsay Green-Barber, Ph.D., Founder & Principal, Impact Architects
Seth C. Lewis, Director of Journalism and Shirley Papé Chair in Emerging Media, University of Oregon
 
Reviewers
Valérie Bélair-Gagnon, Associate Professor and Cowles Fellow in Media Management, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
Jimmy Golen, Sports Writer, Associated Press and Adjunct Professor, Boston College
Avery Holton, Professor and Chair, Department of Communication, University of Utah
Rashad Mahmood, Executive Director, New Mexico Local News Fund
 
For the American Press Institute:
 
Editor 
Letrell Crittenden, Director of Inclusion and Audience Growth
 
Reviewer and editor-at-large 
Lilly Chapa, Editorial Manager

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