Facing facts and rumors in immigration arrests

Journalists face a number of challenges in covering the Trump administration’s planned mass immigration raids, all of which were on display in just the last few days.

First, journalists are navigating a topic steeped in misinformation. In Ohio, misinformation is designed to destabilize immigrant communities, The Haitian Times’ Wedly Cazy reports. In Iowa, advocates for immigrant communities have been working to fight this misinformation, reports Kayla James of KCCI. They are doing the same in Durham, N.C., according to WRAL News. 

Another challenge is that the images and video resulting from immigration sweeps are very deliberate. The Trump administration is emphasizing the “show,” as CNN’s Brian Stelter put it. CNN also reported that the made-for-TV look is no coincidence, as agents were told to be “camera ready” before the sweeps. 

Keeping track of what’s real, what’s misinformation and what’s exaggerated is part of the challenge. For context, both CBS News and NBC News have tracked the arrests.

News In Focus
Headlines, resources and events aligned with API’s four areas of focus.

 

Civic Discourse & Democracy

>> Reposting vs. reporting: How Facebook groups are replacing shuttered rural newsrooms (Rocky Mountain PBS)

Trinidad, Colo. is one of many small towns in the state where Facebook groups are filling a news vacuum left by the closure of local news outlets. “The Facebook groups share everything from local events to police updates to weather warnings,” writes Chase McCleary, who notes the groups are often run by people with other jobs. 

>> The Handbasket is first to report catastrophic OMB funding memo (The Handbasket)

A big scoop — a memo from the U.S. Office of Management and Budget calling for a “pause” in all federal grants and loans — was first reported by “one woman with absolutely zero institutional backing in leggings and a sweatshirt in her NYC apartment,” as she describes herself. “What I lack in resources I make up for with moxie and close relationships established over years,” Marisa Kabas writes.

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Culture & Inclusion

>> New from API: Making data-driven recommendations to newsrooms requires strong research partnerships. Here’s how to build them  

As part of its work examining how non-news experts can inform the work of journalists, and vice versa, API asked Trusting News’ Joy Mayer to outline ways newsrooms can build partnerships with researchers. She shared several strategies and examples of how they’ve been employed to produce data-driven recommendations for newsrooms to better engage with their communities.

  • Related: API’s recent report, A community of collaboration: How journalists and non-news experts can work together better, is now available as a PDF.  

>> Organization supporting Indigenous journalists launches in Canada (CBC)

Five veteran Indigenous journalists have formed a group called the Indigenous Media Association of Canada to represent Indigenous journalists and push for better coverage of their communities. “Often, we are invited to a seat at other people’s tables, and we appreciate that,” founding member and secretary Eden Fineday said. “But we needed to build our own table in our own way because we have such unique needs and we’re such a small group.”

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Community Engagement & Trust

>> Inside a network of AI-generated newsletters targeting ‘small town America’ (Nieman Lab)

A network of AI-generated newsletters is operating in 355 cities across the country, writes Andrew Deck. The founder told Deck that the goal of the network is to use automation and technology “without sacrificing product quality for our readers.” But Rodney Gibbs from the National Trust for Local News pointed out that the newsletters rely on content produced by “human labor at existing local news publishers.”

>> Join us tomorrow: Source tracking fosters responsive engagement and improves your journalism (ONA)

What can you do to bridge gaps with communities that your news organization hasn’t served well? Register for this Online News Association session tomorrow at 12:30 p.m. ET, where journalists and API team members will share how to improve your community journalism using our tool for responsive engagement, Source Matters.

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Revenue & Resilience

>> Webinar tomorrow: Diversifying Revenue Series: Strategies for retaining paid subscribers

Table Stakes alumni are invited to join us tomorrow at 1 p.m. ET for a conversation with Table Stakes coach Anthony Basilio about how news organizations can improve their retention of print and digital subscribers. Reserve your spot. 

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What else you need to know

⚖️ Trump’s suit against Pulitzer Board faces a hurdle: his previous arguments (The New York Times)

🤖 Quartz has been quietly publishing AI-generated news articles (TechCrunch)

📺 CNN anchor Jim Acosta to step down (The New York Times)

🛜 Ad lobby calls on advertisers to “save the open web” (Axios)