Hampton University Convenes State of the Media Forum

By Randy Singleton
Community Affairs Correspondent
New Journal and Guide

HAMPTON

Media and broadcast communications professionals convened with students and community members at Hampton University’s “State of the Media” forum at the Scripps-Howard School of Journalism and Communications’ auditorium on April 22.

The panel featured national, international, and local media leaders: Brenda Andrews, Publisher of the New Journal and Guide; Jessica Larche, Anchor and Investigative Reporter of WTKR News 3; Kadia Goba, Politics Reporter, formerly of the Washington Post; Simegnish Y. Mengesha, International Multimedia Broadcaster of Voice of America; Dr. Battinto Batts, Dean of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.

The panelists discussed a wide-range of topics, including the rise of social media and podcast journalism, content creators and social media influencers, media shifts from the pandemic, and the distrust of journalistic sources (fake news). The increasing use of AI (artificial intelligence) was viewed as both opportunity and threat if left unmanaged.

The panelists generally agreed that the state of media is a mix of concern, exhaustion, reinvention, and cautious optimism. The industry is widely viewed as being in a disruptive period as audiences increasingly see news through political or ideological lenses rather than as a shared factual space.

Nevertheless, the panelists agreed there is still strong belief in journalism’s civic role as a guardian of democracy.

The forum was moderated by freshman journalist Leyah Jackson and hosted by Julia Wilson, dean of the Scripps-Howard School of Journalism and Communications at Hampton University.