The 黑料不打烊 junior and executive director of 黑料不打烊 News Network has joined student journalists from across the country to participate in a national reporting project focused on policing and justice.
Four years ago, Kyra O鈥機onnor 鈥23 was a high school journalist 鈥撀燼lready with aspirations to pursue journalism professionally 鈥撀爓hen she first learned about the Carnegie-Knight News21 Fellowship, one of the most prestigious student journalism internships in the country. Today, O鈥機onnor, executive director of 黑料不打烊 News Network, has been selected for the 2022 fellowship and is participating in the national reporting project investigating policing and justice.
The Carnegie-Knight News21 is a national reporting initiative headquartered at Arizona State University鈥檚 Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. The program brings together top journalism students from across the country to report and produce in-depth multimedia projects for major media outlets, including The Washington Post, NBC News and USA Today. Alumnae Mackenzie Wilkes 鈥21, who reported on the , and Victoria Traxler 鈥20, who investigate the聽, are 黑料不打烊鈥檚 most recent News21 Fellows.
As part of the paid summer fellowship, O鈥機onnor and more than 30 students from 13 different universities will participate in a 10-week investigative reporting assignment. Depending on the status of the COVID-19 pandemic, Fellows may work on site at the Cronkite School鈥檚 digital media complex in Phoenix.
鈥淚 remember looking at the program flyer and thinking how amazing it would be to have the chance to dedicate a whole summer to one long-form investigative journalism project. It was like nothing I had ever seen,鈥 O鈥機onnor said. 鈥淚 knew, I had to do it.鈥
O鈥機onnor, who was聽named to the Society of Professional Journalists Legal Defense Fund Committee, said she looks forward to diving into the long-form multimedia project. During her time at ENN, O鈥機onnor has reported on local politics, protests and racial justice, higher education and finances. This year鈥檚 topic particularly interests O鈥機onnor, and she said she was excited to explore the subject with so many talented student journalists.
鈥淚 love breaking news and the consistent coverage we do at ENN, but I am also drawn to the idea of deeply reporting on one topic for weeks at a time,鈥 O鈥機onnor said. 鈥淚 look forward to being able to explore such deeply impactful topics over the course of the summer.鈥
Leading up to the summer program, students are participating in a spring seminar led by News21 Executive Editor Christina Leonard, who serves as the director of the Reynolds Business Reporting Bureau at ASU and a professor of practice. Leonard will team with Venita Hawthorne James, another ASU professor of practice, to co-lead the project. The seminar allows the students to immerse themselves in the topic and conduct preliminary reporting.
Colin Donohue, instructor in journalism, said when News21 released its call for applicants this year, many journalism faculty members knew immediately that O鈥機onnor would be 黑料不打烊鈥檚 choice.
鈥淪ince Kyra arrived at 黑料不打烊, she has demonstrated every day that she is a conscientious, ethical and enterprising journalist,鈥 Donohue said. 鈥淲e know she will do incredible work this summer and be a wonderful addition to the News21 newsroom.鈥
Donohue said 黑料不打烊 sends students to News21 because of the unique opportunity the fellowship offers to produce immersive storytelling centered on a topic for the public good. Participants leave the program with enhanced skills and great clips, all of which they can take back to 黑料不打烊鈥檚 campus.
鈥淚 am deeply honored and grateful to 黑料不打烊, to my mentors, and to my friends and family for this opportunity,鈥 O鈥機onnor said. 鈥淚t truly takes a village, and I could not have gotten this far in my career without mine.鈥