Journalism EssentialsA limited series on media literacy and journalism skills from The School of The New York Times
Greetings, friends. My name is Ted Kim, and I oversee the newsroom’s early careers team at The New York Times. My colleagues and I often talk to students and teachers across the country about our changing industry as well as careers in journalism. As questions about misinformation and A.I. have become more persistent, The Times has increased opportunities for outreach and education, including at The School of The New York Times, a summer program for high school journalists. (I should mention that the school is a licensee of our company and not a part of our newsroom, though we do help shape the school’s curriculum.) We are grateful that our colleagues at The Learning Network are giving us space to answer the most common questions that we encounter. I’ve visited with thousands of students. What I’ve found is that small bites of wisdom about what we do and how we do it not only can help people understand journalism better, but also can inspire whole careers in news. So we’ve brought some of what we’ve learned to you to bring to your classes. The newsletter includes short teachings that are meant to help you discuss journalism as it exists today. Near the bottom, we’ve shared a suggested activity. We’ve tried to make the teachings useful and digestible, and they are backed by our many years of expertise. Our first lesson gets at the very mission of The Times: What is journalism?
At its core, journalism is about informing people so they can better understand the world around them. This information is told through stories. Those stories, in turn, come in many mediums: words, audio, video, photographs and graphics. Some of the biggest stories are told in many of these ways:
Let’s look at one example: the wildfires that tore through Southern California in early 2025. Journalism comes in many forms.The Times has covered the fires in a variety of formats. Certainly, we published many articles like this one: We published a vertical video, in which our reporter Kellen Browning described what went wrong.
Our podcast “The Daily” produced an episode on why the fires were so hard to control.
And readers received daily coverage of the fires in their inboxes through our California Today newsletter.
Journalism fills many roles.No matter the format, journalism fulfills many roles in both the information ecosystem and our society. Journalism can, yes, break big news. But it also helps people navigate their lives. For instance, this story is an example of what we call service journalism.
Journalism can move people, help them find enjoyment or take them somewhere they’ve never been. It can explain why something happened, offer greater context and provide expertise and analysis. This article, what we call an explainer, looks into what caused California’s worst fires over the years.
Journalism can offer a venue for opinions on the news and discussions in comment sections. Perhaps most importantly for a democratic society, journalism reveals the truth and holds our leaders and institutions accountable. This article reported how water supplies ran dry in Los Angeles.
So, yes, at its core, journalism is reporting and delivering the news, often on stories of huge consequence, like the wildfires. But it can also be a heartwarming story that inspires or some insight into that latest fashion trend. Simply put: Journalism is critical to living an informed life. Here’s a suggested activity.Read this story from our wildfire coverage, watch this video from the scene and listen to this podcast episode. Consider these questions in a group discussion: 1) What are the similarities between how the story is told in each of these formats? What are the differences? 2) Which format is most compelling and why? Which provides the most information? Which gave you the best sense of what it was like to live through the fires? 3) What was the most important information you took away from the coverage of this story? What did you learn that you did not know? Share your thoughts on this seriesContact us at theschool@nytimes.com or through this form.
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