The Whalen Media Ethics Program is a new initiative launched by The Department of Emerging Media dedicated to creating forums for students to understand new trends and ethical responsibilities in media, connect with industry opportunities, and engage with professionals. Each year, the program will focus on a key theme in media ethics, with varied formats, and will deal with issues in different media industries.

This year, we are excited to announce the inaugural Whalen Media Ethics Program: “Solidarity Journalism” Fellowship. This fellowship program teaches students about an approach to storytelling that represents the voices, experiences, and inherent dignity of marginalized communities. Marginalization is when people’s basic needs for survival are at stake due to conditions not of their own making, choosing, or individual control. These basic needs include food, clean air, clean water, and shelter, to name a few.

The Fellowship program begins with two days of workshop with Anita Varma, the lead of the “Solidarity Journalism” initiative from University of Texas-Austin, and local journalists who have experience practicing within this reporting paradigm. Accepted students—the inaugural Whalen Fellows cohort—will produce media projects that practice solidarity journalism.

Introducing the Inaugural Whalen Fellows: