Here’s everything you need to know about aluminum in vaccines – including why metal is in some vaccines, if there are risks and how long vaccines have contained aluminum. Read the PolitiFact story: buff.ly/87iHBsF

We’re having some temporary technical issues on Poynter.org right now, but we’re working to solve it quickly so you can get back to the best industry news and journalism training on the market. :wrench: Thanks for your patience.

-How effective are Sora 2 guardrails against deepfakes? Poynter AI innovation lab members talk Sora 2 -President Trump refiles his $15 billion defamation lawsuit against The New York Times Read these stories and more in today’s Poynter Report newsletter: www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

“[Indiana] university claimed it was not about censorship, but about concentrating on the digital product. But, it should be up to the staff — not the university — to decide whether news should be in the print product,” writes senior media writer Tom Jones. www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

Writing is a job and a miracle. It’s at the center of Susan Orlean’s fantastic memoir, “Joyride,” which also serves as a nonscolding guide to navigating that peculiar life. www.poynter.org/reporting-ed...

This week, Indiana University fired Indiana Daily Student adviser Jim Rodenbush in what appears to be a grapple for control over the pages of an upcoming print issue. The firing comes after years of tension between the university and its flagship student publication. www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

New layoffs at NBC come with a twist: The company is repurposing approximately a dozen of the eliminated positions into new roles, and the affected employees have been encouraged to apply for them. Read more about these cuts in today’s Poynter Report: www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

“Fill the page with nonsense, if you must,” said Poynter’s audience engagement producer TyLisa C. Johnson. “Even if I’m just writing a stream of consciousness, some of those streams have led to major breakthroughs.” Here are four writing tips for storytelling (and memes): buff.ly/YmSTbmg

On Tuesday, media organizations from across the political spectrum came together to fight back against recent restrictions on their coverage by the Trump administration by declining to sign the latest Pentagon press policy under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. www.poynter.org/newsletters/...

Steve Lopez chronicles life in Los Angeles as a columnist for the Los Angeles Times. But he doesn’t sit at his desk and spout opinions. He reports from the ground, like the series of columns that won him a 2025 Poynter Journalism Prize. youtu.be/u8wCQragPGI

President Donald Trump’s trip to the Middle East was described by many news organizations on Monday as a victory lap — “The war is over,” Trump told reporters — but they were also quick to point out that many questions remain. Read more in today’s Poynter Report: www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

One night, two of journalism's most influential voices: Join Dean Baquet and Cleo Abram for Poynter's Evening of Impact — a rare, behind-the-scenes conversation on October 21 at Manhatta in New York City. 🎟️ Reserve your seat today:

From today’s Poynter Report: -An uneven start for “Saturday Night Live” -ProPublica responds to insults -Remembering Poynter media business analyst Rick Edmonds Read these stories and more in our Monday-Friday media industry newsletter: buff.ly/9Awo3oG

The CEO of the Illinois Press Association resigned this week after a clash with the organization’s board over joining a lawsuit against the Trump administration for actions toward journalists outside a Chicago-area ICE facility. buff.ly/JaLR6Oh

-Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz plans a bill to strengthen legal protections against government censorship. -The Pentagon Press Association speaks out against potential U.S. military restrictions on press access. Read these stories and more in today’s Poynter Report: www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

President Donald Trump said that “Portland is burning to the ground,” but his claim is exaggerated. While there have been dozens of arrests since June from protests at an ICE site, recent images also show normal everyday life in the city. Read the full fact-check: www.poynter.org/fact-checkin...

When Bari Weiss left The New York Times in 2020, she seemed completely done with so-called “legacy media,” but as of Monday, Weiss is officially in charge of CBS News. What changed? What will Weiss’ appointment mean for CBS? Read today’s Poynter Report newsletter: www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

Bari Weiss – whose background is in opinion journalism and commentary – was named editor-in-chief of CBS News today. The move is being met with apprehension among CBS News’ journalists. Read the commentary: www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

After more than 29 years of association with NBC News, MSNBC will split off today to establish its own newsgathering operation. Read the Q&A about MSNBC leadership’s 10 core principles (and more stories) in today’s Poynter Report newsletter: www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

Poynter’s AI expert Alex Mahadevan takes you on a tour of the new slop factory, Sora 2. Want to get savvier on AI tools? Take Poynter’s course. www.poynter.org/shop/fact-ch...

In a new Gallup poll, only 28% of Americans say they have a “great deal” or a “fair amount” of trust in the mass media. The distrust is more stark depending on political views, but that’s not the only factor with a noticeable gap. www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

“What I’m trying to show you is I’m a real guy who takes the bus to the city to get the information that you need.” Here’s how Poynter Journalism Prize winner and NJ.com’s S.P. Sullivan approaches TikTok, Instagram and the news: https://buff.ly/VBRMiwd

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s war on “leakers and internal dissent” continued this week with a new mandate imposing strict NDAs and random polygraph tests for Pentagon workers. Read today’s Poynter Report newsletter: www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

Reporting grants can do wonderful things: Opening the door to great reporting, connecting with new audiences, winning awards. But not everything with this money is sweet. Here are 7 things to keep in mind before you apply for your next reporting grant: buff.ly/P0BmC6l

Podcast host Dan Koh said, “If the government shuts down, members of Congress still get paid. The janitors never get paid.” PolitiFact rated that claim Mostly True. Who gets paid and who doesn’t when the government shuts down? Read this fact-check: buff.ly/ieGh16t

Poynter's Alex Mahadevan spent a few hours on Sora 2 so you don’t have to. He found AI slop, material that raises obvious copyright questions and people scamming for likes. www.poynter.org/tech-tools/2...

A photojournalist was taken to the hospital in New York City on Tuesday after a chaotic altercation involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and other journalists. Read these stories and more in the Poynter Report: www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

This week, the WriteLane podcast tells the story of how a “TikTok investigation” won an award for great writing while delighting audiences along the way. Hear more wherever you get your podcasts or watch on Poynter’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHDb...

Artificial intelligence technology, like others before it, is changing how we work, teach and learn. But wherever AI goes, editing should go with it, writes professor of practice Lisa McLendon. buff.ly/7XnNwNG

Latin superstar and Grammy winner Bad Bunny will headline the Super Bowl halftime show in February. The choice makes perfect sense, writes senior media writer Tom Jones, even if the political overtones can’t be ignored. www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

For reporters, it’s difficult to cover a complex, opaque system like child welfare. KTOO Education Reporter Jamie Diep spent the past six months going through Poynter’s training on it. Here are things to keep in mind as you look into your own local child welfare agency: buff.ly/cIatoj2

Want to keep your data and sources safe, but analyze your reporting with AI? Poynter’s AI expert (and total thrasher) Alex Mahadevan explains how.

In 2017, Tylenol posted that it didn’t recommend using its products during pregnancy. Around the same time, Tylenol also encouraged people to consult doctors before taking it during pregnancy. PolitiFact put the resurfaced post in context. www.poynter.org/reporting-ed...

📖 How do different generations of journalists shape the stories we tell? Join a panel of intergenerational journalists + Poynter’s MediaWise on Sept. 30 in Boulder for a free community conversation exploring intergenerational storytelling and its impact on today’s news. Register: buff.ly/Kg4O5DV

Donald Trump has political and personal reasons to ensure the TikTok deal goes through. Oracle's Larry Ellison, Dell's Michael Dell, and Fox News' Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch are all potential investors and close to the president. www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

More than 100 former ABC News staffers are asking Disney CEO Bob Iger to “make a concerted effort to defend free speech and press freedom against political intimidation.” Read more in today’s Poynter Report: www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

Headlines change. Technology changes. Journalism’s role endures. Join Poynter, The University of Boulder Colorado and MediaWise for a free series of events exploring journalism’s past, present and future. 📍 Sept. 23–Oct. 9 | Boulder, Colorado 🔗

“Jimmy Kimmel Live” will return to air tonight after being sidelined for nearly a week, but questions still remain. Will Kimmel address the controversy? “Whatever he says, it’s unlikely that he will satisfy everyone,” writes Poynter’s senior media writer Tom Jones. www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

Here is a list of media organizations, the vulnerabilities they may face and how they’ve responded to political pressure from the Trump administration. www.poynter.org/business-wor...

It’s rare for networks to drop a show in response to political pressure, but with the suspension of “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” critics warn that networks are letting the pressure shape what reaches the air, despite protected speech. www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

Attorney General Pam Bondi vowed to target “hate speech,” but had to clarify her remarks after receiving criticism from legal experts, media voices and conservatives who were quick to remind Bondi that “hate speech” is protected by the First Amendment. www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

The WriteLane podcast is back! A podcast about the craft of great journalism, hosted by Pulitzer Prize winning writer Lane DeGregory and veteran editor Maria Carrillo will spend the fall diving deep into the award-winning work of the 2025 Poynter Journalism Prizes.

Public media stations reach 99% of the country’s population with free, noncommercial, local news, music and information. Yet their greatest strength — broadcast dominance built over decades — has become their most significant vulnerability. www.poynter.org/local-news/2...

Robert Redford (1936-2025), playing Bob Woodward, inspired a generation of journalists to hold truth to power. “All the President’s Men” is the best movie about journalism ever made, and it’s not even close. buff.ly/I3pYMdr

Karen Attiah, an opinion columnist for The Washington Post, said she was dismissed from the paper for, “Speaking out against political violence, racial double standards, and America’s apathy toward guns.” The Post declined to comment. buff.ly/4fl16iE

Long before QAnon or Stop the Steal, Gamergate pioneered a decentralized playbook for undermining the press: anonymous swarms, reframed harassment, cries of “ethics” as a shield. Newsrooms, caught flat-footed, struggled to adapt. www.poynter.org/ethics-trust...

Gamergate claimed to be about ethics in gaming journalism, but was it? A decade later, Poynter reflects on the online firestorm that wrote the playbook for digital movements cloaking misinformation under the guise of a higher purpose. www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZJO...

The ragtag staff of sales reps, accountants and toilet paper pushers-turned journalists staffing “The Paper” can’t see the forest for the trees, or a raging fire outside their own window. Lucky for them, Poynter is here to help. www.poynter.org/reporting-ed...

In a polarized moment, President Donald Trump and his allies inflamed tensions, while other voices turned to national media to plead for peace. Read more from Poynter's Tom Jones: www.poynter.org/commentary/2...

While 52% of news consumers are uncomfortable with local news produced mostly by artificial intelligence, nearly half – 47% – approve of AI supporting news production, a Local News Initiative survey found. Read the full survey results: www.poynter.org/local-news/2...