Center for Journalism Ethics

09/29/2026

Join us on October 30 for our annual journalism ethics conference. Our keynote, Ben Collins, CEO of The Onion, will talk about "Beating Liars with Lies: The Onion in the News Ecosystem."

Collins will discuss his trajectory from covering mis- and disinformation for legacy news outlets to The Onion, where he leads a team that tries to expose lies and hypocrisy with humor.

He will also detail The Onion’s takeover of the right wing disinformation machine InfoWars and how mainstream journalism can – and must – resist capitulation and secure a future for fact-based information that serves public interests.

More info and registration: https://ethics.sjmc.wisc.edu/2026-renewing-our-courage-journalism-ethics-in-troubled-times/

Big tip of the hat to our sponsors, The Evjue Foundation, Wisconsin Broadcasters Association and Wisconsin NewsMedia Association.

09/29/2026

Take time to learn something new each month! WNA’s Wednesday Webinars bring member journalists together for free, informal sessions focused on practical skills and ideas for today’s newsrooms.

09/23/2026

Join us for our 19th annual ethics conference:

✅ Friday, October 30, 2026, 9 am - 3:30 pm
✅ In person on the UW–Madison campus and streaming online
✅ As always, FREE

"Renewing Our Courage: Journalism Ethics in Troubled Times" will gather news media professionals, media innovators, academics, students and the public to take on the urgent ethical issues facing the practice of journalism in increasingly authoritarian times.

More info and registration: https://ethics.sjmc.wisc.edu/2026-renewing-our-courage-journalism-ethics-in-troubled-times/

06/22/2026

What our 2025-26 annual report shows:

In a turbulent year for news organizations and press freedom, we played our humble part in steadying the ship. Through panels, trainings, original reporting, conferences and conversations, we fostered vigorous debate on critical ethical issues and promoted high standards in journalism.

Looking to the year ahead:

We are more committed than ever to lifting up the promise and possibilities still to be found in fearless acts of journalism.

Check out our annual report here ⬇️

See the story

04/23/2026

  By Lalitha Viswanathan While journalists serve as storytellers in democracies, media lawyers serve as those journalists’ essential defenders. They enforce legal infrastructure, from fighting for public records to shielding the confidential sources that allow …

04/07/2026

In less than two weeks, we'll host the 2026 ceremony for the Anthony Shadid Award for Journalism Ethics at the National Press Club in Washington, DC. 🏆

Come join us Monday, April 20 at 6:30 pm ET to honor this year's winners, to hear from special guest Jeffrey Goldberg (The Atlantic) in conversation with David Maraniss, and to honor the incredible legacy of the late Anthony Shadid.

More information and registration here: https://ethics.sjmc.wisc.edu/2026-shadid-award-ceremony/

03/06/2026

Today's the last day of ProPublica journalist Melissa Sanchez's residency with the Center for Journalism Ethics. She's pictured here with board member Natalie Yahr during our public event, "Immigration in Times of Crisis: Wisconsin and Beyond," on Tuesday night.

We cannot thank her enough for the energy and thoughtfulness she has poured into her visit!

Link to the livestream of "Immigration in Times of Crisis": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0GdNA1o3SY

03/05/2026

It's our great privilege to announce the winners of the 2026 Anthony Shadid Award for Journalism Ethics. Congratulations to the San Francisco Chronicle team of Joaquin Palomino and Cynthia Dizikes who investigated for-profit mental health hospitals in California.

Palomino and Dizikes spent more than a year pulling back the curtain on the rapid growth of for-profit psychiatric hospitals in California. The result is an explosive but sensitive account of the abuse and neglect inflicted upon patients and an exhaustive record of the state’s refusal to uphold its own laws or reckon with the facilities’ deplorable conditions.

Join us on April 20 in Washington, DC, for the 2026 award ceremony, which will feature special guest Jeffrey Goldberg, editor of The Atlantic, in conversation with David Maraniss.

More info: https://ethics.sjmc.wisc.edu/shadid-award/2026-shadid-award-finalists/

02/24/2026

Next week, we have the honor of welcoming ProPublica journalist Melissa Sanchez to campus as part of the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Sharon Dunwoody Journalist in Residence Program.

An immigration and labor reporter, Sanchez will meet with students and faculty and take part in a public talk moderated by Wisconsin Watch's Natalie Yahr.

"Reporting on Immigration in Times of Crisis: Wisconsin and Beyond" will take place on Tuesday, March 3, 6:30 pm in the Memorial Union Play Circle (and online).

More info/register here: https://lnkd.in/grDTGjVQ