On Oct. 21, VTDigger editor-in-chief Geeta Anand ’89 reflected on the challenges facing journalists today — from social media’s influence to declining trust in news coverage — and called for renewed investment in local, independent news.
VTDigger is an independent digital news organization covering issues of “statewide interest” in Vermont, according to their website.
The John Sloan Dickey Center hosted the event, titled “Reporting Without Borders: The Role of Journalism Today.” Seventy-eight people attended in person and 180 more watched online, according to Dickey Center events program manager Judith van Rhijn Jackson.
Anand, who previously served as dean of the University of California, Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, said she has encountered students from all ideological backgrounds who do not believe in objective facts.
“It’s so pervasive,” Anand said. “Many students don’t believe that facts exist. And that is a very dangerous place to be.”
While asked about teaching ethics classes at Berkeley, Anand said that she aimed to show students “the stories they would’ve gotten wrong if they had only talked to the people they agreed with.”
“We all need to understand that we have biases,” Anand said. “The goal as a journalist is to know you have one — what is it — and try to set it aside and report the story with an open mind.”
Anand said that VTDigger’s audience-driven, non-profit funding model allows them to be “independent and not beholden to anyone,” which is “so important.”
“Luckily, new [business] models are evolving, and one of them is the model that VTDigger is built on, which is the model of non-profit real news,” Anand said. “There’s no barrier to reading it, you don’t have to pay for a subscription. Anyone can read it.”
In response to a question about readers who seek out sources that “confirm their biases,” Anand said that confirmation bias is “one of the most challenging issues in journalism for democracy.” She emphasized the role of local journalism in restoring people’s trust in the media in the face of large, often partisan publications.
“Rebuilding trust begins locally,” Anand said. “There is a lot of research showing that people who are more conservative … do believe local news … Leaning into local activism, local news, local journalism and really investing in [your community] … is one way of countering that.”
Jing Kai Ow ’29 said they appreciated hearing “straight from a newsmaker” about issues in journalism.
“This lecture is a good reminder about the importance of journalism in this day and age,” Ow said. “[Journalism] forces us to contend with different viewpoints, and allow us to have a greater sense of what’s going on in this world.”
Event attendee and Hanover resident Mary Brown said the event was “an inspiring story for young people.”
“I really admire the work of Geeta and her whole story of how she got to where she is and why she came back,” Brown said.
