Tom Rosenstiel
Encyclopedia
Tom Rosenstiel is an author, journalist, press critic and founder and director of the Project for Excellence in Journalism
(PEJ), a research organization that studies the news media and is part of the Pew Research Center in Washington, D.C. A journalist for more than 30 years, he worked as a media critic for the Los Angeles Times and chief congressional correspondent for Newsweek magazine and as co-founder and vice chairman of the Committee of Concerned Journalists. Among his books, he is the co-author of the popular The Elements of Journalism: What Newspeople Should Know and the Public Should Expect." He appears often on radio, television and in print, and has written widely on politics and media.
and the Columbia School of Journalism, Rosenstiel began his career as a reporter for muckraking political columnist Jack Anderson. He worked at The Peninsula Times Tribune, his hometown paper in Palo Alto, CA, as a business reporter and Business Editor from 1980 to 1983. He then spent 12 years at the Los Angeles Times
, most of those as a media critic and Washington correspondent. He left the Times in 1995 to join Newsweek Magazine, where he served as chief congressional correspondent and covered the Gingrich revolution.
In 1997, he founded the Project for Excellence in Journalism, an institute that studies the press performance. PEJ is non partisan, non ideological, and non political. From 1997 to 2006, PEJ was affiliated with Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism Columbia University
. In 2006 PEJ separated from Columbia and became part of Pew Research Center
, funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts, a private organization. PEJ, among other studies, produces the annual State of the News Media Report that takes stock of the news industry, the weekly News Coverage Index that monitors the coverage of the mainstream media and the weekly New Media Index that monitors social media and blogs.
Rosenstiel also co-founded the Committee of Concerned Journalists, an organization of journalists around the world working in different media concerned about the future of public interest journalism. Rosenstiel directed CCJ's daily activities until 2006. During those years, Rosenstiel was co-author of CCJ's "Traveling Curriculum," a mid-career education program that trained more than 6,000 U.S. journalists. CCJ is now affiliated with the University of Missouri
in Columbia, Missouri
, where Rosenstiel is an adjunct professor of Journalism Studies.
In 2001, Rosenstiel co-authored with Bill Kovach the book, "The Elements of Journalism," which identifies, explains and traces intellectual origins of the core principles of American journalism and their role in civil society. Updated in 2007, "Elements" has been called "one of give essential books on journalism (Roger Mudd, The Wall Street Journal), a "modern classic" (William Safire, The New York Times) and "the most important book on the relationship of journalism and democracy published in the last 50 years" (Roy Clark, the Poynter Institute). Elements has been translated into more than two dozen languages and is the winner of the Goldsmith Book Prize from Harvard University, the Society of Professional Journalists Sigma Delta Chi award for research in journalism and the Bart Richards Award for Media Criticism from Penn State.
His most recent book, also with Kovach, is "Blur: How to Know What's True in the Age of Information Overload," which offers a roadmap for how consumers can determine whether the news they encounter is reliable and an outline for how journalism must change to meet the changing needs of the 21st century citizen.
Project for Excellence in Journalism
The Project for Excellence in Journalism is a non-profit research organization in the US that uses empirical methods to evaluate and study the performance of the press. It asserts that it is "non partisan, non ideological and non political"...
(PEJ), a research organization that studies the news media and is part of the Pew Research Center in Washington, D.C. A journalist for more than 30 years, he worked as a media critic for the Los Angeles Times and chief congressional correspondent for Newsweek magazine and as co-founder and vice chairman of the Committee of Concerned Journalists. Among his books, he is the co-author of the popular The Elements of Journalism: What Newspeople Should Know and the Public Should Expect." He appears often on radio, television and in print, and has written widely on politics and media.
Career
A graduate of Oberlin CollegeOberlin College
Oberlin College is a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, noteworthy for having been the first American institution of higher learning to regularly admit female and black students. Connected to the college is the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the oldest continuously operating...
and the Columbia School of Journalism, Rosenstiel began his career as a reporter for muckraking political columnist Jack Anderson. He worked at The Peninsula Times Tribune, his hometown paper in Palo Alto, CA, as a business reporter and Business Editor from 1980 to 1983. He then spent 12 years at the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, most of those as a media critic and Washington correspondent. He left the Times in 1995 to join Newsweek Magazine, where he served as chief congressional correspondent and covered the Gingrich revolution.
In 1997, he founded the Project for Excellence in Journalism, an institute that studies the press performance. PEJ is non partisan, non ideological, and non political. From 1997 to 2006, PEJ was affiliated with Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
. In 2006 PEJ separated from Columbia and became part of Pew Research Center
Pew Research Center
The Pew Research Center is an American think tank organization based in Washington, D.C. that provides information on issues, attitudes and trends shaping the United States and the world. The Center and its projects receive funding from The Pew Charitable Trusts. In 1990, Donald S...
, funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts, a private organization. PEJ, among other studies, produces the annual State of the News Media Report that takes stock of the news industry, the weekly News Coverage Index that monitors the coverage of the mainstream media and the weekly New Media Index that monitors social media and blogs.
Rosenstiel also co-founded the Committee of Concerned Journalists, an organization of journalists around the world working in different media concerned about the future of public interest journalism. Rosenstiel directed CCJ's daily activities until 2006. During those years, Rosenstiel was co-author of CCJ's "Traveling Curriculum," a mid-career education program that trained more than 6,000 U.S. journalists. CCJ is now affiliated with the University of Missouri
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri System is a state university system providing centralized administration for four universities, a health care system, an extension program, five research and technology parks, and a publishing press. More than 64,000 students are currently enrolled at its four campuses...
in Columbia, Missouri
Columbia, Missouri
Columbia is the fifth-largest city in Missouri, and the largest city in Mid-Missouri. With a population of 108,500 as of the 2010 Census, it is the principal municipality of the Columbia Metropolitan Area, a region of 164,283 residents. The city serves as the county seat of Boone County and as the...
, where Rosenstiel is an adjunct professor of Journalism Studies.
In 2001, Rosenstiel co-authored with Bill Kovach the book, "The Elements of Journalism," which identifies, explains and traces intellectual origins of the core principles of American journalism and their role in civil society. Updated in 2007, "Elements" has been called "one of give essential books on journalism (Roger Mudd, The Wall Street Journal), a "modern classic" (William Safire, The New York Times) and "the most important book on the relationship of journalism and democracy published in the last 50 years" (Roy Clark, the Poynter Institute). Elements has been translated into more than two dozen languages and is the winner of the Goldsmith Book Prize from Harvard University, the Society of Professional Journalists Sigma Delta Chi award for research in journalism and the Bart Richards Award for Media Criticism from Penn State.
His most recent book, also with Kovach, is "Blur: How to Know What's True in the Age of Information Overload," which offers a roadmap for how consumers can determine whether the news they encounter is reliable and an outline for how journalism must change to meet the changing needs of the 21st century citizen.
Books on journalism
- Rosenstiel, Tom (1993). Strange Bedfellows: How TV and the Presidential Candidates Changes American Politics, 1992 (Hyperion Press)
- Rosenstiel, Tom and Bill KovachBill KovachBill Kovach is a US journalist, former Washington bureau chief of The New York Times, former editor of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and co-author of the popular book, The Elements of Journalism: What Newspeople Should Know and The Public Should Expect.- Biography :Born in 1932 in East...
(1999). Warp Speed: America in The Age of Mixed Media (Century Foundation). - Rosenstiel, Tom and Bill Kovach (2001; 2nd edition 2007). Elements of Journalism: What Newspeople Should Know and the Public Should Expect (Crown Publishing).
- Rosenstiel, Tom and Amy S. Mitchell, editors (2003). Thinking Clearly: Cases in Journalistic Decision Making. (Columbia University Press).
- Rosenstiel, Tom and Marion Just, Todd Belt, Atiba Pertilla, Walter Dean and Dante Chinni, (2007) We Interrupt This Newscast: How to Improve Local TV and Win Ratings, Too (Cambridge University Press)
- Rosenstiel, Tom and Bill Kovach (2011) Blur: How to Know What's True in the Age of Information Overload (Bloomsbury).