CINCINNATI, Aug. 6, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- In a move to
advance high-quality enterprise journalism, the Scripps Howard Foundation today announced a $6
million investment into the creation of two centers for investigative journalism.
Arizona State University and the University of Maryland will each
receive $3 million over three years from the Scripps Howard Foundation to establish a Howard Center
for Investigative Journalism at their institutions.
The Howard Centers will be multidisciplinary, graduate-level programs focused on training the next generation of reporters
through hands-on investigative journalism projects. The Howard Centers' students will work with news organizations across the
country to report stories of national or international importance to the public.
The Howard Centers honor the legacy of Roy W. Howard, former chairman of the Scripps-Howard
newspaper chain and a pioneering news reporter.
"Roy Howard was an entrepreneur whose relentless pursuit of news took him around the world,
sourcing his education directly from the lessons of the newsroom," said Liz Carter, president and
CEO of the Scripps Howard Foundation. "That same pursuit led us to establish the Howard Centers – bridging the classroom and the
newsroom to ensure tomorrow's journalists are prepared with the mastery of dogged reporting they need in a world that
increasingly demands it."
Arizona State and the University of Maryland were selected as
locations for the Howard Centers based on proposals submitted in a competitive process. Both universities have journalism
programs that feature a rigorous curriculum and hands-on training for student journalists.
"The Centers are envisioned as innovative educational programs," said Battinto Batts, director of the journalism fund for the
Scripps Howard Foundation. "Both Arizona State University and the University of
Maryland are well-positioned to challenge their students to become ethical, entrepreneurial and courageous investigative
journalists."
The Howard Centers will recruit graduate students and faculty of diverse academic and professional backgrounds. Students
attending a Howard Center will be introduced to topics including new media, data mining and the history and ethics of
investigative journalism.
In addition to the emphasis on multidisciplinary studies within their own curriculum, the Howard Centers also will collaborate
on investigative projects to deliver high-impact content to news consumers.
"The Howard Centers will create a new cadre of great investigative journalists – steeped in the values and vision of the
Scripps Howard Foundation – while generating impactful national investigations on some of the most important challenges facing
our country today," said Christopher Callahan, dean of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, vice
provost of ASU and CEO of Arizona PBS. "We are honored to be selected for this critically important initiative and to preserve
and celebrate the extraordinary legacy of Roy W. Howard."
"Investigative journalists shine a light on our society's problems and protect democracy by holding the powerful accountable,"
said Lucy A. Dalglish, dean of the University of Maryland Philip Merrill
College of Journalism. "The Howard Center at Merrill College will provide an unmatched opportunity for our students to
learn to tell important stories in innovative ways, preparing them to become outstanding professional journalists."
The Howard Centers will launch national searches for directors this fall and will open programming to graduate-level students
in 2019.
About The Scripps Howard Foundation
The Scripps Howard
Foundation supports philanthropic causes important to The E.W. Scripps Company (NASDAQ: SSP) and the communities it
serves, with a special emphasis on excellence in journalism. At the crossroads of the classroom and the newsroom, the Foundation
is a leader in supporting journalism education, scholarships, internships, minority recruitment and development, literacy and
First Amendment causes. The Scripps Howard Awards stand as
one of the industry's top honors for outstanding journalism. The Foundation improves lives and helps build thriving communities.
It partners with Scripps brands to create awareness of local issues and supports impactful organizations to drive solutions.
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SOURCE The E.W. Scripps Company