Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma

Bringing it Home: 2013 Dart Awards

On May 1, 2013, the Dart Center celebrated the 2013 Dart Awards winners and honorable mentions and presented a roundtable discussion. The conversation explored the story-behind-the-story, and drilled down on what's involved in undertaking hard-hitting, humane investigations of trauma and pursuing high-impact collaborations. Dart Foundation Vice President James Lammers and Dart Foundation Program Manager Claudia Deschaine presented the awards.

Good Wars, Bad Wars: A Special Conversation

On Tuesday, the Dart Center hosted a conversation with Pulitzer Prize-winning author Dale Maharidge and Ridenhour Prize-winning journalist Nick Turse about their acclaimed new books which revise our understanding of two very different wars. In Bringing Mulligan Home, Columbia Journalism professor Dale Maharidge goes in search of the ghosts that haunted his WWII veteran father. In Kill Everything that Moves, journalist and historian Nick Turse uncovers secret Pentagon records and tracks down survivors and perpetrators, revealing the brutal consequences of America’s military policy in Vietnam.

Crisis Reporting in the Age of Social Media

By Anna Codrea-Rado

In the high stakes business of trauma reporting, social media has become a powerful and controversial journalistic tool. We are also only just beginning to understand how to use it. A special report in advance of our symposium on Monday, April 22, in conjunction with the Tow Center for Digital Journalism, at Columbia Journalism School: Sandy Hook and Beyond: Breaking News, Trauma and Aftermath.

Symposium: Sandy Hook and Beyond

Click here to watch all of the symposium panels. Click here to read the Live Blog from the event. Click here for program details.

The daylong symposium: Sandy Hook and Beyond: Breaking News, Trauma and Aftermath took place on Monday at Columbia University. Regional and national journalists were joined by community leaders, mental health experts, policy advocates and Sandy Hook families and shared perspectives, discussed lessons learned and pointed the way towards responsible news coverage going forward. 

"The Story Behind these Hands: Finding Their Way Out"

By Bill Landauer, Jason Plotkin, Samantha Dellinger, Scott Blanchard, and Brad Jennings

Judges described this multimedia feature story in the York Daily Record (PA) as "moving" and "compassionate." It explores the lasting impact of trauma on one community nine years after the 2003 shooting at Red Lion Junior High that left the principal and shooter dead. Originally published in April, 2012. An interactive version of this story can be found here.

2013 Dart Award Winners Announced

This year's Dart Awards went to the Los Angeles Times, for Standing Up: Davien's Story and the collaborative team of Pro Publica, Fundación MEPI and This American Life, for What Happened at Dos Erres and Finding Oscar: Massacre, Memory and Justice in Guatemala. Honorable mentions went to The York Daily Record, The New York Times ‘At War’ Blog and The New York Times Magazine.

Apply Now: Dart Center Newsroom Leadership Academy

We're pleased to announce our newest global training program aimed at newsroom managers, senior journalists and news executives responsible for leading coverage of trauma, crisis and disaster. This week-long program will take place July 9-14 2013 at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in New York City.

Intimate Partner Violence: Behind the new DOJ Numbers

By Whitney Eulich

As Congress debates reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, a new DOJ report shows a dramatic drop in IPV incidence. But are the numbers accurate?

Reporters Exposed to Traumatic Events: Tips for Managers and Editors

Staff care tips for managers and editors of news personnel exposed to traumatic events.

Working with Victims and Survivors: Minimise Further Harm

Suggested ways news personnel can minimise further harm when working with victims and survivors.