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The New York Times Company Foundation Announces Nine 2007 Institutes for Journalists

Posted on: Wednesday, 29 November 2006, 09:00 CST

The New York Times Company Foundation today announced the nine New York Times Institutes for Journalists it will sponsor in 2007. These Institutes, initiated in 2000, are immersion courses on complex subjects of rising importance to the public. Applications are welcome from writers, reporters and editors from media organizations around the country.

In making the announcement, Jack Rosenthal, president, The New York Times Company Foundation, said, "In a world of constantly growing specialization, these nine Institutes will give journalists from across the country access to experts in a range of political, cultural and scientific topics. We know from past experience that participants can learn much in a short time and then offer their readers deeper reporting and analysis. The Foundation is pleased in this way to promote both professionalism in journalism and public understanding."

The Institutes run for one to three weeks and each accepts about a dozen experienced journalists. The courses are each conducted by an institution that is expert in the particular subject. In addition, the Institutes typically host Web sites that serve as an online meeting place for participants and alumni from previous years. These sites also give other journalists access to the Institutes' instructional materials.

The Times Company Foundation supports the instructional and Web site costs and contributes to the travel and other expenses of the participants. Since 2000, it has created 33 Institutes that have served approximately 400 journalists. The program manager is Michael Weinstein, former New York Times economics writer. Further information is available at nytcfdn1@nytimes.com or 212-556-1091. The 2007 Institutes will be:

February: Two Explosions in Health Care: Content and Cost, at the Markle Foundation in New York. This Institute will explore the accelerating collision of medical technology and economics. Patients now have access to an increasing array of drugs and procedures based on revolutions in genetics and information technology. Some of these innovations are medically spectacular but others offer only marginal improvement or are even clinically dangerous. Meanwhile, health-care costs are rising much faster than the economy. Experts will help 15 journalists master these complexities.

March: Covering Globalization: Food, Trade, Agriculture and the Environment, at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. This four-day Institute, co-sponsored by the Institute for Policy Dialogue and led by Joseph Stiglitz, the Nobel Laureate, will cover the global politics of food, the impact of the globalization of agriculture on trade policy, environmentally sustainable economic growth, climate change, life after Kyoto and future prospects for China and India.

March: Environmental Threats, in association with Columbia University in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. The Center for Environmental Management will repeat the successful Institute it has twice conducted on wind, water and health. The Institute, for about 15 fellows, uses lectures, discussion and field work to present the latest information about the impact of environmental change on the oceans, fisheries, local economies, weather, drinking water and emerging infectious diseases.

April: The Art and Industry of Film, in association with the Museum of the Moving Image in New York. This five-day Institute, designed for feature writers, arts editors and film critics, seeks to enhance appreciation of the art of film and provide a global view of the film business. Outstanding directors, editors, screenwriters and composers will introduce screenings at the museum and discuss their craft at editing suites, sound-recording studios and other production facilities in New York. Industry executives will offer insights about distribution, exhibition, publicity and marketing. Participants will observe a weekly meeting of Times culture editors and film writers.

May: Cells and Souls: The Science, Politics and Ethics of Embryonic Stem Cell Research, in association with New York University's Department of Journalism. Drawing on expert scientists, bio-ethicists, lawmakers and corporate figures, the Institute will cover the promise of stem cell research, overselling of that promise, the legal landscape, ethical issues and the business potential of stem cells. Sessions will discuss spectacular successes and failures.

June: Dance Reporting and Criticism, at the National Dance Institute, Duke University in Durham, N.C. This three-week-long Institute, held in partnership with the American Dance Festival, helps approximately 10 journalists learn to write about dance with authority and passion. The fellows attend performances, write reviews, join in dance technique classes, view films, analyze movement and study dance history.

July: Theater Reporting and Criticism, at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, Conn. This two-week-long Institute is conducted in partnership with the annual summer O'Neill Playwrights' Conference. This is the only training program for critics that works with a professional theater. The dozen fellows attend performances and study with master critics from daily and weekly publication.

October: The Ethnic Press, at The New York Times. New York City is home to more than 100 foreign language newspapers and magazines, serving a million readers. This Institute, repeated annually since 2000, invites a dozen of their editors and reporters to share experiences with their Times counterparts. Subjects include ethics, Internet use and legal liability.

October: The Age Boom Academy, at the International Longevity Center in New York. This will be the eighth Institute on the subject, designed to help journalists understand the revolutionary world-wide rise in life expectancy and the impact of a rapidly increasing population of elders on politics, economics and culture. The 2007 academy will give special emphasis to science and health.

The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT), a leading media company with 2005 revenues of $3.4 billion, includes The New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, The Boston Globe, 15 other daily newspapers, nine network-affiliated television stations, two New York City radio stations and 35 Web sites, including NYTimes.com, Boston.com and About.com. The Company's core purpose is to enhance society by creating, collecting and distributing high-quality news, information and entertainment.

Source: Business Wire

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