We make a life by what we give.

This week: The best student bylines, sports media tips, and some breaking ;;; news.

Author

Barbara Allen
May 25, 2025

Getty Images for Unsplash

I spent last week in Phoenix at a conference of student media managers and directors, picking their smart and savvy brains for what I might bring to their corner of the journalism education table.

They shared challenges and accomplishments, wins and woes. I was struck for the umpteenth time how generous and cooperative journalism educators are. We recognize that when journalism wins, so does everyone else.

In that spirit, I asked the AUSMM attendees to share some of their students’ best work from this semester, which you can read a little later in this newsletter.

I hope you’re all breathing a sigh of relief and planning to enjoy what remains of this holiday weekend. (But please tell me you’re reading this on Tuesday and not Sunday.)

I’m due for a semester break as well, but I’ll be back in your inboxes later in June with some important updates and more goodies for your fall planning.

ICYMI

😉 Breaking punctuation news! Marked decline in semicolons in English books, study suggests (The Guardian)

🗞️ This one has really been making the rounds: Trump & The Press: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)

📨 The Student Press Law Center and 18 other journalism and free speech organizations sent a letter to Columbia University and Barnard College last week to voice “concerns over the institutions’ ‘appalling treatment’ of student journalists.”

Localize this

The State News at Michigan State collected more than 100 statistics to show what life is like on campus. It’s A week at MSU, by the numbers.

Screenshot // Michigan State Daily

Advice for sports media folks

Doug Tammaro addresses AUSMM members from inside Mountain America Stadium.

The AUSMM conference included a session with Arizona State University sports information director Doug Tammaro, who said he considers it part of his job to mentor and help student journalists.

I’ll pause so you can wipe that little tear of joy from the corner of your eye before I continue.

Doug offered the following tips for sports journalism students everywhere:

🤑 The world of NIL is weird and evolving, and is having an enormous impact on college sports. It’s not always easy to navigate, so see below.

⏰ Be patient with sports information staffers — they are overworked and learning on the fly. Don’t take it personally when they don’t email you back immediately.

🎤 Student athletes now have the ability to generate income from this new NIL world. That will impact their decisions about how to engage with student journalists, so keep that in mind when you’re pitching interviews, profiles, etc.

🏈 Stop always trying to talk to the quarterback and head coach. The assistant coaches and offensive linemen are where the interviewing gold is.

🫡 Communicate with the sports information office, even if you’re interviewing someone outside of official sports and press events.

🥎 ⚽️ 🏊️ 🏐 🏇 Cover sports other than basketball and football. Showing some love to, say, softball or equestrian is going to endear you to the sports information staff as you work through the ranks.

🔑 Build relationships with local media. They know a ton, have great connections and can help you or hurt you, depending on your interactions.

🧹 Be professional in the press box, which includes gathering all you items and cleaning up after yourself.

👗 And the perennial favorite: Dress professionally.

Doug is so committed to helping student journalists that he keeps this Helpful Hints for Student Media on the ASU Athletics site.

Now get out there and try to convince your university to get itself a Doug.

Summer redesign inspo

Does your student media operation have a digital presence? Not your news landing page, but an exciting, alternative entry point you can use for recruitment and explanations?

If not, here’s some inspiration.

VIP graduate

Chatwan with his parents. (Photo by Ellie Pham)

Congrats to The Nutgraf’s Chatwan Mongkol, who graduated recently from The New School in New York City with a graduate degree in media management. 

If I may brag on his efforts a bit, he wrote in his graduation announcement that, “The Nutgraf also served as my capstone project, for which I created a full business plan — and earned the school’s Outstanding Capstone Award.”

His hundreds of readers have benefited from his deeply reported stories about student journalists and journalism, and I believe I speak for all his fans when I wish him well and hope he finds a way to keep The Nutgraf up and running!

Campus clips

Florida Alligator: Sasse's Spending Spree

And not an AUSMM member, but a bold statement from the Harvard Crimson: Harvard’s International Students Are People — Not Pawns

Resources & Opportunities

📚️ The Journalism Educators Institute is set for June 6-8 at the University of Wisconsin–Madison for just $175. “This is not a research conference. This is a conference for practical tools for classroom teaching,” said organizer Mark E. Johnson of the University of Georgia. JEI is modeled after Teachapalooza, previously hosted by Poynter. 

💊 Reporting on Addiction is now accepting applications for its summer 2025 Educator Training. This free virtual training prepares journalism professors and student media advisors on how to use its resources in their classrooms and newsrooms. 

🧑‍💼 The American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASBPE) offers free memberships to student journalists and invites them to attend its virtual conference, ASBPEvolve: The Biggest B2B Editorial Summit, May 28-30. Students can register for free through May 26 (that’s Monday!).

⚖️ The Student Press Law Center has opened nominations for two awards that come with $2,000 cash prizes that are split between students and their programs.

  • The Reveille Seven Courage in Student Journalism Award “recognizes student journalists who have demonstrated exceptional determination and support for student press freedom, despite resistance or difficult circumstances.” Apply by June 30.

  • The Student Freedom of Information Award “recognizes a student journalist or team of journalists for outstanding and tenacious use of public records.” Apply by June 30.

🔥 FIRE's annual Free Press Workshop is a two-day, intensive training for student journalists who want to defend their rights, tell the stories that matter, and connect with a network of peers doing the same. It’s totally free to attend, and FIRE covers students’ travel and lodging for this event Saturday, June 14, at WHYY Studios in Philadelphia. Spots are limited.

Feedback loop

Comments? Questions? Suggestions? Recommendations?

Email me at [email protected].

Thank you sincerely for your support!