American Journalism Review

American Journalism Review
Title	American Journalism Review
Category	Journalism
Frequency	Quarterly
Firstdate	1977
Finaldate	2015
Country	United States
Based	Washington, D.C.
Language	English

American Journalism Review

American Journalism Review was a United States-based magazine devoted to coverage of journalism and the news media industry, founded in 1977 and published until 2015. It examined practices at publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, and USA Today, and addressed reporting issues related to institutions like Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, Medill School of Journalism, Pulitzer Prize, Knight Foundation, and Pew Research Center. The magazine critiqued coverage of major events including the Watergate scandal, Iran–Contra affair, September 11 attacks, Iraq War, and the 2008 United States presidential election.

History

The magazine was launched in 1977 by founders associated with George Washington University and later operated from offices in Washington, D.C. and affiliated with organizations such as the Philip Merrill College of Journalism and the University of Maryland. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s it chronicled transformations at outlets like Time (magazine), Newsweek, The Boston Globe, Chicago Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, Miami Herald, and Dallas Morning News. During the 2000s it documented the impact of ownership changes involving Gannett, Tribune Company, The McClatchy Company, Advance Publications, Hearst Communications, and News Corporation. The magazine reported on legal and regulatory matters affecting media, including decisions from the Supreme Court of the United States, actions by the Federal Communications Commission, and debates surrounding the Telecommunications Act of 1996.

Editorial focus and content

The journal focused on media criticism, newsroom practices, ethics, and business models, regularly analyzing coverage decisions made by outlets such as NPR, CNN, Fox News Channel, MSNBC, Bloomberg L.P., Reuters, and Agence France-Presse. Feature packages examined investigative efforts at organizations like ProPublica, Center for Public Integrity, The Marshall Project, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, and Committee to Protect Journalists. It analyzed journalism education at institutions including Columbia University, University of Missouri School of Journalism, Syracuse University Newhouse School, Northwestern University, Indiana University, and University of California, Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. Coverage included profiles of editors and publishers such as A. M. Rosenthal, Ben Bradlee, Katharine Graham, Rupert Murdoch, Roger Ailes, and Jeff Bezos, as well as reviews of books by authors like Seymour Hersh, Bob Woodward, Carl Bernstein, David Halberstam, and Ronald Kessler.

Format and publication changes

Originally a print magazine, it produced issues that profiled newsroom investigations and business reporting at outlets including The Atlantic, The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, Esquire, Fortune, and Forbes. In the 2000s it shifted coverage to digital transitions at companies such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, Apple Inc., and Amazon (company). Facing industry pressures similar to those at The Christian Science Monitor and Salon (website), the magazine reduced print frequency, experimented with online content, and ultimately ceased print publication, mirroring trends at publications like Newsweek and Time (magazine). Its web presence covered metrics and analytics tied to platforms such as Comscore and organizations like Pew Research Center that track media audiences.

Influence and reception

The publication influenced debates within newsrooms at outlets like The New York Times Magazine, The Wall Street Journal Europe, The Chicago Sun-Times, St. Petersburg Times, The Plain Dealer, and The Rocky Mountain News. Academics at Columbia University, Harvard University, Stanford University, University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University cited its analyses in studies of media consolidation, digital disruption, and journalistic ethics. Critics and commentators in venues such as The New Republic, National Review, The Nation, The Weekly Standard, and The Atlantic Monthly responded to its critiques; other industry trades like Editor & Publisher and Columbia Journalism Review engaged in exchanges over methodology and influence. Its reporting fed conversations about press freedom invoked by groups including Reporters Without Borders and legal advocates at American Civil Liberties Union.

Staff and notable contributors

Staff and contributors included editors and writers who worked at outlets such as The Washington Post, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Newsday, The Baltimore Sun, The Philadelphia Inquirer, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Cleveland Plain Dealer, and Detroit Free Press. Freelance contributors hailed from publications like The Guardian, The Economist, Le Monde, Der Spiegel, Daedalus (journal), and Foreign Affairs. Guest essays and investigations featured journalists and critics such as Margaret Sullivan, David Carr, Paul Krugman, Maureen Dowd, Thomas Friedman, E. J. Dionne, Rana Foroohar, and Gillian Tett. Editors recruited from academic programs included faculty linked to Medill School of Journalism, Columbia Journalism School, Annenberg School for Communication, and Hofstra University.

Awards and recognition

The magazine received recognition from journalism organizations including the Society of Professional Journalists, the Investigative Reporters and Editors, the National Press Club, and the Online News Association. Its investigative pieces were cited in Pulitzer Prize deliberations at institutions like Columbia University and were referenced in legal filings before federal courts and congressional hearings involving committees such as the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary and the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. It earned honors in awards programs run by ASME (magazine awards), National Magazine Awards, Peabody Awards discussions, and regional press clubs in cities like New York City, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Los Angeles, Boston, and Philadelphia.

Category:Magazines published in Washington, D.C.