Linda Steiner - News of Baltimore: Race, Rage, and the City (Routledge Research in Journalism)

This book examines how different media approached long-standing and long-simmering issues of race, class, violence, and social responsibility in Baltimore during the demonstrations, protests, and public debates during the spring of 2015. Contributors take Baltimore to be an important place, symbol, and marker, though the issues are certainly not unique to Baltimore: they have crucial implications for contemporary journalism in the US. These events prompt several questions: How well did journalism do, in Baltimore, nearby and nationally, in explaining the endemic issues besetting Baltimore? What might have been done differently? What is the responsibility of journalists to anticipate and cover these problems? How should they cover social problems in urban areas? What do the answers to such questions suggest about how journalists should in future cover such problems?

Linda Steiner is Professor in the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland, USA.

Silvio Waisbord is Professor in the School of Media and Public Affairs at The George Washington University, USA.

Routledge Research in Journalism

For a full list of titles in this series, please visit www.routledge.com.

12 Mindful Journalism and News Ethics in the Digital Era
A Buddhist Approach
Edited by Shelton A. Gunaratne, Mark Pearson, and Sugath Senarath

13 Profile Pieces
Journalism and the Human Interest Bias
Edited by Sue Joseph and Richard Lane Keeble

14 Journalism and the Philosophy of Truth
Beyond Objectivity and Balance
Jesse Owen Hearns-Branaman

15 Democratizing Journalism through Mobile Media
The Mojo Revolution
Ivo Burum

16 News Across Media
Production, Distribution and Cosumption
Edited by Jakob Linaa Jensen, Mette Mortensen, and Jacob rmen

17 Pursuing an Ethic of Empathy in Journalism
Janet D. Blank-Libra

18 Journalistic Role Performance
Concepts, Contexts, and Methods
Edited by Claudia Mellado, Lea Hellmueller and Wolfgang Donsbach

19 News of BaltimoreRace, Rage and the City
Edited by Linda Steiner and Silvio Waisbord

Race, Rage and the City

Edited by Linda Steiner and Silvio Waisbord

First published 2017
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2017 Taylor & Francis

The right of the editors to be identified as the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.

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CIP data has been applied for.

ISBN: 978-1-138-65106-7 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-62495-2 (ebk)

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To all those who work for a more just world

JANE RHODES

LINDA STEINER AND SILVIO WAISBORD

Part I
News and the Politics of Place

ROBERT E. GUTSCHE, JR. AND CAROLINA ESTRADA

ANDREW ROJECKI

SILVIO WAISBORD, EISSA SAEED, AND TINA TUCKER

BARBIE ZELIZER

Part II
Voices, Visibility and the Public Sphere

STUART ALLAN AND LINA DENCIK

ASHLEY HOWARD

SARAH J. JACKSON

KHADIJAH COSTLEY WHITE

Part III
Journalistic Discourse and Criticism

BONNIE BRENNEN

MATT CARLSON

KATY JUNE-FRIESEN

LINDA STEINER AND CAROLYN BRONSTEIN

Part IV
Conclusion

SILVIO WAISBORD AND LINDA STEINER

We are grateful to the authors of the chapters in this collection. They enthusiastically accepted our invitation to join in the project, and produced learned, thoughtful and provocative pieces. They carefully considered our original questions, and produced drafts and final versions in a timely fashion. Their ideas sparked further reflections and nudged us to refine the key arguments. We tremendously enjoyed our conversations and appreciate their dedication.

At Routledge, Felisa Salvago-Keyes has been a patient supporter of this project and believed in it from the beginning. We thank her and everyone at Routledge involved in the production process.

The two maps were produced by Helen Lyons, a freelance journalist and graduate student in the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland. Helen, who is studying data journalism and graphic production, showed remarkable composure as we explored the best ways to visualize where various events occurred around the death of Freddie Gray in Baltimore.

We also thank Zoey Lichtenheld for editing assistance and especially for work on the index, and Katy June-Friesen, who researched possibilities for the maps of Baltimore.

Finally, we find inspiration in the words and the actions of citizens who demand justice in Baltimore and elsewhere in the United States and the world. With them, we share the conviction structural inequalities that perpetuate prejudice and hatred must be confronted to achieve a more just world.

Legend

1 Mount St. and North Ave., where police first saw and pursued Freddie Gray on April 12, 2015

2 1700 block of Presbury St., where Gray was arrested

3 Mount St. and Baker St., where Gray was loaded into the police wagon

4 N. Fremont Ave. and Mosher St., where police stopped and checked on Gray

5 Druid Hill Ave. and Dolphin St., where additional police units arrived to check on Gray, who asked for medical help

6 1600 North Ave., where Donta Allen was arrested and loaded into the wagon with Gray, who was by then unresponsive

7 Western District police station, where a medic determined Gray was in cardiac arrest and later, site of the first protests

8 Pennsylvania Ave. and North Ave., site of numerous protests, as well as fires and looting, including CVS which was set on fire during the unrest

9 Gilmor Homes, the public housing complex where Gray spent time and was arrested

10 University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center, where Gray had surgery, then died on April 19, 2015

11 Oriole Park at Camden Yards, site of protests and clashes between protesters, police, and baseball fans

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