October 17th, 2025 • SPJ/MediaFest25
Learning to Take Up Space as Female Journalists
Three women in professional media shared their personal experience of coming up in the industry as women and women of color during the “Women’s Work” panel at MediaFest 25. They advocated for young women who are new to the industry to believe in their worth and speak up for what they deserve in the newsroom.
October 17th, 2025 • SPJ/MediaFest25
Life is too short for boring social media
In an era where social media drives engagement and attention spans are shorter than ever, Emily Bloch, a national reporter for The Philadelphia Inquirer, encouraged journalists to rethink how they approach digital storytelling during her MediaFest 25 session, “Life’s Too Short for Boring Social Media.”
October 16th, 2025 • SPJ/MediaFest25
Student Newsrooms are the Key to Covering News Deserts
MediaFest 25 panelists Richard Watts, Chris Whitley and Barbara Allen introduced the Student Media Map, a national database designed to organize and visualize data on college news organizations. The website is helping to collect data on the growing impact of student journalists in communities without local news.
October 16th, 2025 • SPJ/MediaFest25
Journalists Need to Approach Antisemitism Coverage with Precision and Accuracy
The ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine has complicated how reporters cover Jewish issues, including antisemitism. Arno Rosenfeld, an enterprise reporter at The Forward, a Jewish-focused newspaper, spoke on how journalists can navigate these challenges during a panel on writing about antisemitism at MediaFest 25.