About Us
By Brendan Jacques
In the year 2020, the word “normalcy” seems to have a different meaning. It has been a year filled with many twists and turns, felt and heard not only around our university, but also around the world as a multitude of problems has impacted much of humanity.
Over the past several months, our class undertook the task of determining which of many issues has had the most significant impact on journalism.
The topic that we chose related to the difficulties the COVID-19 pandemic has imposed on journalists.
We have, therefore, invited to this panel discussion two print journalists, a Bay Area photojournalist and a University of Arizona physician who understands the science behind this pandemic and keeps our university’s football players safe.
We developed this project with the help of our consultant, University of Arizona School of Journalism graduate, Maritza Cruz, and our instructor, Assistant Professor, Susan E. Swanberg. First, we identified a group of experts from different professional backgrounds who could discuss their experiences during the pandemic. Then we conducted preliminary interviews of these experts which helped us to identify specific areas of interest the experts could address. We also developed our panel discussion protocols and ran through those protocols twice to identify problems that needed to be fixed.
We are very grateful for the help and support of journalists, Bethany Barnes and Jasmine Demers, Dr. Stephen Paul of UA Campus Health and Bay Area photojournalist, Jose Carlos Fajardo. We would also like to express our appreciation for the support of Mr. Al Litzow, a 1973 graduate of our own University of Arizona School of Journalism, who has provided our faculty with financial support to develop innovative educational techniques, programs and activities for the school’s journalism students.
Finally, we also appreciate the support of Assistant Professor Swanberg for guiding us along the way, as well as to Mr. Daniel Andrés Dominguez, and other School of Journalism staff for providing necessary information and invaluable support.