NewsChannel 21’s editorial approach to covering the 2024 general election

Our goal is to produce accurate, transparent and trustworthy coverage for members of an engaged and informed local electorate.

Presidential politics and the congressional balance of power will dominate national coverage, and as watchdogs for our communities, it is up to us to focus on local, county and state races.

Producing accurate, transparent and unbiased coverage will be key to earning and keeping the trust of members of an already wary multi-platform audience. According to 2023 research commissioned by RTDNA from Magid, only 41% of the audience trusts political coverage will be accurate and correct; 39% believe it will be balanced and represent all sides. For reference, 65% would be an ideal score and 55% would be acceptable, so we clearly have our work cut out for us.

The Magid survey was conducted in media markets large and small across the country. Findings were similar based on gender, geography, and race; only age yielded a significantly different response, specifically among Generation Z respondents (born between 1997 and 2012) who describe themselves as considerably less passionate about political coverage overall.

Earning Trust Through Transparency

While it is impossible to plan for every potential coverage scenario, it is our intention is to explain our overall editorial approach and priorities.

• To maintain continuity in our coverage, we will take a “beat” approach by assigning specific reporters to cover individual candidates and issues; this will allow our team of journalists to immerse themselves in the subject matter leading up to election day. While it may not always be possible to schedule with 100% consistency, we will do our best.

• In our TV and digital stories, we will clearly attribute sources of all data and documentation included in the report.

• When we interview a candidate, we will post the full, unedited video version of the interview, as well as a written transcription on website and news app.

• When covering multiple candidates running for the same race, we will attempt to fairly compare each by asking the same (or similar) questions and by allowing equal time for each response.

• If a candidate chooses not to answer a direct question from one of our reporters, we will make a respectful second attempt to ask the question again. If the candidate selects to not answer a second time, we may choose not include his/her response in our story (the full interview will remain available online, however).

• If we choose to interview a political expert, it will be so the individual can help explain a complex issue without taking a political position. We will thoroughly vet the individual’s background and explain why the interview is important/relevant.

• When we stream or air a scheduled candidate speech, we will request a hard copy in advance and, when provided, post it with the archived video of the speech.

We will also publish an online Voter’s Guide to help you do your own research on the candidates and issues that will be on November’s ballot. The Voter’s Guide will include links to an online “Civic Center” powered by BallotReady.com; the resource provides information on voter registration, candidate/issue research and sample ballots.

Our Coverage Priorities

As an independent newsgathering organization, we have developed a list of six coverage priorities to guide our political reporting. The list was derived from audience feedback and internal newsroom discussion, and will take priority over orchestrated campaign events organized by individual campaigns.

Crime	Economy	Education
As part of our commitment to covering public safety, we will track which violent crimes are being committed, and where.   We will ask candidates about crime trends and their plans for addressing and funding public safety concerns.	Inflation-fueled price increases have families paying more for household items. In many cases, raises don’t equal cost of living increases, which has a domino effect that impacts the ability to save – or spend on non-essential goods such as vacations.    We will ask about spending priorities and strategies to keep budgets balanced.	School funding, classroom sizes and lesson plans all impact a child’s ability to learn and excel. Our coverage will cover everything from the classroom to the school board meeting room.
Health Care	Housing	Immigration
The 2022 Supreme Court ruling to overturn Roe v. Wade returned abortion laws to individual states. Meanwhile, prescription drug costs and unexpected medical bills continue to impact personal pocketbooks.   We will explore each of the issues, along with solutions to help improve healthy living.	With more people moving into the market, home prices are increasing while availability is decreasing.   At the same time, the number of people experiencing homelessness is also increasing.   We will report on specific plans to address each issue.	Impacts from the flow of documented and undocumented immigrants span far beyond the border states.   City and county budgets are stressed with added expenses and receive inconsistent aid from the federal government.   We will report on the search for solutions at local, county, state and federal levels.

Tracking polls (aka “horse race” polls) may be included as a springboard into an in-depth report or to add context within a story. Here are links to the polls we will be monitoring, including those used by the broadcast networks.

• Emerson College
• Fox News Polls (Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R))
• Kaiser Family Foundation
• Harvard Harris Poll
• Langer Research Associates (ABC News)
• Monmouth University
• Pew Research Center
• Project FiveThirtyEight (ABC News)
• Public Opinion Strategies (NBC News)
• Quinnipiac University
• Rasmussen Reports
• Real Clear Politics
• YouGov (CBS News)

Producing Accurate & Unbiased Coverage

According to the American Psychological Association, implicit bias “is a negative attitude, of which one is not consciously aware, against a specific social group. Implicit bias is thought to be shaped by experience and based on learned associations between particular qualities and social categories, including race and/or gender. Individuals’ perceptions and behaviors can be influenced by the implicit biases they hold, even if they are unaware they hold such biases.”

Awareness and knowledge of the potential for implicit bias are our best defenses against it influencing our reporting. We have already adopted the following best practices from the Center for Racial Justice Innovation into our companywide editorial guidelines, and will apply them to our political coverage:

• Avoid stereotypes
• Use a multiracial lens, and consider all communities of color.
• Focus on actions and impacts, rather than attitudes and intentions.
• Ensure headlines, images, captions and graphics are fair and responsible in their depiction of people (of color), and coverage of the issues.

We will also assign reporters to fact-check statements made by candidates during campaign appearances and in advertising messages paid for by individual campaigns and/or political action committees. Fact-check reporting will include attribution to the sources used to confirm or contradict candidate statements, and we will also include information about who is paying for advertising messages.

Get Engaged and Informed by Checking Our Online Voter’s Guide

To track the stories that are most important to you, we invite you to create a user profile on our website by clicking the bell icon at the bottom right of your screen.  Here are the benefits of creating an account:

• Personalized profile allows you to create a site avatar and keep track of your personal engagement history.
• Personalized news feed allows you to follow your favorite authors and/or topics.
• Allows you to comment on articles and use the notification tray to let you know when another commenter has responded to a thread you’re following.
• Receive notifications when there is breaking news, severe weather or a local event livestream.