Need to catch up? Here's your weekly journalism news update

Every Friday, Journalism.co.uk will be bringing you a round-up of our week’s top stories, giving you all the information you need to know, wherever you are. 

Here's the latest journalism news from this week:

Ofcom research has revealed lack of diversity in UK radio

Image: Pixabay

The broadcast watchdog found almost twice as many men are in senior management roles than women, commercial radio stations have the lowest percentage of employees from an ethnic-minority background, and only five per cent of jobs go to someone with a disability.

The research, published on 13 June, found that many companies do not collect enough data on details like disability, ethnicity and sexual orientation to be able to understand diversity of their workforce, meaning there are significant gaps in diversity data across the industry.

Spade and Bourdain's suicides have sparked discussion on reporting mental illness responsibly

Image: Kennymatic

After their deaths, many readers and journalists alike were quick to call out how the events were irresponsibly covered by some publishers, including the Daily Mail UK and New York Times.

News organisations are instead encouraged to follow guidelines set out by the Independent Press Standards Organisation. Ipso rules that in taking care to prevent simulative acts, reporters should avoid excessive detail of the method used, while taking into account the media's right to report legal proceedings.

Real-life nightcrawler: The reporter who rides her kick scooter around NYC to shoot breaking news

Tomas Fano on Flickr. Some rights reserved.

In this week's podcast, Marcela Kunova, our senior reporter, spoke to Oliya Fedun, one half of the ‘Scootercaster’ duo of stringers who shoot breaking news in New York.

Fedun talks to us about getting leads from her scanner radio, filming human tragedies and why it’s a good idea to own a bulletproof vest.

Po.et is working on building new tools to re-empower freedom of the press using blockchain

Image: po.et

Po.et, which launched in September 2017 with the goal to start building technology and tools to help empower a free media landscape, is leveraging the power of blockchain to help creators.

Chief executive Jarrod Dicker explained how Po.et will be an open-source "freedom-fighter initiative", focusing on enabling content creators to show persistent value and build reputation.

BBC Shared Data Unit project boosts regional news

By notbrucelee on Flickr. Some rights reserved.

Pete Sherlock, BBC Shared Data Unit, explained the project gives journalists the freedom to collaborate on long-form, off-diary data investigations. The broadcaster shares datasets from public authorities with over 700 regional media outlets, helping them interpret data and adapt stories for their local audiences.

See you next week for more journalism news from Journalism.co.uk. In the meantime, keep up to date with the latest trends and techniques in digital journalism on our Twitter, Instagram or on Facebook pages.

Got a story? Get in touch! Tweet us @journalismnews, or contact our reporters, Catalina Albeanu, Caroline Scott or Marcela Kunova.

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