Connecting in Columbia, South Carolina: A case study in public journalism

Public journalism has entered a new stage. Efforts now are geared more toward improving daily journalism than on generating reporting projects aimed at increasing democratic participation in communities. The new phase of public--or civic--journalism examines how traditional journalistic conventions--reporting routines, use of language, reliance on official sources and the tenet of objectivity--may contribute to reader distrust of newspapers and by extension, to cause citizen withdrawal from communities.;This case study examines the efforts of The State newspaper, in Columbia, S.C., to improve its connection with one group of readers in an effort called Project Reconnect. Project Reconnect sought to re-engage readers for whom religious faith influences daily decision making by asking those readers how they believed daily coverage could be improved. The Pew Center for Civic Journalism sponsored the Project Reconnect effort, which was organized under the auspices of the American Society of Newspaper Editors. ASNE matched university scholars with editors at six newspapers across the country to study how public journalism might make a difference in communities. The Knight-Ridder Corp., parent company of The State newspaper, provided additional funding for the Columbia S.C. project.;The study included an analysis of the reader focus group data collected by the newspaper and a questionnaire of The State's reporters and editors in order to assess their views on Project Reconnect and on public journalism. It also included an evaluation of the newspaper content in order to provide more context for understanding concerns the readers raised about coverage.;Results indicate that poorly designed public journalism projects could harm rather than help heal relationships with readers. The study revealed that reporter involvement, clearly defined goals and a method for measuring outcomes are critical to the success of second-stage public journalism. Public journalism advocates must avoid even the appearance of pandering to readers if the movement is to succeed. Newspaper editors might do well to look first to internal concerns before reaching out to audiences.