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About the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation | About the Cronkite School at ASU

Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism

An ambitious nationwide effort to improve the quality of American business journalism continues in 2006, conducted by the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism

Free daylong business journalism workshops, specialized business journalism workshops and a series of business journalism online seminars are being offered by the Reynolds Center. Those who attend three workshops or participate in three online seminars receive a Certificate of Completion from the Reynolds Center. These workshops are open not only to business reporters, but reporters in other beats seeking to improve their skills in business coverage.

The effort is funded through a $3,5 million, three-year grant from the Las Vegas, Nevada-based Donald W. Reynolds Foundation, which includes this BusinessJournalism.org Web site designed specifically for business journalists and other journalists who may cover business in the course of their work. The initial grant followed several years of study of business journalism by the Foundation and the American Press Institute.

The process formally began in the fall of 2003 as journalists from large and small publications converged on Harrisburg, Pa., Minneapolis and San Jose, Calif., for daylong workshops. The agenda for those pilot business journalism workshops included reading of financial statements, tracking SEC documents, covering private companies, finding the business in all beats and taking home ideas to improve their publications. Each workshop attracted more than 45 attendees.

The award creating the Reynolds Center was announced in February 2003 by the Reynolds Foundation after conducting national research that showed a strong need for improvement in American business journalism.

"I don't see how a better investment could be made in the future of business journalism than this program to make training available to reporters and editors at the grassroots level all across the land," said Byron Calame, a former president of the Society of American Business Editors and Writers and a member of the Center's advisory board.

The Reynolds Center provides curriculum, handout materials, trainers and online registration, while a variety of statewide journalism associations, publications and universities served as hosts for the workshops.

"Some of the biggest stories and personalities are in business these days," said Reynolds Center Director Andrew Leckey. "Business stories are important because they affect people's lives, and what you cover is very worthwhile. No matter the size of the paper you are at, there is potential for greatness."

BusinessJournalism.org, launched in February 2004, is also attracting top talent. Contributors have included Diana Henriques, investigative business journalist for The New York Times; James Flanigan, economics writer for The Los Angeles Times; Anne Marie Squeo, reporter for The Wall Street Journal; and Trudy Lieberman, director of the Center for Consumer Health Choices at Consumers Union. The site focuses on the business reporting needs of publications of all sizes, featuring advice from writers and editors.

About the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation

The Donald W. Reynolds Foundation is a national philanthropic organization founded in 1954 by the late media entrepreneur for whom it is named. Headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada, it is one of the largest private foundations in the U.S.

About the Cronkite School at ASU

The Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University, named in honor of the longtime CBS news anchor in 1984, is a leading professional journalism school with nearly 2,000 undergraduate and master's students. The Center moved to the Cronkite School in July 2006.