journalism | jen byers

journalism.
selected stories

Large airport terminal with a crowd of people, a large digital display screen with a divided image of a man and woman with intense eyes, an airplane flying in the sky, and a person holding a smartphone with a humorous message about not wiping the phone.

Atlanta activist’s arrest underscores search, surveillance powers of border agencies.

Unicorn Riot

Police officers and a man with a megaphone confront a crowd in an urban setting during a protest or riot. Some officers are wearing helmets and uniforms, and the man with the megaphone appears to be leading a chant or protest. The background shows city buildings and a store with a neon sign that reads 'PRIMARK'.

Philadelphia Police crack down on anti-ICE marches twice in one week

Unicorn Riot

A group of people at a protest, holding candles and one person holding a sign that reads 'Save Non Binary Lives'.

Amid legacies of colonial and anti-trans harm, two-spirits struggle for safety

Truthout

Children running and playing on an outdoor basketball court with a large crack in the pavement.

California’s Prop 2 is a band-aid over the broken school funding system.

CalMatters

A group of women protesting, holding various signs advocating for workers' rights, fair wages, and justice, with some signs marked with green checkmarks and others with red crosses.

Philadelphia domestic workers are readying a bill with one basic demand

Capital & Main / Philadelphia Inquirer

Two protesters holding an orange banner that reads 'End the Genocide in Gaza' and 'Free Palestine'. They stand on a grassy area in front of a brick building with arched windows.

USC students critical of university response to Gaza question school’s military ties

Annenberg Media

A nighttime protest display with banners, candles, and signs. The banners read 'EYES ON ATL STOPCOP CITY,' 'Tortuguita,' and one with a drawing and a quote in Spanish. There are candles and markers on the ground, along with handmade posters including a raised fist symbol and a portrait of a young woman.

If protests are now “terrorism,” what is state brutality and surveillance?

Annenberg Media

A banner attached to two trees in a forest that reads "Defend the Atlanta Forest" with decorative leaves printed around the text.

Georgia activists fight police violence and environmental destruction, all at once.

Annenberg Media

A wall with graffiti that reads, 'Tyre Nichols say his name'. The mural is in night-time outdoor setting with city lights and a person sitting on the sidewalk.

Protesters carrying signs in front of a CBS building with dark storm clouds overhead

Scenes from the Streets

Annenberg Media

Person walking in the rain holding an American flag, city street with wet pavement, storefronts, cars, and umbrellas.

Why has the Writers Guild gone on strike?

Annenberg Media

Thousands brave heavy rains for inauguration day protests In L.A.

LAist

A Portland movement journalist is going to trial for her coverage of a pro-Palestine protest.

Prism Reports

Note: After this article was published, all charges were dropped.

A vast, open desert landscape with dry, yellowish grass and sparse shrubs, rolling hills in the background, and a clear blue sky above.

The true cost of electric vehicles

USC Annenberg / NowThis

Photo of a landscape featuring grassy plains in the foreground, and a range of sand dunes with gentle slopes in the background, under a partly cloudy sky.

Lost lands? The American wilderness at risk in the Trump era

The Guardian

featured interviews.

“A Beat of Their Own:” The news industry faces a challenging moment. These journalists are rising to meet it.

Reed College Magazine

A large group of diverse people protesting on a city street with banners and signs advocating for justice, solidarity, and immigrant rights.

“We have collective power”: Advice for journalists on covering the next Trump presidency

The Objective

Person holding a protest sign under an umbrella in the rain, with other pedestrians and storefronts in the background.

Crowd gathered around a statue of a horse and rider, with some people standing on the statue and others taking photos, in a park with trees and buildings in the background.

Is activism the future of journalism?

USC Annenberg

Aerial view of a remote area with several teepee-style tents, parked cars, and muddy ground with patches of snow.

Reporting in spaces of civil unrest

Reynolds Journalism Institute

Facing orders to leave camp, Dakota Access stalwarts brace for police crackdown

Washington Post

A red barn in a green field with horses, surrounded by trees with fall foliage.

Rural reporting needs trust, common ground

Knight Center for Environmental Journalism

Black and white photo of a woman with long hair taking a self-portrait with a Nikon camera, with a sign in the background reading 'protest & conflict reporting'.

How to better cover protests and conflict as a journalist