A journalism panel event, Alumni and Family Weekend at DePaul and the aftermath of Hurricanes Helene and Milton
plus, a coffee shop close to campus
Welcome back to ‘In the Loop’! It’s your newsletter team Lauren, Noël, Sam, Isabella, Annabelle, Varun and Ella. We’ve got a good one for you today.
To start we have five takeaways from an event on covering Trump organized by the Center for Journalism Excellence and Integrity. Then, we have a preview for an election story set to publish this week. Next, we have information on the annual DePaul flea market, a new marathon record and a new NASA mission to one of Jupiter’s moons. To wrap up, we have the closing of a migrant shelter in Little Village and a coffee shop to try near campus.
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With that, let’s get into it!
5 Takeaways: The ‘Covering Trump’ Event
By Lauren Sheperd
The Center for Journalism Integrity & Excellence (CJIE) held a panel event on October 10 on covering the criminal trial of former President Donald Trump in New York City. Moderated by Lisa Parker, the Director of the CJIE, and Chris Bury, senior journalist in residence at DePaul, the panel discussed the difficulties of covering such a high-profile case and reporting on politics in today’s political climate.
For the first panel, the CJIE flew in three recent DePaul journalism graduates from New York City: Ella Lee (‘21) the legal affairs reporter for The Hill, Josie Stratman (‘22) a reporter for The New York Daily News and Erik Uebelacker (‘23), a reporter for Courthouse News. These reporters were in the same New York courtroom to cover one of the most infamous trials of the last few decades: the Trump hush money trial. In this case, Trump was convicted of hiding hush money payments to adult film star Stormi Daniels by falsifying business records prior to the 2016 election.
The second panel was about general political reporting and included panelists from publications around the city. These journalists included Rick Pearson of The Chicago Tribune, Mary Ann Ahern of NBC5, Chris Tye of CBS2, Heather Cherone of WTTW, Amanda Vinicky of WTTW, Greg Pratt of The Chicago Tribune and Tahman Bradley of WGN TV.
Here are my five takeaways from the event:
Use the pressure for your benefit
The pressure was on for Lee, Uebelacker and Stratmen when Trump’s hush money trial began on April 15. Until the trial concluded on May 30 when Trump was found guilty on 34 felonies, the three were in the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse with some of the biggest names in journalism. Throughout the panel, the journalists spoke about the pressure they felt from editors, their audience and just by the nature of the case to not only produce stories quickly but accurately. Though the pressure was a lot, they were not the only ones feeling it. Lee, Uebelacker and Stratman all recounted the lack of cell service in the courtroom itself making it extremely difficult to get copies to editors or Tweets published. “That was probably the most pressure I've ever seen,” Uebelacker said. “I saw very well respected TV reporters crying.” The collective pressure and stress made Uebelacker and the other reporters aware that they deserved to be there.
Use social media to your advantage
Lee (@ByEllaLee), Uebelacker (@Uebey) and Stratman (@JosieStratman) used social media – especially Twitter – throughout the trial to provide real-time updates to their audiences. Social media has become a vital part of modern journalism, and that can be seen especially in the Trump trials. Uebelacker even acknowledged that more people read his Tweets than his stories. The trial was also a good time for reporters and organizations to experiment with new forums on social media that they had never used before. For example, Lee and The Hill did a Reddit AMA for the trial. This served as an open forum for people on the internet to ask any questions they wanted. According to Lee, Reddit was a good way for The Hill to reach people outside of their typical audience and answer questions reporters would not usually think to ask.
Be bold and ask tough questions
A common theme of the night was that these young reporters deserved to be there. Due to their education and experience on student newspapers, they developed a reporter’s instinct at a young age and carried it to the Trump trial with them. Stratman in particular was in an interesting place physically during the trial: the hallway pool. Rather than being in the courtroom itself, Stratman stood outside where Trump and his team would walk before, after and during breaks of the trial. Because of this, she saw a more real, less stoic version of the former president. During this time, Trump kept referring to himself as Mother Theresa to the hallway pool. “I yelled, ‘so do you think you're holier than Mother Teresa’ as a genuine, genuine question,” Stratman said. The clip of her asking the question ended up not only on TV, but was also used by the Biden campaign as a soundbite on social media.
Adjust coverage for an ever-changing news environment
It is no secret that news has become less formal than it was even just a decade ago due to expansions of social media, the internet and the outlets people turn to. This was made clear this election season as candidates turned to non-traditional news sources to get their message out. Just last week, Vice President and Democratic Candidate Kamala Harris went on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast with host Alex Cooper with the hopes of reaching a wider audience of younger women. According to the journalists on the second panel, these non-traditional news sources should be thought of as our friends, not our enemies. Vinicky said that mainstream media helps to inform these non-traditional sources, and in return, we can be more transparent with our audience.
It is okay to use the word “lies”
The discourse surrounding objectivity in journalism has taken a turn in the last decade, especially with the rise of Trump and social media. According to the Washington Post fact checker, Trump told a total of 30,573 lies over his four years as president. The Post has since stopped keeping track. The difficult part of this as journalists is the hostility we are met with when we flat out call these lies exactly what they are: lies. Of course, this issue goes far beyond Trump and mass amounts of misinformation has been spewed from politicians at all levels. For the journalists of the second panel, however, Trump was the turning point. Bradley said we should use the word “lies” in our writing despite possible push back. After all, it is the truth.
Upcoming Election Stories
By Lauren Sheperd
Presidential debates this year have looked a little bit different: there are new sponsors, new rules and the debates themselves have had unprecedented consequences. In her story set to be published Friday, Special Projects Editor Lauren Sheperd discusses the history of the presidential debates, their importance and why this year looks different.
DePaul News
By Noël Bentley
Alumni and Family Weekend to be held this weekend — It's that time of year again! This weekend (October 18 - October 20), DePaul’s annual Alumni and Family Weekend will be happening on campus. Current DePaul family members and alumni and their families will be seen around campus attending the scheduled events. The weekend will kick off this Friday at 1:30 pm with a variety of faculty speaking engagement events and will conclude on Sunday with the Alumni & Family Brunch. For registration click the link here.
DePaul Women's soccer defeated Georgetown—next up; Seton Hall — The DePaul women's soccer team beat Georgetown 1-0 on Wish Field on Sunday. Georgetown is no. 18 in the Big East, making this a huge conference win for the Blue Demons. This marks the first time in five seasons that DePaul has defeated Georgetown. Graduate student Beth Smyth also marked a milestone first goal this season during this game. The team next takes on Seton Hall on October 17 at 3 p.m. at Wish Field.
DAB’s Annual Fall Flea Market — DePaul Activity Board is hosting its annual Fall Flea Market on the Lincoln Park Quad on Wednesday, October 16 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. At this flea market, students will have the opportunity to shop from fellow students with brands and from local Chicago small businesses! More information can be found on DeHub.
Chicago Headlines
By Sam Freeman and Lauren Sheperd
Abraham Lincoln statue in Lincoln Park defaced — For at least the second time in two years, vandals defaced the statue of Abraham Lincoln in Lincoln Park. They splashed red paint on the statue and wrote “Lincoln was an executioner,” “Land Back,” “May all empires fall from the Turtle Island to Palestine” and “Remember the Dakota 38” around the monument. The statue was also damaged in October 2022, when an anonymous group claimed credit for pouring red paint over the Lincoln statue to draw attention to Indigenous Peoples Day. No arrests have been made since the discovery that the statue had been vandalized; police said it was defaced sometime overnight. Read more from the Chicago Sun-Times.
Ruth Chepngetich of Kenya won the Chicago Marathon and broke the women's world record — About 50,000 athletes participated in the 46th Chicago Marathon on Sunday, including Ruth Chepngetich who won the marathon with a time of 2:09:56, breaking the world record by nearly two minutes. She is the first woman to break 2:10 in the marathon; she also won the Chicago Marathon in 2021 and 2022 and finished runner-up last year. "I feel so great. I'm proud of myself and I thank God for the victory and the world record," she told NBC Chicago at the finish line moments after her stunning finish. "This is my dream that has come true. I fight a lot thinking about world record and I have fulfilled it and I'm much grateful." Chepngetich said she dedicated her race to Kelvin Kiptum, who ran the 2023 Chicago Marathon in under 2:01, setting a men’s world record. Read more about the historic win at NBC Chicago.
University of Chicago professor awarded Nobel Prize — Economics Professor James A. Robinson at The University of Chicago was one of three U.S. based academics to win the Nobel memorial prize in economics for their research into why some countries are richer and some are poorer. According to their research, open societies are more likely to be prosperous. Johnson and his colleagues Daron Acemoglu and Simon Johnson of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology “demonstrated the importance of societal institutions for a country’s prosperity,” according to the Nobel committee of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Robinson learned the news this morning from his wife who woke him up to tell him. Kaitlin Washburn of the Chicago Sun-Times and AP News have more.
Coldest temperatures yet expected to arrive this week — A freeze has been issued for parts of Chicago as the coldest temperatures this season are expected to roll in over the coming days. The watch will go into effect late Tuesday night and continue into Wednesday morning according to the National Weather Service. Temperatures are expected to fall below freezing with the lows falling into the high 20s in some places. The most impacted areas will be just west of the city: McHenry, DeKalb, Kane, LaSalle, Kendall and Grundy counties. These temperatures can kill or damage crops and damage outdoor plumbing fixtures. The NBC5 Chicago Staff has more.
National Headlines
By Isabella Salinas
Florida struggles in the wake of hurricanes — Hurricane Helene’s strong winds, heavy rains and a wall of water took 20 lives in the state along its path from south to north, and Hurricane Milton has claimed at least 17 more, bringing a massive storm surge, three months' rain in hours and deadly tornadoes. Floridians now face recovery from back-to-back storms. In an update on Saturday, Florida Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez said the state deployed the largest number of national guardsmen in its history to respond to Milton. Flooding remains a threat as Milton's deluge left rivers swollen and slow to recede in Central and Northern Florida. By Saturday afternoon, 1.4 million were still without power, and a fuel shortage left nearly 30% of stations without fuel, with 77.5% of those shortages reported in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area. Tampa International Airport has reopened, but Sarasota Bradenton will remain closed until Wednesday morning. St. Petersburg – one of the hardest-hit areas – has set up temporary aid stations for residents. Ashley R. Williams, Brandon Miller, Zoe Sottile, Josh Campbell, Ella Nilsen, Dalia Faheid and Alaa Elassar at CNN have more.
Harris's plan for Black men to have more economic opportunities — Vice President Kamala Harris is announcing a plan to provide Black men with more economic opportunities and support, aiming to boost their engagement amid concerns that some may choose not to vote in the upcoming election. Harris' plan proposes forgivable business loans for Black entrepreneurs, expanding apprenticeships and researching diseases like sickle cell that disproportionately affect Black men. She supports marijuana legalization and aims to ensure Black men have opportunities in the emerging cannabis industry. Harris also calls for stronger cryptocurrency regulations to protect Black men and other digital asset investors. She unveiled the plan ahead of a Monday visit to Erie, Pa. where she'll visit a Black-owned business and hold a campaign rally. National political reporter Will Weissert at AP News has more.
NASA’s launch mission to a Jupiter moon — NASA's Europa Clipper – the largest robotic space probe ever built – launched today from the Kennedy Space Center to explore Jupiter's ice-covered moon, Europa, which scientists believe has a deep, subsurface ocean. The launch of the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket carrying the spacecraft was delayed on Thursday due to Hurricane Milton’s landfall in Florida. The mission is expected to take five and a half years, arriving April 11, 2030, for four years of observations. Europa Clipper will not land on the moon but will go into a highly elliptical orbit of Jupiter that will enable 49 flybys of Europa, coming as close as 16 miles from the surface. NASA officials clarify that this is not a life-detection mission but an effort to determine if Europa has the conditions amenable to life as we know it. Joel Achenbach at The Washington Post has more.
New National Marine Sanctuary in California led by Indigenous people — Nominated by members of the Northern Chumash Tribe, the new Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary will be managed in partnership with tribes and Indigenous groups in the area who will advise the federal government. More than 4,500 square miles of ocean off the Central California coast will soon receive federal protection as the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary, the sixth on the West Coast. This sanctuary will safeguard a rich marine ecosystem, including kelp forests that support sea otters, migrating whales, and other wildlife. The campaign was led by Violet Sage Walker, chairwoman of the Northern Chumash Tribal Council. The sanctuary is the fulfillment of a lifelong dream of Walker’s father – Fred Collins – who nominated the area to become a sanctuary in 2015 with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The proposal languished under the Trump administration, and Collins passed away in 2021. For Walker, it also holds sacred sites, such as the ancient rocky cliffs at Point Conception, with a history spanning thousands of years. NPR’s Lauren Sommer has more.
14 East Pueblo: Little Village migrant center to close
By Annabelle Rivera
Little Village’s migrant shelter, which opened in January, is closing due to a decrease in new arrivals.
There are currently 146 people staying at the center located at 2634 S. Pulaski Road. The Illinois Department of Human Services announced the migrants would be offered space in other shelters and promised that education for children in the shelter would be uninterrupted.
The shelter opened in January to accommodate the influx of migrants sent to the city from Texas. The arrivals were due to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s plan to send migrants crossing the border to different “sanctuary cities” across the country in protest of President Joe Biden’s border policy. The number of migrants sent to Chicago in recent months has fallen, and around 5,000 are staying in Chicago’s shelters.
The center took in more than 550 migrants, according to the state. It was only intended to operate for six months. Two other shelters, one in Midway and one in Hyde Park, will continue to provide services to migrants.
Hey, Check This Out!
With Featured Columnist Varun Khushalani
I’ve been circling around this one for a while. Cafecito is one of the first restaurants I tried in Chicago, and since that first Cubano had on my birthday freshman year, this Cuban restaurant has been a regular in my Chicago food and coffee rotation. With four locations throughout the city, it’s perfect for a hearty meal, a date, or just a quick coffee before work or class. Not only is it cheaper than other nearby alternatives, any beverage on Cafecito’s expansive list is sure to scratch an itch you didn’t even you had. For fans of milk and sugar in their coffee, their Cafe con Leche was the only coffee good enough to break my post-Italy espresso withdrawal.
I didn’t come to Cafecito today for a coffee —- I've ingested far more than a dangerous amount of coffee in the last 24 hours. I came for something far more mythological and powerful, the Cubano, the popular toasted Cuban Sandwich composed of of ham, roast pork, (bright) yellow mustard, pickles and Swiss cheese, pressed together on a plancha that locks in all those decadent ingredients into a crunchy pocket of Cuban bread. The sandwich, at its best, is a perfect combination of meat, acidity, carbs, the perfect salve for any issue, the best celebration for the hardest challenges. I’ve had this place in my life longer than almost every other restaurant in this city, and it has never once disappointed.
At this point, I’m still exploring their elaborate menu, filled to the brim with fascinating culinary combinations, all of which you want to try right in that precise moment. Cafecito’s Fullerton location is cozy, in the chill air people huddle in around their food. A five minute walk from DePaul’s Campus, I routinely stop in for the cheapest, best coffee I’ve encountered in the city of Chicago. Cafecito is one you’ve got to try, you’ll never want to stop going back.
Resources
Need resources regarding cooling centers, rental assistance, abortion access, COVID-19 testing and vaccines or mental health? Check out our complete list here.
That’s it for today! See you next Monday.
The 14 East Newsletter Team