New program helps gun violence survivors connect with journalists

Stoneleigh Emerging Leader Oronde McClain was featured by the Association of Health Care Journalists for launching a new program to help journalists connect responsibly with people who have survived violence.

A new program is helping journalists produce more impactful stories on gun violence by making the “violence survivor community more readily accessible.” The Survivor Connection, launched in February by The Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting (PCGVR), “promises to facilitate more empathetic, ethical and impactful news reporting in the city by bridging a gap between journalists and the survivor community,” according to a news release.

The program, led by Gun violence survivor and PCGVR’s newsroom liaison Oronde McClain, will maintain a database that enables journalists to connect with “hundreds of community members with lived experience of gun violence” to broaden the narrative on firearm violence beyond the usual police reporting. The community experts on the directory are from the Philadelphia area, but the organization plans to expand to other cities.

View the Full Article