5. I have never felt a tension like this on campus. I have never seen so many people ready to assume bad faith intentions in their fellow classmates. It feels like there is very little room for nuance in conversations on campus, and it is exhausting.
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Replies
10 thoughts on what it’s like to be a Jewish student journalist reporting on campus since Oct. 7: a thread🧵
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First, my background. As a college journalist, I’ve covered Jewish students and antisemitism in publications including the
@jdforward
,
@JTAnews
, and
@dailycardinal
for the past four years. I’m a senior at UW-Madison, and I can only speak to the atmosphere on my campus.
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I've also fact-checked numerous incidents at protests through
@WisconsinWatch
and
@GigafactProject
- here's one from earlier this week:
FACT CHECK
@WisconsinWatch
+
@GigafactProject
: This is inaccurate. Multiple UW-Madison Jewish students and encampment organizers who were at the scene confirmed to Wisconsin Watch that the agitator was not affiliated with the demonstration group and didn’t shout the Nazi slogan.
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I’ve tracked incidents of antisemitism, reported survey data trends on American Jews, and covered departmental statements on Zionism for national publications. Since the fall, I’ve covered numerous campus events and spoken with many Jewish students about the atmosphere following…
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This has undoubtedly been the most challenging reporting I've done in college, and I have never put so much pressure on myself to be accurate. I have tried to put a lot of reflections on campus protests into words this week but realized the only perspective I can speak to is my…
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1. There is a sense among some students and journalists that the encampments are exciting to participate in or report on. Some have likened this to our generation’s Vietnam War. Students feel exhilarated to take part in a movement larger than themselves.
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2. As a student journalist who is Jewish with ties to the Middle East, I don’t feel excited. Reporting on campus takes an extreme emotional toll and is fraught with pressure, and I know this is true for other Palestinian, Israeli, Muslim, and Jewish student reporters around the…
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3. Many of us hold ourselves to a higher standard to get things right. For me, it’s because I know these events will impact Palestinian and Israeli friends whom I care about deeply.
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4. Beyond the standard risks that come with reporting, we face potential repercussions and ostracization from those within our communities. Reporting on instances of antisemitism and islamophobia carries additional anxiety for us. Criticism of our reporting accuses us of having…
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6. I feel isolated trying to simultaneously balance my identities as a journalist, a Jew, and a student. We cannot expect journalists not to have lived experiences, but we must expect journalists to be fair. There is extra pressure to navigate journalistic ethics of sourcing and…
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7. A significant number of protestors and reporters started following the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for the first time after Oct. 7, and this feels frustrating at times.
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8. Very few student journalists outside of these communities could tell you about the 2020/2021 anti-Netanyahu Black Flag protest movement, Israel’s withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in 2005, or early historical events like the Balfour Declaration, British Mandate, and UN Partition…
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9. I’m not saying people have to be an expert to protest or report on a subject. But it’s not lost on me that after school ends and the encampments eventually come down, these events will still impact my life.
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10. I’m the first to acknowledge the areas where I am uninformed on the I/P conflict. In fact, the more I learn, the more I realize I don’t know. But I hope this perspective can give food for thought to protestors, campus organizers, and national reporters.
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To other Jewish, Muslim, Israeli, and Palestinian student journalists — I see you and appreciate your work. Keep it up.
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