Panellists drawing from the academia and practising Journalists shared their views on the topic “Best practices in assessing trauma literacy” facilitated by Desiree and Dorothy.
The virtual event was held on Saturday 29th May ,2026.
Abstract
Educators have been slow to adopt trauma informed journalism curriculum for several reasons: institutional barriers, lack of empowerment regarding mental health training, and other demands. Recent JETREG conversations have demonstrated a desire for members to communicate more about successful efforts to infuse TI education across journalism and mass communication curricula.
In our next meeting, North American Hub Lead Desiree Hill will be joined by JETREG member Dorothy Bland to facilitation a conversation among membership on what’s working in the TI education space as well as the challenges we face in incorporating trauma-informed education into curriculum. Bring your syllabi, your questions, and your concerns!
Click and watch the panel discussions as recorded by Professor Ola Ogunyemi, Lincoln University, UK.
The virtual meeting and discussions are prelude to the forthcoming Journalism Education Trauma Research Group, JETREG International Conference in Paris from June 25-26th.
Logo-jetreg-paris-2026
Conference overview
The Journalism Education Trauma Research Group (JETREG) 2026 International Conference, to be held in Paris in June 2026, builds on the momentum of the JETREG conferences held in Sheffield (2023) and Oklahoma City (2024), the Paris conference marks a new phase in collective reflection on trauma in journalism.
Over the past decade, research has clearly established that exposure to trauma is no longer exceptional in journalism but structural. Journalists across beats, platforms and career stages routinely encounter violence, disaster, injustice and human suffering—often without adequate preparation or institutional support.
Earlier research has focused on identifying trauma, stress and their consequences, a critical question now emerges:
What changes after trauma is acknowledged as a defining condition of journalistic work?
The Paris 2026 conference is expected to move beyond diagnosis and toward rethinking journalism, journalism education and professional cultures in the aftermath of trauma.
Topics of Interest
Topics for papers and panels may include, but are not limited to:
Rethinking journalistic norms after trauma
Objectivity, detachment and emotional engagement
Moral injury and ethical tensions in journalism
Trauma and professional identity
From individual coping to institutional responsibility
Newsroom cultures, leadership and duty of care
Freelancers, precarity and unequal exposure to trauma
Organisational policies, support mechanisms and accountability
Journalism education after trauma
Trauma-informed pedagogy and curriculum design
Preparing students for emotional, ethical and psychological challenges
Teaching self-care without normalising harm
Images, technologies and mediated trauma
Secondary trauma and exposure through visual and digital work
AI, automation and the mediation of traumatic content
Teaching and working with disturbing imagery
Global, cultural and comparative perspectives
Trauma in different political, cultural and conflict contexts
Global South perspectives and structural inequalities
Comparative and transnational approaches to resilience and care.
About JETREG
Launched in 2020 by Ola Ogunyemi (University of Lincoln) and Lada Price (University of Sheffield), the Journalism Education Trauma Research Group (JETREG) is a thriving international research network bringing together scholars, educators and practitioners interested in trauma, emotion and wellbeing in journalism.
JETREG comprises over 250 members worldwide and includes regional research hubs in Europe, North and South America, Africa, Australia/New Zealand, South Asia, East Asia and the MENA region.
Journalism Education and Trauma Research Group (JETREG) is a research infrastructure to respond to the body of research which shows that practising journalists are at risk for physical, emotional, moral and psychological injury due to exposure to traumatic events in the course of their career.
To address this problem, journalism educators have a role to play in providing a safe space for journalists to talk about work related trauma and to prepare young journalists to be aware of the problem and cope with it.
JETREG Aims
JETREG aims to explore trauma awareness among journalism educators and their attitudes to the inclusion of trauma literacy in journalism curriculum.
JETREG is comprised of a multidisciplinary team of researchers with expertise in a range of methods including systematic reviews, mixed methods for research, evaluation and implementation.
JETREG Objectives
The objectives are:
Share insights and learning from the trauma awareness survey of journalism educators and attitudes to the inclusion of resilience training in journalism education.
Share insights and learning from previous studies on journalism and trauma – where there are evidence of trauma and why?
Use these insights to design a module in trauma literacy/resilience training in journalism education.
Offer opportunities through research seminars, symposia, and conferences to discuss and consider options and solutions that enable us to promote resilience training in journalism education.
Conduct a 5-year resilience training in journalism education longitudinal study (mixed methods approach) and publish the result.
Connect a community of journalism educators, practising journalists and media organisations, both nationally and internationally, that can aid and support each other to build resilience among journalists.
JETREG Africa Hub -Nigeria
JEREG Africa Hub-Nigeria Round Table Discussions @ Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Ogba, Lagos
