A free and responsible press is essential to any democratic society. Each year, more than 75 journalists from around the world are brought to the United States to explore this ideal and U.S. efforts to maintain and encourage such freedom of expression through the Edward R. Murrow Program for Journalists. The participants are emerging professionals in print, broadcast, and digital media who come to the United States to examine the rights and responsibilities of a free press in a democracy while observing the operational practices, standards, and institutions of the media.
Program Details
The Edward R. Murrow Program for Journalists is an annual three-week exchange to examine the essential role of independent media in fostering and protecting freedom of expression and democracy. The Murrow Program, a flagship initiative of the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP), is a public-private partnership with the Poynter Institute and leading schools of journalism that host the participants.
Emerging international media professionals engage in dialogue with their U.S. counterparts, allowing them to share journalism best practices and create new professional networks with fellow media professionals from the United States and around the world. The Murrow Program participants travel in small groups for academic seminars and field activities with faculty and students at one of the partner schools of journalism, then visit small to mid-sized American cities to gain an understanding of media coverage in state politics and government.
Edward R. Murrow Program Fact Sheet
Partner Universities and Colleges
The journalism schools design specialized curriculum for their international counterparts to examine journalistic principles and practices, both in the United States and around the world. The universities generously contribute their resources, time, and talent to make this program possible.
- Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communications, Arizona State University
- Newhouse School of Public Communications, Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University
- Gaylord College of Journalism, University of Oklahoma
- Grady College of Journalism, University of Georgia
- School of Journalism and Mass Communications, University of Minnesota
- School of Media and Journalism, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
- Reynolds School of Journalism and Center for Advanced Media Studies, University of Nevada, Reno
Impact of Edward R. Murrow Program for Journalists
An independent analysis of the program found that participants increased their:
- Understanding of U.S. society, policymaking process and government
- Knowledge of specific subjects discussed during the program, including human rights, religious/ethnic diversity, fighting corruption, and women in society
- Knowledge of current trends in the media profession, including alternative media and new technologies
- Desire to consult a much wider variety of sources, especially nongovernmental sources, the internet, and international media in their own reporting.
