Ball State University has formed the News Research Institute (NRI) to spot, study and offer solutions about issues that impact both the news industry and its consumers.
The NRI will
bring together industry pros, faculty members and students to help navigate the news business in a time of volatile change. It will also educate fledgling reporters by immersing them in relevant
journalism projects.
"The news industry is grappling with a rapid rate of technological advances that is changing how consumers access information," says Roger Lavery, dean of the College of
Communication, Information and Media. "At the same time, the industry also faces challenges as newspaper readership drops, TV viewing becomes more segmented and traditional radio programming battles
satellite options."
Lavery says Ball State in Muncie, Indiana was the natural place for the NRI, given the school's reputation as a media-research center. Intel recently recognized Ball State as
the nation's top wireless campus. The school also maintains a number of partnerships with media organizations, and regularly releases proprietary media-usage studies.
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During the first year of
operation, NRI will coordinate several hands-on learning projects, including NewsLink Indiana; WebFirst, a project to develop online applications for print media; and J-Ideas, the university's
national scholastic journalism and First Amendment project.
Veteran journalist Chris Bavender will direct NRI operations. She is currently managing director of NewsLink Indiana.
"This will be
an excellent opportunity to bring many of our immersive learning projects under one roof," Bavender said. "Our students will then be able to work with and learn from many of the leading
professionals from the communications industry brought to campus to participate in our projects."