
Eric Newton is an American
journalist
A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...
, Innovation Chief at
Arizona State University
Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in t ...
's
Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication
The Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (often abbreviated to The Cronkite School by its students and faculty), is one of the 24 independent schools at Arizona State University and is named in honor of veteran broadcast jo ...
and a consultant for the
John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, also known as the Knight Foundation, is an American non-profit foundation that provides grants for journalism, communities, and the arts.
The organization was founded as the Knight Memorial Education ...
, an organization created by one of the founding families behind the
Knight Ridder
Knight Ridder was an American media company, specializing in newspaper and Internet publishing. Until it was bought by McClatchy on June 27, 2006, it was the second largest newspaper publisher in the United States, with 32 daily newspaper bra ...
newspaper group.
At the Cronkite School, Newton holds the rank of professor of practice and works closely with the school’s leadership to drive new innovative initiatives at Cronkite News, the school’s multiplatform news operation.
[Cronkite School Faculty.](_blank)
''Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication faculty website''
In his 15 years at the Knight Foundation, Newton worked on special projects and endowment grants, expanding the foundation’s journalism and media innovation program and overseeing the
development of more than $300 million in grants. From 2011 to 2015, he served as a senior adviser to Knight Foundation President Alberto Ibargüen.
[Knight Foundation Executive Named Innovation Chief at Cronkite.](_blank)
''Cronkite School''
Newton earned a
B.A. in journalism from
San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different b ...
in 1979 and his
master's degree
A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice. in
international studies
International relations (IR), sometimes referred to as international studies and international affairs, is the scientific study of interactions between sovereign states. In a broader sense, it concerns all activities between states—such a ...
from the
University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university located in Edgbaston, Birmingham, United Kingdom. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingha ...
.
He joined the ''
Oakland Tribune
The ''Oakland Tribune'' is a weekly newspaper published in Oakland, California, by the Bay Area News Group (BANG), a subsidiary of MediaNews Group.
Founded in 1874, the ''Tribune'' rose to become an influential daily newspaper. With the decli ...
'' as a copy boy in 1977. Turned down for a job as a reporter there in 1979, he edited newspapers in
Mill Valley and
Richmond before returning to the ''Tribune'' as a copy editor in 1984. Within six years he was running the Tribune newsroom.
[Burke, Anne (Spring/Summer 2003)]
Newton's Law:Education+Training=Good Journalism.
''SFSU Magazine''
Newton was city editor, assistant managing editor or managing editor of the ''Tribune'' when it won more than 150 awards, including a
Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the
1989 Loma Prieta earthquake
The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake occurred on California's Central Coast on October 17 at local time. The shock was centered in The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park in Santa Cruz County, approximately northeast of Santa Cruz on a section of ...
. He has since been a Pulitzer Prize juror four times and has written a book on Pulitzer Prize-winning photography.
In 1992, Newton launched the Pacific Coast Center for the
Freedom Forum. In 1994, he was founding managing editor for the
Newseum
The Newseum was an American museum dedicated to news and journalism that promoted free expression and the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, while tracing the evolution of communication.
The purpose of the museum, funded by the ...
, responsible for its story line and content. For four years, from the opening of the original Newseum in 1997 until 2000, he hosted programs in the Newseum's broadcast studio and created dozens of traveling exhibits. Newton joined Knight Foundation in June 2001 as a journalism program director. Later he became VP, Journalism Program. In 2011, he became Senior Adviser to the President.
Newton was founding president of the First Amendment Project, a nonprofit law firm representing citizens seeking access to government records. He shared in a 2004
Peabody Award
The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...
for ''
Mosaic: World News from the Middle East'', a television program created for
LinkTV. He received the Reddick Award for distinguished contributions in communications from the University of Texas at Austin, and a special First Amendment Award from the Radio and Television Digital News Association for his role in creating Sunshine Week. In 2012 he won the Markoff Award for support of investigative reporting from the UC Berkeley Investigative Reporting Project.
Newton became involved in the 2005
Seigenthaler incident after replacing a vandalized
English Wikipedia
The English Wikipedia is, along with the Simple English Wikipedia, one of two English-language editions of Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia. It was founded on January 15, 2001, as Wikipedia's first edition, and, as of
, has the most arti ...
biography of
John Seigenthaler Sr. with a
copyright
A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...
ed official biography.
After that was removed for violating English Wikipedia policy, Newton's subsequent edits explaining how he had tried to correct English Wikipedia also were rejected as a violation of
English Wikipedia's verifiability policy.
References
Bibliography
* Newton, Eric (ed.). ''The Bay Area at War''. Heyday Books (March 1, 1991)
* Newton, Eric. ''Crusaders, Scoundrels, Journalists : The Newseum's Most Intriguing Newspeople''. Crown; 1st edition (December 9, 1999)
* Newton, Eric. The Journalism Quiz. ''Columbia Journalism Review'' (May 1, 2000) ISBN B0008IWV0Q
* Newton, Eric. Newsman with a Cause. ''American Journalism Review''. (April 1, 2001) ISBN B0008HTA6K
* Rubin, Cyma, Newton, Eric (eds.). ''Capture the Moment: The Pulitzer Prize Photographs''. W. W. Norton & Company; Reissue edition (November 24, 2003).
* Newton, Eric
Does a 21st century journalist really have a right to complain?Speech delivered at John S. Knight Fellowships Reunion and Conference at Stanford University, July 9, 2005.
External links
Eric Newton biographyvia
Cronkite School
Eric Newton biographyvia
Knight Foundation
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, also known as the Knight Foundation, is an American non-profit foundation that provides grants for journalism, communities, and the arts.
The organization was founded as the Knight Memorial Education ...
Eric Newton biographyvia
Consumers Union
A consumer is a person or a group who intends to order, or uses purchased goods, products, or services primarily for personal, social, family, household and similar needs, who is not directly related to entrepreneurial or business activities. ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Newton, Eric
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
American male journalists
San Francisco State University alumni
Alumni of the University of Birmingham