By Cassie Kelly
 |
| Romina Spina giving a lecture at the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism. Photo courtesy of Yusuf Kalyango |
Visiting
international journalist, Romina
Spina, says she has found
many differences in the American journalism industry compared to her
experiences in Europe. Ms. Spina visited
Ohio University, courtesy of the Institute for International Journalism,
in late March to early April 2015. Spina is a fellow of the Transatlantic Media
Fellowship with the Center for Strategic and International Studies
(CSIS), which has given her an opportunity to visit over 25 cities in the United
States for three months. Along the way, she is researching journalism ethics
and the role of the public editor, or ombudsman, in a newsroom, as well as
globalization and economic development in the United States.
“It seemed like
the perfect opportunity to see places that typical journalists wouldn’t coming
to America,” Spina said. “It’s a different world with all walks of life.”
Spina is a freelance correspondent in Rome for a
Swiss daily newspaper known as Neue
Zürcher Zeitung, with a circulation of about
100,000 readers. About 10 percent of the population in Switzerland are of Italian decent. So, when a
position opened up for a freelance correspondent in Rome, she ceased the
opportunity. She covers business and politics as well as other interesting
events happening in Italy.
During her visit to Ohio University,
she lectured in many journalism classes to discuss her views on ethics and also
met with student leaders of publications. One of the many things that surprised
her about the E. W. Scripps School of Journalism was that the students are 85
percent female. She also was intrigued by the idea of pursuing an 'American
Dream' to aim for a better future.
“I am fascinated by the resilience
and optimism that you can do things and that things can happen for you,” she
said. “People in Italy tend not to focus on ‘all of that.’”
After some research, she has found
many differences in the American journalism industry compared to her
experiences in Europe. For one, in Italy, you have to take an exam to become a
journalist, which entails studying their code of ethics.
For the remainder of her trip, she
will be visiting Texas, California, Nebraska, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York
and Washington D.C
Listen to her conversation with WOUB's Tom Hodson about her
observations on American Journalism Ethics so far.
