Justin Ray
Columbia Journalism Review
New York, NY, United States
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Past articles by Justin:
Q&A: American Atheists’ president on how the media mishandles the nonreligious
In 1963, Madalyn Murray O’Hair, a woman from Baltimore, sued her son’s school district after learning that it required students to read the Bible. The case, Murray v. Curlett, soon joined with another, Abington School District v. Schempp, and was argued before the Supreme Court, which ruled that mandatory Bible reading in public schools was […] → Read More
Q&A: American Atheists’ president on how the media mishandles the nonreligious
In 1963, Madalyn Murray O’Hair, a woman from Baltimore, sued her son’s school district after learning that it required students to read the Bible. The case, Murray v. Curlett, soon joined with another, Abington School District v. Schempp, and was argued before the Supreme Court, which ruled that mandatory Bible reading in public schools was […] → Read More
CNN’s LGBTQ town hall highlights benefits and pitfalls of the format
Marginalized communities are rarely mentioned in questions put to presidential candidates. But last night, CNN’s town hall, held in Los Angeles, provided an unprecedented chance for members of the LGBTQ community to address problems specific to their lives on a national stage. Nine Democratic candidates participated, each given a 30-minute segment. Some capitalized on the […] → Read More
Meteorologists discuss how to warn the public about extreme weather
California knows the disastrous impacts of climate change. It has the worst air pollution of any state, and several of its counties have recently seen record-setting temperatures. Its climate and topography make it vulnerable to devastating wildfires, such as last year’s Camp Fire, which burned over 150,000 acres of land and claimed 85 lives. So […] → Read More
During Pride Month, YouTube shows its true colors
It happens every June. Corporations use Pride Month to speak to a community they otherwise ignore for the other 11. Here come the rainbow chips. Here come the rainbow burgers. Here come coupons for burritos that say “¿Homo estás?” YouTube has also come under fire for cashing in on pride while failing to protect LGBTQ […] → Read More
Former reporter creates ‘Rate my Professor’ for newsrooms
In a corner of a big, empty Krispy Kreme in Atlanta, Valeria Sistrunk is nibbling on a donut. She is 27, with wide eyes and an ever-present smile. She has the positive energy of a TV newscaster—a job she stumbled into by chance: in high school, her guidance counselor randomly stuck her in an elective […] → Read More
How one reporter got the Sandra Bland cell phone video
In June 2017, Brian Collister was a lead investigative reporter for KXAN, a Nexstar-owned NBC affiliate in Austin, Texas. He had covered Sandra Bland’s 2015 traffic stop in Waller County, an incident that sparked protests across the US and calls for increased police accountability. After all the open cases around the incident had wrapped up, […] → Read More
The problem with Captain America’s new ‘both sides’ website
Political polarization is a serious problem. Chris Evans, the actor who plays Captain America, hopes to unify the nation with a new outlet “aimed at reducing partisanship and promoting respectful discourse.” On Saturday, CNN revealed that he is developing a website that will present Democratic and Republican takes on the country’s most pressing matters. But […] → Read More
The man who helps the internet make fake news
Ahead of the 2020 election, Americans may have an understandable fear that Russia will continue to hijack social media in an attempt to undermine the democratic process. Facebook and Twitter will most likely be under a microscope, with reporters and United States intelligences agencies looking for false news stories and political memes. But not much […] → Read More
When a candidate has fake credentials—and sends you her fake diploma
David Bishop is the owner and only employee of FLA News, a conservative political news site that he launched two months ago out of his home, in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. On August 1, Bishop received a tip that Melissa Howard, a candidate in a Republican primary for the state House of Representatives, did not […] → Read More
A redaction fail (and contempt?) for the Sun Sentinel
Since February, when Nikolas Cruz, a teenager in Parkland, Florida, opened fire on classmates and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, the South Florida Sun Sentinel has been covering the story. On Friday, when Elizabeth Scherer, a judge in Broward County, ordered that a report—commissioned by the local school board, on how the district […] → Read More
In Vermont, an unlikely ombudsman spurs review of domestic violence coverage
Over the course of two days, a spokesman for the Vermont State Police spearheaded a public critique of a local paper for what he termed “a massive failure of journalism.” The Barre Times Argus ultimately pledged to improve its standards for domestic violence coverage—though the paper’s editor raised concerns about the spokesman’s voluble criticism and […] → Read More
A pivot to Netflix? Vox, BuzzFeed collaborate with streaming behemoth
Two prominent digital newsrooms are cashing in on a popular platform left mostly untouched by publishers: Netflix. They’ll bring an influx of news content to a streaming service that, to date, has focused mostly on entertainment. Vox and BuzzFeed have announced collaborations with the platform. The Vox series, Explained, which dropped this week, explores news […] → Read More
Amid a sea of voices, Vox’s Carlos Maza breaks through
Carlos Manuel Maza’s mother, Vivian, remembers when her son broke the news. They were singing Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” in her white BMW, coasting down Miami’s Palmetto Expressway on a Sunday afternoon after visiting his aunt’s house. It was two weeks before his 17th birthday. He stopped singing and said, “You know, mom, I’m gay.” […] → Read More
Brendan Fraser made groping allegation after story was done, GQ staff writer says
Zach Baron knew Brendan Fraser wasn’t telling him something. “I spent a lot of time with him,” the GQ staff writer says. “You can sometimes intuit when people tell you a narrative, but it doesn’t have all the facts in it yet.” Baron’s profile of the actor was only days away from going to press […] → Read More
CJR’s most-read stories of 2017
If 2017 was an amazing year for journalism, it was an equally momentous year for CJR, which reached more people than ever. What follows is a list of our most-read stories, covering everything from Twitter and Charlottesville to a wish list for press coverage of the president. A nationwide reporting adventure tracks improbably frequent […] → Read More
The most-read stories since Trump’s election win might surprise you
Donald Trump has dominated headlines in the year since he shocked nearly every political analyst and claimed victory over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election. But how did the glut of headlines translate into pageviews? ICYMI: “She identified herself as a reporter. He then walked behind her and punched her” CJR asked several news outlets to […] → Read More
A weekly newspaper won reader trust after plagiarism scandal
A California weekly in late October made a stunning disclosure to its readers. The Mad River Union, which covers the town of Arcata and parts of Humboldt County in northwestern California, revealed that its former sports editor, Rick Macey, “plagiarized several articles that made it into print.” The Union, which has between 3,000 and 4,000 […] → Read More
The man who saved his local news site in two days
After five years, Tran Longmoore decided to quit doing the thing he loved the most. Longmoore, 46, could no longer afford covering the town of Saline, Michigan, population 8,810, with his digital-only news site. In an August 5 article titled “The Saline Post Is Calling it Quits,” he informed readers that “for various reasons, I […] → Read More
The man who saved his local news site in two days
After five years, Tran Longmoore decided to quit doing the thing he loved the most. Longmoore, 46, could no longer afford covering the town of Saline, Michigan, population 8,810, with his digital-only news site. In an August 5 article titled “The Saline Post Is Calling it Quits,” he informed readers that “for various reasons, I […] → Read More