Author

Jacqui Banaszynski

@JacquiB

Jacqui Banaszynski retired as the endowed Knight Chair in Editing at the Missouri School of Journalism in 2017, is editor at Nieman Storyboard, and a faculty fellow at the Poynter Institute. She won the 1988 Pulitzer Prize in feature writing for “AIDS in the Heartland,” a series about a gay farm couple facing AIDS, and was a finalist for the 1986 Pulitzer in international reporting for her account of the sub-Saharan famine.

Struggling to explain American democracy to a visitor

Struggling to explain American democracy to a visitor

With something of a literary apology to Garrison Keillor … It was anything but a quiet week in Lake Woebegone, aka These dis-United States, as we headed into the nation’s 246th…
The vital scramble after news that will reverberate forward

The vital scramble after news that will reverberate forward

Just when I think the dominant news of the day is too big to be pushed aside, it is eclipsed by other news. I was working through an early draft…
"I'm-not-a-journalist" newspaper columnist writes about community, parenting and letting go

“I’m-not-a-journalist” newspaper columnist writes about community, parenting and letting go

Conclusion based on anecdotal evidence: Anyone who writes a regular column for a newspaper or magazine works harder than you know. Corollary: Community newspaper columnists, who usually can’t tap events…
A viral image, a question of provenance and a consideration of truth

A viral image, a question of provenance and a consideration of truth

In the 100-plus days since Vladimir Putin ordered his Russian army into Ukraine, I have done something I rarely do on social media: Forwarded shares, many days a week, of…
What to do when words fail you

What to do when words fail you

Sometimes the words just don’t work. I don’t mean they don’t come together easily or work well or string together in pretty rhythms. Those are annoyances we seldom get to…
When gun violence visits: Previous work to guide your stories

When gun violence visits: Previous work to guide your stories

After 19 students and two teachers were gunned down in a classroom in Uvalde, Texas, the chorus rose: “Enough!” It came with a sad refrain: “It will happen again.”And it…
Eternal pain, intractable politics and public detachment

Eternal pain, intractable politics and public detachment

How much difference does three days make?Too much, at least when it comes to our gnat-like attention span. Three days is the time it takes for the public to shift…
Packing a punch in a few words

Packing a punch in a few words

If you want to see some creative short-form storytelling, you can skip right past Twitter and TikTok and head straight to the news. Newspapers, news sites, TV news — any…
The U.S. Supreme Court leak: Resisting the erasure of human rights

The U.S. Supreme Court leak: Resisting the erasure of human rights

A friend came to the house on a recent evening with all he needed in his grocery tote. He took over my kitchen and let me chatter as he made…
Award season 2022 continued: The Pulitzer Prizes

Award season 2022 continued: The Pulitzer Prizes

Stand-out journalism produced last year was honored in the release of the 2022 Pulitzer Prizes, celebrating the best of the craft and affirming the importance of serious, creative journalism in…