The annual World Press Freedom Day on May 3 is designed to remind the public of their duties to recognize and respect the freedom of press. Journalists around the world marked the World Press Freedom Day with a mix of celebration and concern, as ongoing threats to media continue to shape global information. “People need […]
Local media won’t bow to threats, lies
January 23, 2026 by
The Western Carolina Journalist is re-publishing the story in support of our friends, partners and mentors for their professionalism and dedication of informing on all things that are happening in our community. By Dave Russell, The Sylva Herald, and Cory Vaillancourt, The Smoky Mountain News The Sylva Herald and The Smoky Mountain News last Friday received […]
That’s Politics: The importance of political journalism
April 25, 2025 by
Journalism is a vital part of democracy. I went to college knowing that I wanted to do for a reason. Listen to my interviews with Katerina Spasovska, a journalism professor at WCU, Chris Cooper, an American politics professor at WCU, and Cory Vaillancourt, the Politics Editor for the Smoky Mountain News. To listen on different […]
News writing course part of effort to keep local newspapers in circulation
March 22, 2023 by
Originally published by Julie Duvall on WCU Stories Students in Katerina Spasovska’s News Writing II course at Western Carolina University are getting real-world experience writing stories for the local newspaper, the Sylva Herald. Spasovska, an associate professor in WCU’s communication department, works with her students to do research, interviews and sit in on local government […]
