impact index

Journalism, News Impact Project

Canyon Courier Shows How Its Community Moved On After Columbine

On April 20, 1999, Columbine High School suffered a tragedy unlike anything most people had experienced at that time. What happened in that small Colorado town reverberated across the country and around the globe, making people everywhere stop and pay attention. Twenty years later, Columbine feels like the start of an epidemic to many people – but to those still living there, the only option is to continue moving forward every day. When the anniversary approached last year, the editors at the Canyon Courier knew they couldn’t let the 13 innocent people who lost their lives that day be forgotten by their neighbors.

News Impact Project

Detroit Free Press Coverage Helps Overturn Wrongful Rape Conviction, Frees Innocent Man from Prison

In 2017, a nearly 20-year-old DNA kit was finally tested for a 1997 rape. James Clay was arrested, tried and convicted of the crime and sentenced to 25-50 years in prison. But Detroit Free Press journalist Elisha Anderson’s reporting on the conviction, including interviews with the victim’s family and the victim – who no longer believed Clay was the perpetrator – revealed that there may have been some mistakes made and Clay might not be the guilty party.

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