BLOG: Rural Newspapers Need to Step Up in National Emergency
LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 23, 2020) — Al Cross, director of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues at the University of Kentucky is working to make sure rural Kentuckians are well informed and up to date about the part they can play in controlling spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
Cross has issued The Rural Blog below.
A special message to readers of The Rural Blog, especially newspapers: We are hearing from public health experts who are concerned about the lack of caution — social distancing and other measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus — in rural America. We've reported on the possible reasons for that, but what's important right now is to get past the politics and finger-pointing and make rural Americans realize that they are part of the greatest domestic emergency since the Civil War, and that they need to behave socially as if EVERYONE HAS THE VIRUS.
Read the rest of The Rural Blog here: Rural newspapers need to step up in national emergency
The Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues is part of the UK College of Communication and Information’s School of Journalism and Media, where Cross is an extension professor.
As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.
In 2022, UK was ranked by Forbes as one of the “Best Employers for New Grads” and named a “Diversity Champion” by INSIGHT into Diversity, a testament to our commitment to advance Kentucky and create a community of belonging for everyone. While our mission looks different in many ways than it did in 1865, the vision of service to our Commonwealth and the world remains the same. We are the University for Kentucky.