By Adam Rhodes, IRE & NICAR

This isn’t going to be a “things I’m thankful for” essay, I swear. But I am lucky to have a lot to be thankful for. My sweet albeit ornery beagle, a healthy family and trusted friends, a steady income, Ariana Grande, the fact that I live walking distance from my favorite dive bar, the tres leches cake I made last week, and a leopard-print puffer jacket that I can’t wear without getting at least 3 compliments.

And you might need a Dramamine for this one, but I’m also really thankful for rigorous, unobjective journalism. It pains me, physically, to say something that cheesy. But it’s true. And I've got a good reason!

As a journalist, I’m of course shocked and enraged at the unprecedented attacks on the press we have seen this year. From lawsuits, to sexist insults, to literal attacks against journalists by ICE agents, the Trump Administration’s war on the press is more sprawling and aggressive than many anticipated. But in spite of these attacks, I’ve seen journalists stand their ground, band together and defend one another more than ever before.

We can always do better: speak up when your colleagues are denigrated and push back when critics single out with vitriol specific reporters or outlets that we know are just doing their jobs. Journalism is not a contest; it’s a public good that serves everyone better when we collaborate instead of compete.

And here at IRE, we are taking a more hands-on approach to defending journalists and press freedom, using our powerful place in the industry to push for accountability and change when we can.

It’s with that important backdrop in mind that I’m especially honored to shepherd the next phase of the IRE Journal as a contemporary, digital-first outlet. There couldn’t be a more important time for The Journal to cement itself as an influential voice in the media ecosystem, and I’m eager to get to work.

I’ve spent the best years of my career in alternative media (shout out to the Chicago Reader), where I learned the value of honest, unflinching journalism. I’m excited to bring that ethos to The Journal as its new managing editor.

More articles in the IRE Journal will be available to the general public, though IRE members will get exclusive content through a new members-only newsletter.

For the change-averse among us, you’ll find a lot that’s familiar about the “new” IRE Journal. Our sections will remain, including Show Your Work, FOI Files, and Investigator’s Toolbox — we are a training organization after all.

And Data Dive, the vertical where we’ve published work that peels back the curtain on novel pieces of data journalism, is continuing under the name UpLink as a nod to the onetime print newsletter of the same name that began in the earliest days of NICAR.

An exciting advantage of The Journal’s new platform is the different media we can publish, without the proscriptions of a print format. If you work best in video or audio, or want to show off the amazing data viz you put together, we’d be delighted to hear from you.

And alongside the different media we want to publish, we’ll also be looking for more general pitches about investigative journalism and media itself. Whether you’ve got advice for reporters, incisive critiques or sharp commentary about the function and future of the press, we want to hear it.

The institution of the press is at a crossroads, facing tremendous difficulty but also tremendous potential. And as the industry and IRE evolve to meet this moment, The Journal will evolve too.

I’m excited you’ll be on this journey with us.