Visiting Distinguished Professors of Ethics

Peter Nickeas – 2023 Visiting Distinguished Professor of Ethics

The Center for Ethics in Journalism at the School of Journalism and Strategic Media welcomes Visiting Distinguished Professor of Ethics in Journalism Peter Nickeas this fall. Nickeas, a specialist in data journalism and investigative reporting, is a former Chicago Tribune reporter as well as a senior writer for CNN.

Nickeas visited campus Sept. 11-15, and he will return later this fall to continue his role as visiting professor. Nickeas will give lectures and facilitate discussions with students regarding journalistic practices and ethical dilemmas from his work

Nickeas will speak about the ethical guidance he has given CNN in handling traumatic news videos, the shooting and homicide database he’s created for the Chicago Tribune and his help in reprioritizing explanatory journalism in stories of violence.

“In journalism, no one can out-hustle Peter Nickeas, making him a perfect fit with our award-winning faculty and students,” said Bret Schulte, chair of the School of Journalism and Strategic Media. “He can write, shoot video and stills, deploy social media for reporting and scrape numbers to identify trends. His work as a storyteller and data-driven reporter in Chicago helped drive home to distant policymakers the profound impact of the city’s violence.”

Nickeas received his Bachelor of Arts from Lewis University and his Master of Arts from the University of Illinois. Afterward, Nickeas wrote for the Times of Northwest Indiana and the Casper Star-Tribune, where he performed investigative work into daily government, cleaned and queried data, and examined low-income housing. For the majority of the 2010s, Nickeas worked as a reporter for the Chicago Tribune before going on to CNN as a senior writer for two years.

Nickeas has been awarded fellowships at John Jay College (Guggenheim Fellowship), Columbia University (Ochberg Fellow) and Harvard University (Fellow at the Nieman Foundation).

“Nickeas possesses unique skills that are especially valuable now with increasing concern about the proper role of digital technology,” said Raymond McCaffrey, director of the Center for Ethics in Journalism. “He is especially qualified to teach students about the power of data journalism as well as the ethical challenges that journalists can face when using new technology to help report the news.”

The Center for Ethics in Journalism is excited to have such an experienced reporter teach students about the changing world of journalism. Nickeas will return later in the semester to continue his role as guest lecturer.

David Handschuh – 2015 Visiting Distinguished Professor of Ethics

Handschuh was the fall 2015 visiting distinguished professor of ethics in journalism. He has 30 years of experience in the field of photojournalism. and he has won numerous awards. Handschuh has shot everything from features, food and travel to the tragic events at ground zero. Handschuh worked for the New York Daily News for more than 28 years as a news photographer. He was the president of the National Press Photographers Association. Handschuh was the recipient of DART and Poynter fellowships focusing on trauma in journalism and the ethical coverage of traumatic events. He co-authored The National Media Guide for Emergency and Disaster Incidents.

Deborah Potter – 2014 Visiting Distinguished Professor of Ethics

Potter during fall semester will make guest presentations in university classes, deliver public lectures, and direct seminars for professionals. She is founder and executive director of NewsLab, a journalism resource center based in Washington, D.C. She has been a contributing correspondent on the PBS program Religion & Ethics Newsweekly. From the late 1970s until mid-1990s Potter was a leading correspondent for CBS News and CNN. She has taught journalism as a visiting professor at dozens of universities, including the Poynter Institute and American University. Her workshops for professionals focus on reporting and writing the news, visual and online storytelling, newsroom management and journalism ethics. She is co-author ofAdvancing the Story: Journalism in a Multimedia World (3rd ed., CQ Press, 2014), two handbooks and an international guide on independent journalism. She received her bachelor’s degree in radio, television, and motion pictures and psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a master’s in journalism and public affairs from American University in Washington, D.C. Office (479) 575-3899. The university announcement has more biographical details.

Gene Forman – 2013 Visiting Distinguished Professor of Ethics

Gene Foreman was on campus during Fall 2013, directing the construction of the Ethics Center’s website and making guest presentations in journalism classes, delivering public lectures and facilitating seminars for professionals. He excelled in newspaper journalism 41 years, the last 25 as managing editor of The Philadelphia Inquirer. During his Inquirer tenure, the newspaper won 18 Pulitzer Prizes. After his retirement in 1998, he joined the faculty of Pennsylvania State University’s College of Communications, becoming the inaugural Larry and Ellen Foster Professor of Writing and Editing. Since retiring from full-time teaching in 2006, he has continued as a Penn State visiting professor and has written the textbook The Ethical Journalist: Making Responsible Decisions in the Pursuit of News (Malden, Mass: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009). He earned a B.A. from Arkansas State University.