News-Decoder brings together youth and experience to shine a light on the world’s most pressing problems and to create a distinctive learning dynamic.
News-Decoder brings together youth and experience to shine a light on some of the world’s most pressing problems.
It’s our belief that no one generation has all the answers. By bringing individuals with different viewpoints and experiences to the table, we create a distinctive learning dynamic.
Consider this: Our team of 49 correspondents has more than a millennium of experience covering major events around the world.
Our writers have covered the biggest international news stories of the past 40 years: the Vietnam War, 9/11, the fall of the Berlin Wall, Wall Street meltdowns, currency upheavals, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Palestinian intifadas, Tiananmen Square, Olympics and World Cups.
Harvey Morris has covered four revolutions: in Iran, Portugal, Nicaragua and Romania.
After Muhammad Ali died last year, I asked our correspondents if they had some thoughts to share. Charles Aldinger raised his hand. Charles had covered racial strife in the U.S. South for United Press International in the 1960s. He was ringside in Miami Beach in 1964 when Ali — then known as Cassius Clay — beat Sonny Liston for his first heavyweight title.
“My white shirt was speckled with Liston’s blood,” wrote Aldinger as he recalled the fight for News-Decoder.
No fewer than eight of our correspondents, including three who had been posted to Havana, shared memories of Fidel Castro after the Cuban leader died last year. Michael Arkus had interviewed Castro while they swam in the Caribbean.
A mix of seniority and youthfulness
But readers will have noticed that fully half of our articles, photos and videos are by young people who may not yet have the experience of our correspondents but are no less keenly interested and intrigued by the world.
A bomb explodes in Kabul? Zahra Ghulami and Atiq Rahimi, both young Afghans, recount their experiences.
Should Britain have stayed in the European Union or withdrawn? Millennials Charlotte Crang and Oliver Neale argued opposing sides.
Will the European Union thrive or collapse by 2030? You can read students Isaac Robinson and Johanna Bandler on News-Decoder.
It’s this mix of experience and youthful curiosity, from different vantage points around the world, that makes News-Decoder special.
The combination of seniority and youthfulness extends to our trustees and advisers, who help guide our work.
Trustees Robert Holloway, Aralynn McMane, Nancy Merritt Asthalter and Jo Weir bring exceptional understanding of media and education, which are at the heart of our project.
Advisers Tim Agnew, Jui Chakravorty, Catherine Cheney, Ben Goldfarb, Tom Osenton and Betty Wong have worked in finance, advocacy, journalism, management and corporate strategy.
In coming days, I’ll be announcing the academic institutions that have signed up for News-Decoder’s 2017-18 program, which offers students publishing opportunities, webinars, a discussion board, online courses and mentoring.
These institutions will bring energy, diversity and creativity to our growing international community. And this website will feature work by students that supports our global mission.