Tuesday was World Press Freedom Day, the same day that the world was absorbing the many implications of Politico’s bombshell Roe v. Wade story. Though we know how often news media personnel must use their reasoning skills, it’s not often that media ethics is placed so front and center of a great American debate.

It could be argued (and has been) that the story of the leak is a bigger story, but I think it’s safe to say that most average Americans were more concerned with the impact of the story’s revelations than how the sausage got made.

I realize the semester is wrapping up, and most of you aren’t going to spend too much time discussing this with your classes. Still, it’s a great opportunity t0 put journalism and democracy at the forefront of your conversations and engage with the public (and your students, if any of them are still hanging around campus) about what this means for and to the free press. If you really want to geek out on this, check out this week’s Professor’s Press Pass for our case study and discussion questions.

Happy Mother’s Day to those of you who celebrate, and Happy Regular Sunday to the rest of you — this semester is almost over, so hang in there and get those grades in. I see that light at the end of the tunnel. It’s not a train … though it might be the sun reflecting off Tampa Bay.

This week’s highlights

It’s a short week for me, so I’m going to keep it short in this newsletter, too.

Here are the high points:

• Oh, this looks great, and it’s free to join the Ida B. Wells Society.
• Kids, we’ve all been there. Stay strong! Student Journalists Face Lawsuits, Censorship for Their Reporting (Teen Vogue)
• You know I love a good behind-the-scenes how-to!: Tips for Investigative Reporters from Winners of the Goldsmith Prize (Global Investigative Journalism Network)
• This is worth a read: Questions about diversity, inclusiveness threaten accreditation of UNC journalism school (WRAL.com)
• This breaks my heart: 3 Storm-Chasing Meteorology Students Killed In Crash (HuffPost)
• My longtime readers know I’m a fan of takeovers, reins hand-overs and the like. So this piece got me to thinking: Are there any athletes on your campus who might like to write for the paper about the issues impacting the NCAA and students who are athletes?

Headlines about higher ed

• In the Wake of Lia Thomas, What Will the NCAA Do? (Chronicle of Higher Education)
• Military Mulls Massive Recruiting Plan to Enlist College Athletes (Sportico)

Great journalism to share with your students

• Scene Stealer: The True Lies of Elisabeth Finch, Part 1 (Vanity Fair)
• He Planned a Treasure Hunt for the Ages — Until He Went Missing (text, Rolling Stone)
• (Oklahoma Gov. Kevin) Stitt gave families $8 Million for school supplies in the pandemic; They bought Christmas trees, gaming consoles and hundreds of TVs (Oklahoma Watch)
• How Tucker Carlson Stoked White Fear to Conquer Cable, How Tucker Carlson Reshaped Fox News — and Became Trump’s Heir and Night after night, the host of the most-watched show in prime time cable news, uses a simple narrative to instill fear in his viewers (New York Times)
• Behind the Story: Covering the Supreme Court (NBCU Academy)

Diversity, equity and inclusion

• Diversify or die out: Five steps for creating a newsroom that reflects America (Current)
• A New Podcast Opens Portals Into Queer History (In These Times)
• What Your Younger Employees Are Really Thinking (New York Times Opinion)
• The L.A. Riots Were 30 Years Ago. I’m Still Trying to Understand Them. (New York Times Magazine)

This week in fact checking

Here’s a great rundown from my colleagues at PolitiFact about the potential outcomes of overturning Roe v. Wade: What would state laws look like in a post-Roe world?

The Lead

This week, we featured the efforts of a student newsroom to ensure that it doesn’t exploit communities or sources in its photojournalism.

Subscribe to The Lead, Poynter’s weekly newsletter for student journalists, and encourage your students to do the same.

This week’s Professor’s Press Pass

What a leak/story/response on World Press Freedom Day! In this week’s Professor’s Press Pass, we ask students to consider the blockbuster Politico story on the leaked Supreme Court decision.

One last thing

One kiddie pool to rule them all. Kitty pool?

Resources for educators

• Subscribe to Poynter’s new Friday newsletter, Open Tabs with Poynter managing editor Ren LaForme, and get behind-the-scenes stories only available to subscribers.
• Get access to a growing library of case studies — Professor’s Press Pass
• Time for a new job? Your future employer is looking for you on The Media Job Board — Powered by Poynter, Editor & Publisher and America’s Newspapers. Search now!
• Teachapalooza: Front-Edge Teaching Tools for College Educators (In-person or Online Seminar) —June 10-12, Apply now