In this interview in our Journalism Spotlight series, religion reporter Deepa Bharath of the Orange County Register (Southern California News Group) discusses the challenges of covering faith and religion in her part of the world.

Many of us at the IARJ are directly affected by the Coronavirus, or COVID-19, pandemic. We are publishing this sample of spiritual wisdom we have collected from around the world as a way to encourage all journalists to report on this vital theme in the crisis. At their best, religious leaders around the world can inspire billions of families to cope with the anxiety and to remain compassionate toward their neighbors.

U.S.-based religion writer Niraj Warikoo dialogues with Algeria-based journalist Larbi Megari, one of the long-time leaders of the IARJ, about story ideas that they hope will spark the attention of their colleagues in 2020.

Investigative journalist Erick Kabendera, a founding member of the International Association of Religion Journalists (IARJ), has been released from prison in Tanzania. The IARJ joins in the responses of Amnesty International and the Committee to Project Journalists in decrying this harsh treatment of a journalist whose only goal has been to make the world a better place with honest, fair and balanced reporting.

Journalists around the world are scrambling to follow the spread of COVID 19, also known as Coronavirus. To encourage other religion journalists to report on the impact, Elisa Di Bendetto writes: “I live in the Veneto region of Italy, about 120 km from the locked down town of Vo’ Euganeo and 60 km from the nearest cases, and I can report first-hand that confirmed cases of the virus dramatically change life for people of faith.”

ALERT for journalists across Europe and around the Mediterranean basin that the deadline for the first Piazza Grande Religion Journalism Award is now extended to April 27, 2020. This column also has links to the entry page, contest details and information on the international jury of prominent journalists —and answers to frequently asked questions.

The IARJ and Fondazione per le Scienze Religiose Giovanni XXIII (FSCIRE) announced the names of the seven journalists serving as members of the international jury of the 1st Piazza Grande Religion Journalism Award. The winner will be presented at the 2020 annual conference of the European Academy of Religion (EuARe), next June. Journalists across Europe and around the Mediterranean basin can submit their works by February 28, 2020.

A VIEW OF RACIAL DIVERSITY FROM THE U.S. and ITALY—The photo at left shows the Rev. Dr. France A. Davis, pastor emeritus of Utah’s largest predominantly black church. As a young man, Dr. Davis marched twice with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Davis also has played a major role in groundbreaking relations with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which dominates life in Utah. Recently, two founding members of the International Association of Religion Journalists were involved in lifting up Dr. Davis’s prophetic voice to a global audience. In 2020, regular readers of the IARJ website will be able to enjoy occasional columns featuring stories that connect religion writers on different continents.

The IARJ’s Elisa Di Benedetto reports on a landmark conference in Rome that brought together 250 religious leaders, healthcare experts and scholars from 35 countries to develop a better understanding of the role religion can play in healthy aging. Two IARJ co-founders participated: Elisa and Maria Paz Lopez. This issue can be a rich source of stories for religion writers around the world.

The first North American meeting of the International Association of Religion Journalists (IARJ) drew more than two dozen religion writers from the United States and around the world—including Canada, Germany, India, Indonesia, Iran, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, Pakistan, Serbia, Spain and Sri Lanka. They gathered in Salt Lake City (Utah, United States) for a two-day conference on “Cultivating Understanding, Accuracy, and Empathy in a Polarized World.” In this column, two veteran IARJ members—Peggy Fletcher Stack and Elisa Di Benedetto—report on highlights of the conference.