This article was originally published in the American Press Institute
I greatly enjoy sharing my expertise in social psychology with the media industry. Newsrooms often call upon me to share my knowledge of nostalgia and how my research on nostalgia’s psychological benefits and pitfalls can help explain social trends. As satisfying as these conversations are, they typically feel one-sided; I am dispensing knowledge to help journalists, bloggers, podcasters and documentarians flesh out their stories. I rarely consider how these conversations could impact how I do my research or stop to think about how researchers and news leaders can work together to benefit their local communities.
My perspective on this issue has changed since participating in the American Press Institute’s Local News Summit on Rural Journalism, Community and Sustainability in June 2024, where I shared research on how hope and nostalgia promote psychological health and human progress. I was expecting another one-sided conversation but got a highly productive back-and-forth that has fundamentally reshaped my interactions with journalists, conveners, and news leaders.
