SJR moves to SIUC ...

The St. Louis Journalism Review said Friday it plans to move to Southern Illinois University Carbondale on July 1.

The name of the publication, led by editor Roy Malone, will stay the same.

SIUC professor William Babcock, a former senior international news editor for the Christian Science Monitor and an expert on media ethics, will serve as editor in chief. While the main focus on SJR will remain St. Louis, Babcock plans to solicit commentary and news on the media in Midwestern states from Ohio to Oklahoma and Arkansas to Minnesota and beyond.

SJR used to be affiliated with Webster University from 1995 until 2006 but then university funding ran out, said SJR founder Charles Klotzer.

This latest transfer “preserves SJR as an important media watchdog and offers an opportunity to broaden the scope of the review to issues of media accountability in the Midwest,” said William Freivogel, director of the SIUC School of Journalism, in a statement. “Media criticism is especially important as the conduct of new media raises novel ethical questions.”

Founded in 1970, the SJR is the nation’s only remaining local journalism review.

Discuss on the STL Media Message Board. (Registration required)