The McCandlish Phillips Journalism Institute was formed in 2014 at The King’s College in New York City with the mission to train students for careers in media. The institute teaches journalism, supervises internships and fosters a community of ethical reporting and writing among top journalists.

MPJI hosts several events each year for journalists working in New York City, and offers 15 spots each semester for student journalists in our NYC Semester in Journalism (NYCJ) program, working at a news outlet and taking classes at The King’s College (apply here). It operates journalism programs for high school students at the Summer Academy of The King’s College. It operates the Journalism, Culture and Society major at The King’s College.

Our view of journalism ethics, standards and values aligns with the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics, the ethics practiced by John McCandlish Phillips and the core values expressed by Walter Hussman Jr., publisher of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and the chair of WEHCO Media Inc, which owns newspapers, magazines and cable TV systems in six states. Here are those core values adapted slightly for MPJI: 

• Impartiality means reporting, editing, and delivering the news honestly, fairly, objectively and by limiting personal opinion or bias to the best of our ability.

• Credibility is the greatest asset of any news medium, and impartiality is the greatest source of credibility.

• To provide the most complete report, a news organization must not just cover the news, but uncover it. It must follow the story wherever it leads, regardless of any preconceived ideas on what might be most newsworthy.

• The pursuit of truth is a noble goal of journalism. But the truth is not always apparent or known immediately. Journalists’ role is therefore not to determine what they believe at that time to be the truth and reveal only that to their readers, but rather to report as completely and impartially as possible all verifiable facts so that readers can, based on their own knowledge and experience, determine what they believe to be the truth.

• When a newspaper delivers both news and opinions, the impartiality and credibility of the news organization can be questioned. To minimize this as much as possible there needs to be a sharp and clear distinction between news and opinion, both to those providing and consuming the news. Similarly, feature stories, lifestyle stories and personal view or analysis pieces should be labeled clearly and appropriately. 

Paul Glader

FOUNDING DIRECTOR

Associate Professor Paul Glader taught writing, journalism and business-related courses at The King’s College from 2013-2023, when the school ceased offering classes. He also directed the McCandlishPhillips Journalism Institute, The NYC Semester in Journalism program and was adviser to the student online newspaper/ print magazine/ video platform, The Empire State Tribune.

An award-winning journalist, Glader spent 10 years as a staff writer at The Wall Street Journal, covering a variety of beats including technology, travel, metals/mining, health/science and finance. He’s written for countless other publications including The New York Times, The Washington Post, TheNewYorker.com, The Indianapolis Star, The Associated Press, Der Spiegel Online, FastCompany.com, USA Today and ESPN.com. He’s appeared on national TV and radio programs including CNBC, Fox Business, and WSJ Radio. He currently writes for several national magazines including Bloomberg BusinessWeek, ChristianityToday, The American Legion and is a regular contributor to Forbes.com.

Glader received an MS from Columbia University in New York as a Knight-Bagehot Fellow at the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism and Graduate School of Business in 2007-2008. He is currently an executive MBA candidate at The Berlin School of Creative Leadership at Steinbeis University in Germany. He lived in Germany from 2011-2013, first as a Robert Bosch Foundation Fellow and then as a European Journalism Fellow at Freie Universität in Berlin. His research and writing interests include the startup economy / technology innovation; journalism ethics and history / the new journalists; urban planning / transportation; Europe / Germany / Scandinavia; parenthood / fatherhood; creativity in leadership and media entrepreneurship. He enjoys surfing, reading and traveling with his wife and daughter.

Clemente Lisi

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR

Clemente Lisi was an assistant professor of journalism and media at The King’s College in New York City, Co-Director of the NYC Semester in Journalism (NYCJ) and co-advisor of student publications until 2023, when the school ceased offering classes. He has worked as a journalist and editor for more than two decades. In that time, he has been an editor at major metropolitan dailies such as The New York Post and The New York Daily News. He also has experience in the digital space, serving as senior editor at ABCNews.com. He is a graduate of the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism and worked as an adjunct professor at Fordham University, where he obtained his bachelor’s degree. He has worked primarily in the area of breaking news and sports. 

ELENI GLADER

DIRECTOR OF ADMISSIONS FOR NYCJ

Eleni Glader was Director of Admissions for NYCJ at The King’s College until 2023 when the school ceased offering classes. Eleni previously worked at Rutgers University in Newark, N.J. as an administrator in the College of Nursing, serving as Senior Executive Associate and as Public Relations Officer in the Division of Global Affairs. Before that, she worked for United Nations affiliate, Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA), a policy advocacy NGO and worldwide network of legislators. At PGA she was Programme Officer of the Sustainable Development, Health and Population Programme, which was focused on HIV/AIDS advocacy in Pakistan and other parts of South Asia.

Eleni has a B.A. in International-Intercultural Studies from Fordham University, a Masters in Public and International Affairs from the University of Pittsburgh and a Masters in Public Health in Management from Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health.

She writes in her spare time as a guest blogger for Haba and Wired Academic and is an aspiring children’s book writer and active member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.

Leocciano Callao

PROGRAM ASSISTANT

Leocciano Callao was the program assistant for MPJI, where he helped with communications, events and programming. He is a fall 2021 alum of the NYC Semester in Journalism (NYCJ) program from MPJI and interned at Brooklyn Paper as part of the program. He graduated from Providence Christian College in Los Angeles. He played four years of college soccer including a short stint with The King’s College Lions. As a journalist, Leo serves as an editor for the basketball website, Hoops Habit and as a UFC contributor for FanSided. He also reports on sports and other topics for ReligionUnplugged.com.

Peter Freeby

DESIGNER

Peter Freeby designs and builds books, periodicals, brand materials, websites and marketing for a range of artists, non profits and educational programs including Elizabeth Murray, Jack Tworkov, Edith Schloss, Janice Biala, Joan Witek, George McNeil, Jordan Eagles, John Silvis, Diane Von Furstenberg, The Generations Project, The Koch Institute, and the Dow Jones News Fund. He is the designer for nearly all published materials and marketing at the McCandlish Phillips Journalism Institute and helped develop innovative ventures of the institute including Vett News and Religion Unplugged. He has a Bachelor’s of Arts in Media Culture and the Arts at The King’s College.

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