Backpack Journalism
What is Backpack Journalism?
Backpack Journalism is a competitive international reporting program funded by generous alumni and donors. Four high-achieving Murrow college students travel to a foreign country to report a story with guidance from a faculty member. In the past, backpack journalism trips have sent students to destinations such as Nepal, Greece, Galapagos Islands, Guatemala, Costa Rica, China, Sri Lanka and others.
Students equipped with the latest video, audio and web technology produce multimedia content suitable for publication by media outlets. Backpack Journalism students experience the challenges and benefits of international travel, may have their work published by professional media and enrich their academic and professional lives.
Selected students will travel to Vietnam to report on growing international imports of Washington apples, particularly the Cosmic Crisp®, which was developed at WSU. Student reporting will focus on all aspects of the apple industry, including the production, sale, marketing, export and import of Washington apples. Students will be enrolled in a 1 credit course in spring 2026 semester.
Travel will occur over spring break 2026.
Questions? alison.boggs@wsu.edu
Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam)
The 2026 Backpack Journalism program traveled to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, in March to report on rising exports of Washington apples, especially the Cosmic Crisp®. Developed by WSU tree scientists in recent years, and launched in 2019, the Cosmic Crisp is rapidly gaining in popularity. It has its own Instagram pages in both the U.S. and Europe, as well as a Facebook page. Its marketers fly a hot air balloon shaped like a giant apple and adorned with the brand name at festivals and tasting events both in this country and abroad. Apples are big business in Washington state, where up to 70% of this country’s apples are produced, to the tune of $2 billion in annual sales. About one-quarter of that market is exported. Though exports of Washington apples were down last year, Cosmic Crisp exports were up, almost across the board. In Vietnam, exports quadrupled from last year to this year. In that country, exports have grown from 4,000 40-pound boxes in 2020 to 365,000 boxes last year. When domestic sales are down, exporters rely more heavily on international sales to keep the market afloat. Students on this Backpack Journalism expedition interviewed tree scientists, exporters, importers, grocery store managers, fruit wholesalers, and port executives to understand the international apple industry and the appeal of Washington apples. The Cosmic Crisp has produced more than $28 million in royalty funds for WSU since its launch, though much of that has been spent on marketing and branding of the trademarked apple, whose official name is WA38. Two stories the students produced, for The Spokesman-Review newspaper in Spokane, Washington, are linked below.
Student Reporting from Around the Globe
- Vietnam: Washington apples are getting a boost in Vietnam thanks to WSU’s Cosmic Crisp
- Vietnam: In Vietnam, Washington apples are prized for more than taste
- Germany: A voice from Buchenwald: How Murrow’s broadcast unlocked family history from the Holocaust
- Germany: 80 years after Edward R. Murrow revealed the horrors of Buchenwald, the camp still has a vital story to tell
- Germany: Her great-grandfather helped liberate Buchenwald; 80 years later, the CWU grad student makes it her mission to show the full scope of WWII vets’ experiences
- Kenya: How healthy cows are changing lives and keeping students in school
- Kenya: WSU researchers study a coronavirus spread by camels in Kenya
- Serbia: Serbian female investigative journalists continue to face growing harassment
- Serbia: Serbian student journalists face challenging career
- Puerto Rico: In the aftermath of a hurricane, an island tries to rebuild
- Argentina: The most brutal race in the world
- Guatemala: In rural Guatemala, Hearts in Motion
- Nicaragua: Saving the world, one pet at a time