Developing Story Project expands to include journalism students

Top photo: Journalist Ann Curry, right center, speaks during a post-screening discussion with Bombshell filmmakers and other journalists at the Asian American Journalists Association’s annual convention in Minneapolis, June 27, 2026. (Credit: Lily Speredelozzi)

Updated July 2026

In 2026, the Developing Story Project kicks off a series of screenings of the documentary Bombshell in partnership with journalism schools across the country as part of an effort to bring journalism students and early career journalists into the Developing Story Project community. Screenings are accompanied by discussions with the filmmaking team, students, journalism scholars, and nuclear weapons experts. 

Bombshell, directed by Ben Loeterman, is a feature documentary examining how, at the dawn of the nuclear age, the US government constructed an appealing yet false “official” narrative about the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki—one that secured overwhelming public support and endures to this day. Through propaganda, censorship, and co-opting the press, the atomic bomb was presented as an incredible scientific achievement and industrial feat that could end the war. In this narrative, the bomb’s radiation poisoning and its insidious lingering effects were minimized or altogether erased.

From left: Bombshell Producer Gaia De Simoni, Stanley Center Associate Program Officer Chloe Angyal, and Director Ben Loeterman participate in a screening, discussion, and reception in New York, NY, in partnership with the News and Documentary program at NYU’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute, March 9, 2025. (Credit Devon Terrill)

Bombshell traces how this narrative was initially shaped by a New York Times reporter working undercover for the Manhattan Project. It then profiles several journalists whose first-hand reporting daringly challenged the official narrative. The journalists included a war correspondent for the Black press, a Japanese American staffer at United Press (later UPI), an Australian freelancer, a Chicago Daily’s foreign correspondent, and a hesitant magazine writer and novelist named John Hersey. Taken together, their hard-won stories about civilian suffering and the long-term radiation effects the government denied demonstrate what is lost when independent journalism is suppressed, and truth bends to power.

Bombshell contains powerful lessons for today’s journalists. As the Pentagon attempts to restrict information about military programs during a time of massive expansion of the nuclear weapons budget, journalists have a crucial role to play: bringing facts and human stories to light, so that the public may have an accurate understanding of the ongoing risks and harms posed by nuclear weapons.

The Stanley Center hosted a screening at The National Press Club in Washington, DC in partnership with American University’s School of Communication and George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs, April 7, 2026. (Credit Devon Terrill)

The Stanley Center’s journalism and media program is screening Bombshell at key events to raise awareness and inspire thought and action among journalists and journalism students. Programs organized by the Developing Story Project help equip participants with the knowledge, skills, resources, and relationships they need to effectively report on nuclear weapons.

Screening Schedule

• New York, NY – March 9, 2026
  In partnership with the News and Documentary program at New York University’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute.
• Washington, DC – April 7, 2026
  At the National Press Club, in partnership with American University’s School of Communication and George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs. 
• New York, NY – April 28, 2026
  At the Museum of Arts and Design, in partnership with Fordham University’s Department of Communication and Media Studies and the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists on the sidelines of the 2026 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.
• Washington DC – April 29, 2026
  In partnership with Foreign Policy for America and the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
• Minneapolis, MN – June 27, 2026
  At the Asian American Journalists Association’s annual convention, featuring Ann Curry.
• Iowa City, IA – September 22, 2026
  in partnership with the University of Iowa’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication, the World Press Institute, the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council, and FilmScene.
• Chicago, IL – October 20, 2026
  in partnership with DePaul University and the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
• Madison, WI – [Date TBD]
  In partnership with the University of Wisconsin’s Center for Journalism Ethics, PBS Wisconsin, and Outrider Foundation

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists President and CEO Alexandra Bell speaks during a post-screening discussion with Bombshell filmmakers, New York Times journalist Spencer Cohen, far left, and NYU Professor Emeritus of Journalism Mitchell Stephens, far right, in New York, NY, April 28, 2026. (Credit: Avery Restrepo)

Last year, the film had two successful screenings in partnership with the Stanley Center: first in Hiroshima last August during the commemorations of the 80th anniversary of the use of the bomb there, and the second in Vienna last November during the International Press Institute’s World Congress. Both events sparked thoughtful conversations with journalists and students about press freedom, ethics, and responsibility.

The Stanley Center for Peace and Security’s Developing Story Project is a multi-year initiative to support, strengthen, and sustain reporting on nuclear weapons and related issues. The project supports journalists around the world through a variety of training, workshops, fellowships, networking events, film screenings, dialogues, and reporting trips organized in collaboration with various partners, including the European Journalism Center, the International Press Institute, Atomic Reporters, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, and the Asia chapter of the Asian American Journalists Association. 

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