About Unsettled

The summer 2026 News21 fellows gathered in the Phoenix newsroom. Two fellows compare records over a counter stacked with files and a laptop. A fellow reads through newspaper archives at a wooden table. A fellow walks with an interview subject beneath a sprawling oak. A fellow interviews a man on camera in his living room.
The summer 2026 News21 fellows, in the Phoenix newsroom and in the field. Group photo: Emmanuel Lozano for News21 · Field photos: News21

The investigation

“Unsettled” examines the policies, systems and solutions that shape America’s housing crisis — and captures the stories of the people living with the consequences. The American dream has long been tied to owning a home; for a growing number of Americans, that dream is slipping out of reach.

This summer, 17 student journalists from eight universities — joined by a four-person Arizona State University team specializing in journalism products and artificial intelligence — gathered at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication for a 10-week reporting fellowship.

The crisis is visible from News21’s home base: In Arizona, a minimum-wage worker must log 86 hours a week to afford a two-bedroom home, according to the Morrison Institute, and evictions and homelessness have reached record highs. Fellows spent months researching housing at their home universities before arriving in Phoenix. “Unsettled” is free to publish for news outlets nationwide.

A photographer silhouetted against the sunset, long lens on a tripod. Camera gear stacked in the back seat of a fellow’s car. A camera rig framed against a bright window. Fellows walk down a long covered walkway with their gear. An interview subject sits for a portrait on a grassy field, tripod at the ready. A fellow takes notes at a library table beside a camera. A fellow films inside a church beneath stained-glass windows.
Photos: News21

Funding and support

News21 was launched in 2005 as part of the Carnegie-Knight Initiative on the Future of Journalism Education. In the two decades since, News21 investigations have earned dozens of national honors — including Robert F. Kennedy Journalism and Edward R. Murrow awards — and have been published by The Associated Press, The Washington Post and NBC News, among others.

This year’s fellowship is supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Howard G. Buffett Foundation and the Scripps Howard Foundation, with additional support from the fellows’ home universities.

Republish this work

All Unsettled stories, photographs and graphics are free to republish. Media partners agree to the Cronkite School’s republishing terms — see the Republish page for terms, story downloads and logo packs.

Contact: hdunn4@asu.edu

The fellows

AI and product team

New to News21 this year: A four-student team researched, designed and prototyped the interactive products and reporting tools behind “Unsettled.” They helped the newsroom use AI transparently, with a human in the loop on every element that made it to publication.

Editors and staff