The Journalism Salute

A postponed guest meant we had to improvise, so we put together this episode based on the presentations that I've done at the College Media Association and Journalism Education Association national conventions.

The subject: Lessons I've learned from 275+ interviews on this podcast.

You'll hear from 14 different journalists that I've interviewed in the last five years, all of whom share anecdotes or observations that emphasize larger points. Those featured are:

Javeria Salman, formerly of The Hechinger Report

Massarah Mikati, formerly of The Philadelphia Inquirer

Humberto Basilio, freelance science writer

Medar De La Cruz, freelance illustrative journalist, Pulitzer winner

Jada Vasser, recent graduate of Michigan State

Daarel Burnette, The Chronicle of Higher Education

Yanqi Xu, Flatwater Free Press

Ishan Thakore, Colorado Public Radio, formerly Full Frontal w/ Samantha Bee

Adrianna Adame, Buffalo's Fire

Sam Donndelinger, Uncloseted Media

Curtis Bunn, journalist of 40+ years, formerly of NBC BLK

Aisha Sultan, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Emma Restrepo, freelance bilingual journalist

Angilee Shah, Charlottesville Tomorrow

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On this episode we're joined by Maggie LeBeau and Divya Thamman. Maggie is a student at the University of Missouri majoring in journalism and history. Divya is a student at Edina High School just outside Minneapolis.

Together, they are part of the reporting team for PBS News Hour Student Reporting Labs producing and reporting for the On Our Minds podcast. This is our second year talking to students for this series. We previously spoke to the podcast hosts for a past season. This year we talk to the reporting team. We'll also be joined by their lead podcast producer, Becky Wandel.and the director of communications and partnerships for Student Reporting Labs, Christine Zirneklis.

This season's theme for the series is an audio road trip exploring what’s unique about teen life in every corner of the country through hyperlocal stories about cities, towns, and neighborhoods.

Maggie and Divya talked about the stories they covered, with Maggie telling the story of the local drag community and Divya reporting on a quirky festival in Minneapolis that reminds people that there are positive stories coming from that city. They also shared their backgrounds and the valuable lessons they've learned in their journalism pursuits

You can find all the episodes for the On Our Minds series here.

https://studentreportinglabs.org/on-our-minds/

Their joint salute: Dave Jorgenson (former Washington Post TikTok guy)

We've also got our monthly report from Anita Pinto, advisor to The Gateway Times at Urban Assembly Gateway School for Technology in New York City. She shares how her students are progressing as the school year nears an end.

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Thank you for listening. You can e-mail me at [email protected]

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Mark’s website (MarkSimonmedia.com)

On this episode we're joined by Kirk McKnight. Kirk is the editor-in-chief of The Eagle, a weekly newspaper in rural Washington that has been in existence since 1891. The paper recently came under new ownership. Kirk has previously been a writer and editor for a weekly newspaper in southwest Arizona, The Wickenburg Sun.

Kirk is also the author of two books about sports broadcasting. He's from Utah and a grad of BYU.

We talked to Kirk about his career transition from Las Vegas valet to community news journalist and book author. He explained how his newspaper is put together and the kind of stories it covers. He shares what he learned on the fly that allowed him to be this kind of journalist. And he told stories related to his favorite broadcaster interviews.

Kirk's salutes: Sportswriters Joe Posnanski and Susan Slusser.

Links to Kirk's books

Voices of Hockey

https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/voices-of-hockey-9781442262812/

Voices of Baseball

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-voices-of-baseball-kirk-mcknight/1121378748

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You can find all our episode guides for teachers and professors here,

Please support your local public radio station: adoptastation.org

Thank you for listening. You can e-mail me at [email protected]

Visit our website: thejournalismsalute.org 

Mark’s website (MarkSimonmedia.com)

On this episode we're joined by Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg. Elizabeth is an investigative reporting fellow for The Appeal.

The Appeal is a non-profit news organization that writes exposés about the criminal legal system. She's written for other news organizations too. Among the topics she writes about – wrongful convictions and extreme sentences.

She has previously worked for The Innocence Project as a case analyst helping exonerate those wrongfully convicted. And she's written two interview-based plays on intense subjects. Elizabeth is a graduate of Rutgers with a masters from Northwestern.

Elizabeth explained how a job like this has always been her passion, what goes into the work she does reporting on such harrowing subjects, and why a distrust of those in power is necessary for her reporting work. She explained how she decompresses. And she shares what aspiring journalists need to know about entering the profession.

Elizabeth's articles: https://theappeal.org/authors/elizabeth-weill-greenberg/

Elizabeth's salutes: Lauren Gill (Bolts), Joshua Vaughn (Penn Live)

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Mark’s website (MarkSimonmedia.com)

On this episode we're joined by Kaela Roeder. Kaela is the lead reporter in Washington D.C. and Virginia for Technical dot LY, a national news organization that reports on local innovation economies in the United States, a newsroom that has done so since 2009.

Kaela has been with them for 2 years. Prior to that she's had a few different jobs, including one as deputy editor for Street Sense Media, covering homelessness in the DC/Baltimore region and LGBTQ issues for the Washington Blade.

Kaela is a graduate of American University with a journalism degree where, among other things, she won an award for aspiring LGBTQ journalists.

Kaela explained Technical.ly's purpose and the kind of stories she reports on. She shared how she learned on the fly so that she could cover this beat. And she detailed important things for young journalists to know as well as those she's recently learned that help in the job.

Kaela's salute: Street Sense Media

Kaela's LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaela-roeder/

Kaela's Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/kaelacoverstech/

We also heard from Anita Pinto, filing her monthly update as advisor to The Gateway Times, the school newspaper at the Urban Assembly for Gateway Technology in Manhattan. This is done in conjunction with Press Pass NYC, a non-profit that helps advisors start journalism clubs and programs in schools that don't have them.

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You can find all our episode guides for teachers and professors here,

Please support your local public radio station: adoptastation.org

Thank you for listening. You can e-mail me at [email protected]

Visit our website: thejournalismsalute.org 

Mark’s website (MarkSimonmedia.com)

On this episode we're joined by Judith Smelser and Abe Aboraya of the News Collaborative of Central Florida.

Judith is the president and general manager of Central Florida Public Media. She's been in that job since September 2021. That's the only non-profit news organization in Central Florida. She has experience as a reporter and editor as well as a news director, managing editor, and wine columnist. She is a graduate of Rhodes College.

Abe is the government accountability reporter for Oviedo Community News. Judith and Abe's organizations work together as part of the News Collaborative of Central Florida. He's a graduate of the University of Central Florida and has been a journalist for almost 20 years.

The two of them explained why this collaborative is necessary and provided examples of the wins that have happened as a result. They also shared what things they've learned within journalism recently and gave examples of traits necessary to succeed in news reporting.

Abe's salutes: Roger Simmons, Orlando Sentinel and former Sentinel reporter Jason Garcia

Judith's salutes: Oviedo Community News and also NPR Media Reporter David Folkenflik

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Please support your local public radio station: adoptastation.org

Thank you for listening. You can e-mail me at [email protected]

Visit our website: thejournalismsalute.org 

Mark’s website (MarkSimonmedia.com)

On this episode we're joined by Elaine Díaz Rodríguez.

Elaine is the membership director for Tiny News Collective, a non-profit organization whose goal is to equip visionary news entrepreneurs in underserved communities to transform journalism from the ground up, making it more equitable, accessible and connected.

She's been with them since last August. Prior to that she worked in a similar role for another organization, Local Independent Online News Publishers for a little more than 3 years.

Before that she was a journalist in Cuba and executive director at Periodismo de Barrio, a newsroom that covered the intersection of climate, environment, and social justice. And she was a professor at Univrsidad de la Habana, with one of her classes being – social impact of new technology.

We talked about working in journalism roles that emphasize coaching, what her experience running a newsroom in Cuba was like, and her advice for aspiring journalists.

Elaine's salute: Amy Bushatz, Mat-Su Sentinel

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Please support your local public radio station: adoptastation.org

Thank you for listening. You can e-mail me at [email protected]

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Mark’s website (MarkSimonmedia.com)

On this episode we're joined by Chalssea Kate Echegoyen and Karis Tsang. They are the editor in chief and the managing editor of The Varsitarian, the award-winning student newspaper at the University of Santo Tomas, the largest college in the Philippines.

Chalssea and Karis described their paths to becoming journalists and explained the state of journalism in the Philippines. They provided examples of their work, including an award-winning issue that focused on protesting government corruption and how they handled an instance in which a coach and athletic director thought the newsroom was too negative in its coverage.

Special thanks to one of their advisors, Felipe Salvosa, for coordinating this interview.

A Nation Flooded With Corruption

https://varsitarian.net/a-nation-flooded-with-corruption/

Their salute: All student journalists

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Please support your local public radio station: adoptastation.org

Thank you for listening. You can e-mail me at [email protected]

Visit our website: thejournalismsalute.org 

Mark’s website (MarkSimonmedia.com)

On this episode we're joined by Jen Russell.

Jen is the founder of The Woodbury Warbler, a hyperlocal newsletter covering 5 municipalities in southern New Jersey. She's been producing the weekly newsletter for about a year. She has a full-time job too – she's a paralegal. She's also a fiber artist and digital artist. She is a graduate of Peirce College.

Jen explained why she started the newsletter and why she's showing her work and keeping a running dialogue about it as she goes along. She explained her philosophy of news as conversation, not product and how everything she does has a singular focus. She also shared her plans for the future and how being a journalism outsider has given her the chance to look at everything through fresh eyes.

A good episode for those thinking about starting their own news project.

Jen's salute: The New Jersey Civic Information Consortium, NJ News Commons, and the Center for Cooperative Media

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Please support your local public radio station: adoptastation.org

Thank you for listening. You can e-mail me at [email protected]

 Visit our website: thejournalismsalute.org 

Mark’s website (MarkSimonmedia.com)

On this episode we're joined by Jackie Llanos. Jackie is an immigration reporter for NOTUS, which stands for News of the United States, a newsroom that covers significant national issues and politics.

This interview was taped prior to NOTUS' announcement on March 16 of their plans to rebrand and expand.

Jackie has been with them for 6 months on a two-year fellowship. Previously she was a reporter in Florida for States Newsroom. She is a graduate of the University of Richmond.

Jackie talked about covering immigration from the bureaucratic perspective, focusing on the legal and legislative system, as well as a story she did in her previous job about a U.S. citizen being taken and imprisoned by ICE, which she learned about through a Facebook group.

At the end of the interview you'll again hear from New York City-based high school journalism club advisor Anita Pinto about her latest experiences in guiding and shaping her program at Urban Assembly Gateway School For Technology. You can listen to my original interview with Anita from September here)

Jackie's stories:

 U.S. citizen arrested by ICE

https://floridaphoenix.com/2025/04/17/u-s-born-man-held-for-ice-under-floridas-new-anti-immigration-law/

How the immigration crackdown affects elder caretakers

https://www.notus.org/immigration/trump-immigration-crackdown-tps-elder-caretakers

Jackie's salute: Richmond journalism professor Tom Mullen

Subscribe to our newsletter here

You can find all our episode guides for teachers and professors here,

Please support your local public radio station: adoptastation.org

Thank you for listening. You can e-mail me at [email protected]

 Visit our website: thejournalismsalute.org 

Mark’s website (MarkSimonmedia.com)