The Journalism Salute

On this episode of The Journalism Salute, we're joined by Anita Pinto and Aron Dervishaj . Anita is a speech therapist the advisor to the student newspaper at Urban Assembly Gateway School for Technology in Manhattan at which she started a journalism club. Aron is a student who will be entering 11th grade in the fall (he's wearing a hockey jersey in our cover photo for a reason!). He's...

On this episode Mark Simon was joined by Dr. Ken Schneck . Ken is the founding editor of The Buckeye Flame , Ohio's LGBTQ+ newsroom. He's written for many prominent publications, including The Huffington Post and The Advocate. He also was a tenured professor at Baldwin-Wallace, a book author, a public speaker, and a former syndicated radio show host. And he's a board member for NLGJA -...

On this episode Mark Simon was joined by José Ralat . José is the taco editor, yes, the taco editor, for Texas Monthly magazine. He is the author of American Tacos: A History & Guide . Ralat is a two-time winning editor of a James Beard Award, which is foodwriting's most prestigious honor. He is a graduate of St. Andrews Presbyterian College. José explained what he does as a taco editor an...

On this episode we're joined by Nicole Carr. Nicole is a journalism professor at Morehouse College and author of the new book, The Price of Exclusion, The Pursuit of Healthcare in a Segregated Nation. She's previously been a TV reporter in North Carolina, and in Atlanta, where she won four Emmys. And she was an investigative reporter for ProPublica. Nicole has a degree in mass communicatio...

On this episode we're joined by Ben Camacho . Ben is a journalist, documentary photographer, and producer. His work focused on state-sponsored violence, subjects like police brutality, and the communities impacted by it. He's a graduate of the University of La Verne and is based around Los Angeles. Ben's work has been published in major outlets, like New York Magazine , and also on his...

On this episode we're joined by Dominic Di Palermo . Dominic just graduated from Western Kentucky University where he worked on both the student newspaper and the campus lifestyle magazine. He's also an intern at the Chicago Tribune and was a contributor to a project that won the Tribune a 2026 Pulitzer Prize for local reporting. The award was "For its powerful coverage of the Trump ad...

On this episode we're joined by Ginny Monk . Ginny is a reporter covering children's issues and housing for the non-profit Connecticut Mirror and along with three others just won a Pulitzer Prize. Wrote the Pulitzer Board: "For an impressive series exposing how the state’s unique towing laws favored unscrupulous companies that overcharged residents, prompting swift and meaningful consu...

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 s...

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 st...

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'...

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 Innocenc...

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 Sen...

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, an...

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 simil...

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...

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 start...

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...

On this episode we talked to four early-college student journalists at the College Media Association National Convention in Manhattan: Candice Borowitz (Chatham, Communiqué ), Ellie Sileo (Lehigh, The Brown & White ), Graham Goodman (Ithaca, The Ithacan ), and Rebecca Borlace (Michigan, The Michigan Daily ). The students talked about the kind of journalism they were doing, their best journalis...

On this episode we're joined by Jordan Gass-Poore (GOSS-PO-ray). To try to pin down one job for Jordan is hard. She has 116 projects listed under experience on her LinkedIn page. One expertise is in podcast production and reporting on topics such as climate change and public health but she does plenty of written work too. She's a graduate of Texas State University with a Masters in investi...

On this episode we're joined by Arielle Robinson . Arielle is a Racial Equity Reporter for the Arkansas Times , for whom she's worked for 9 months. This is part of the Report for America corps program She's previously had internships and freelance roles at CNN, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and a few other outlets. Arielle is a graduate of Kennesaw State University. Arielle talked a...

On this episode we're joined by Daarel Burnette . Daarel is a senior editor for The Chronicle of Higher Education , where he's been for about 4 years. He's spent virtually his entire 20-year professional career in education reporting and editing for places like the Louisville Courier Journal, The Minneapolis Star Tribune, the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Chalkbeat, and Education Week....

On this episode we're joined by Jerome Johnson , also known as Rome J. Jerome is a culture correspondent with The Triibe . The Triibe is based in Chicago and its goal is to tell more thoughtful stories about Black people, stories that capture the multifaceted essence of their lived experiences, as well as solutions-driven stories that could teach and empower. It's aimed at a Black millenni...

On this episode we're joined by Mikayla Newton . Mikayla is a freelance reporter and anchor in the Baltimore/Washington D.C. area often focusing on news and education stories. She's an adjunct lecturer at the University of Maryland. And she's the president and founder of a non-profit aimed at empowering future journalists, The Mikayla Newton Foundation . She is a graduate from Georgia...

On this episode we're joined by Jackson Juzang . Jackson is a student journalist at Haverford College in Pennsylvania. He's quite busy. He's a research and editorial intern at NBC Sports , he's the founder of the Philadelphia Student Press Association, and he's the co-founder of PBJ Productions , whose services include podcasts, films and video series. And he does other things...

On this episode we're joined by Alana Van Der Sluys . Alana is a journalism teacher at Kinnelon High School in Kinnelon, New Jersey. Alana was a guest on episode 16 on this podcast back in December 2020. She's back nearly 250 episodes later to reflect on what happened since, which includes writing a book. Alana is a graduate of Iona University with masters' from there and Montclair Sta...