Reimagining Philadelphia Journalism Summit

September 12-13, 2022

This hybrid event — in-person at the Loews Hotel Philadelphia in Center City, with the plenary sessions streaming online — built upon the insights and hopes that surfaced during The Lenfest Institute’s virtual 2020 BEYOND Summit, which invited participants to build a collective vision of the future of journalism in Philadelphia. 

More than 200 people attended the 2020 BEYOND Summit, affirming the pressing need for news organizations that reflect and serve communities, center listening, and shift the posture of our news organizations to one of belonging. Building off of this work, the 2022 Reimagining Philadelphia Journalism Summit gave attendees the opportunity to learn directly from those who are developing practical strategies to address these aspirations, and join their cause. 

Check out our recordings of the Reimagining Philadelphia Journalism Summit to see how the conversation around news equity has evolved since 2020 — where we’ve made progress and where we are still stuck.

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Summit Schedule

Day One, Monday September 12: Laying out the issues and orienting toward solutions

• Journalism Reimagined: A National Perspective

Discussing what journalism looks like from an equitable and sustainable point of view. Errin Haines, Editor-at-large of The 19th* and a Lenfest Institute Board member, led a conversation with:  

• Cierra Hinton, Scalawag, Executive Director
• Mazin Sidahmed, Documented, Co-Executive Director
• Sarah Alvarez, Outlier Media, Founder and Editor-in-Chief

• Journalism Reimagined: A Philadelphia Perspective

A panel discussion reflecting on what a reimagined journalism landscape looks like for Philadelphia — what the ecosystem gains from ensuring that diverse voices and perspectives are lifted up, and the tools to get there. Just Media Program Director Clarissa Brooks led a conversation with:

• Kristine Villanueva, Project Editor, Equally Informed, Resolve Philly
• Dan Tsao, New Mainstream Press, Founder and Publisher
• Sofiya Ballin, Black History Untold, Journalist, Writer and Producer
• Kerith Gabriel, Philadelphia Inquirer, Sports Editor
• Sherri Darden, Scoop Media USA, Owner and Publisher
• Cathy Hicks, Philadelphia Sunday Sun, Publisher
• Irv Randolph, Philadelphia Tribune, Managing Editor

• Journalism Reimagined: Intentions & Tensions on Engaging Philly Communities

Andrea Lawful-Sanders led an in-depth conversation exploring significant efforts by WHYY and 6abc to authentically engage with Philadelphia communities. She was joined by:

• Christopher Norris, WHYY, Managing Editor for Community and Engagement
• TaRhonda Thomas, 6abc, Race and Culture Reporter

• Reimagining Journalism: Taking Action

Breakouts for participants to talk with particular experts about how news outlets and individual reporters/media makers, could take their next steps towards DEI/belonging/anti-racist practices. *This section of the summit was not recorded.

• Vanessa Maria Graber, Free Press, News Voices Director
  • How to organize a community meeting to find out what your audiences really want
• Bettina Escauriza, PhillyCAM, Coordinating News Producer
  • Engage residents to collaborate as reporters
• Nora Bryne, City Bureau, Documenters Network Resource and Engagement Coordinator
  • How to meaningfully engage residents in civic engagement with journalism at the center

Day Two, Tuesday September 13: What we’ve learned and what we can imagine together

• Reimagining Audience: Landscaping the News Ecosystem

This conversation highlighted leading research into news ecosystems and how to best serve communities in Philadelphia and in cities around the United States. The discussion was facilitated by Temple University professor Andrea Wenzel, and featured:

• Natalie Stroud, Center for Media Engagement UT-Austin, Professor
• Jesse Hardman, Listening Post Collective, Founder
• Letrell Crittenden, American Press Institute, Director of Inclusion and Audience Growth

• Reimagining Revenue: Sustainability Panel

This session looked at BIPOC news & information media organizations to explore how they are supporting themselves while discussing ways to improve and further sustainable practices across various platforms. The conversation was facilitated by Temple University professor Aron Pilhofer, and included:

• Jos Duncan Asé, LoveNow Media Chief Storyteller and Philadelphia Media Founders Exchange Community Catalyst
• S. Mitra Kalita & Sara Lomax-Reese, URL Media Co-Founders
• Andrew Ramsammy, Local Media Association, Chief Content and Collaboration Officer

• Reimagining Revenue Part Two: The Funder Panel

This session explored the ways funders can help transform the journalistic capabilities of smaller organizations by implementing sustainable funding. Moderated by Jessica Clark, Dot Connector Studio’s Founder and Executive Director.

• Shawn Mooring, Program Director, The Lenfest Institute for Journalism
• Molly de Aguiar, Independence Public Media Foundation, President
• Diana Lu, Director, Knight-Lenfest Local News Transformation Fund