Lenfest Institute announces 2024 Constellation News Leadership Initiative class

November 16, 2023

The Lenfest Institute for Journalism today announced the members of the 2023-2024 class of the Constellation News Leadership Initiative. Constellation is a comprehensive management development program providing career coaching and executive leadership resources to Philadelphia-area media professionals of color pursuing senior roles in local news media enterprises.  

The 2023-2024 class of Constellation News Leadership Initiative Fellows are: 

• Daniel Pearson, editorial writer, The Philadelphia Inquirer 
• DeAntae Prince, senior editor of NBA and 76ers, The Philadelphia Inquirer 
• Faheem Goree, producer, WURD Radio 
• Indah Nuritasari, CEO, Indonesian Lantern 
• Kala West, digital content producer, WURD Radio 
• Michelle Myers, reporter, The Philadelphia Inquirer 
• Vaughn Johnson, social platforms editor, The Philadelphia Inquirer 
• Vicky Díaz-Camacho, multiplatform producer, WHYY 

Now in its fourth year, the program serves Philadelphia’s journalists and media makers of color in an equitable and progressive way through in-depth training from J+, the professional development arm of the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY, mentorship from Executive Advisors who have advanced to positions of leadership in Philadelphia-area news organizations, and career coaching from Crawford Leadership Strategies, a Black-owned leadership development firm. 

The CUNY curriculum centers on improving the leadership and digital news skills of Fellows with a focus on understanding audience and data metrics, product management & development, strategic assessment of revenue models, and managing newsroom culture and changes.  

In addition to training, the program’s mentorship and leadership coaching provides space for the Fellows to celebrate their accomplishments and seek solutions for their challenges. Crawford Leadership Strategies CEO Joyel Crawford empowers the Fellows to discuss their professional and personal obstacles. Fellows also establish a professional connection with their executive advisor, who provides mentorship and serves as a sounding board. 

This year’s executive advisors include:  

• Andrea Lawful-Sanders, host, WURD Radio 
• Bobbi Booker, managing editor, PlanPhilly

• Madhusmita Bora, managing editor, WHYY 
• Manuel Smith, senior editorial manager, curation team, Yahoo 
• Michael Huang, managing editor of sports, The Philadelphia Inquirer 
• Nicole Blackson, managing director, Love Now Media 
• Ray Boyd, director of syndication and social media, The Philadelphia Inquirer 
• Sajda “Purple” Blackwell, founder, PQ Radio1 

The Constellation News Leadership Initiative is supported by The Lenfest Institute for Journalism, M&T Charitable Foundation, and the Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Foundation.  

Constellation is a key component of the Institute’s ongoing support of the Philadelphia News Ecosystem.  The initiative aligns with our mission to build sustainable solutions for the next era of local journalism by increasing BIPOC news leadership in news organizations — both in the newsroom and in business operations. To measure the impact of Constellation – as well as other programs such as the Philadelphia Media Founders Exchange and the Lenfest Next Generation Fund — we rely on a set of mission-driven metrics we developed to assess how we’re reaching individuals, organizations, and the community.