How to connect with TJA mentors — plus member spotlights and job listings

Table of contents

1. Reaching the TJA's mentors
2. Member spotlights
3. TJA events
4. Journalism events
5. Job listings

Reaching the TJA's mentors

Did you know you can schedule one-on-one office hours with our mentors to discuss journalism, career development, and other professional topics? Our mentor volunteers have diverse experiences, from TV writing to covering tech business. Today, we're highlighting Noia Karr!

Noia has been a mentor for over 20 years since graduating from Columbia Journalism School. They focus on writing for broadcast, covering economics and business, radio and TV reporting, and production.

"I love seeing my former students and mentees fly high. I love it when they produce work that makes me jealous."

Schedule some time to chat with Noia or any of our other mentors while logged in on our members website.

Member spotlights

National awards

Congratulations to TJA members and volunteers for winning awards recognizing their journalistic achievements from NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists.

Check out their work below:

• James Factora won the Excellence in Food Writing Award with “Silver Iocovozzi Is Leading a New Wave of Queer Food Culture” in them
• Minami Funakoshi and Disha Raychaudhuri won the Excellence in Legal Coverage Award for “The rise of anti-trans bills in the US” in Reuters
• Jo Yurcaba won multiple awards:
  • Excellence in Newswriting, Non-Daily Award for “Raising a trans kid in Missouri has become a ‘dystopian nightmare’ for families” in NBC News
  • Excellence in Profile Writing Award for “How Zooey Zephyr, Montana’s first trans legislator, became a national celebrity” in NBC News
  • Excellence in Political Coverage Award for “From drag bans to sports restrictions, 75 anti-LGBTQ bills have become law in 2023“ in NBC News
• Joel Lev-Tov won the Excellence in Student Journalism Award for “Trevor Project in crisis amid financial woes, staff dissension, ‘union busting’: sources” in The Washington Blade 
• Orion Rummler won the Excellence in HIV/AIDS Coverage Award for “‘I’ve been in that room’: How HBO’s ‘The Last of Us’ resonated for a survivor of the AIDS crisis” in The 19th
• Salgu Wissmath won the Excellence in Digital Video Award for “Chosen Family” in San Francisco Chronicle
• Frankie de la Cretaz, Rachel Miller, and Sally Tamarkin won the Excellence in Online Journalism Award for the “Let Them Play” series in Self
  • “Youth Sports Can Be Life-Changing—Here’s Why Everyone Should Get to Play”
  • “What It Looks Like When Trans Kids Are Simply Allowed to Play Sports”
  • “Stop Excluding Trans Girls in the Name of ‘Protecting Women’s Sports’”
  • “How to Make Your Local Youth Sports Leagues More Welcoming to Trans Kids”

Interviews and panels

The 19th reporter Orion Rummler joined Bryan Lowder in Slate Magazine's queer podcast "Outward" to discuss how Project 2025 would impact the lives of LGBTQ+ Americans. Listen now.

Tre'vell Anderson of Slayzhon interviewed journalist and activist Raquel Willis about her memoir, The Risk It Takes To Bloom: On Life and Liberation, at the NABJ convention.

TJA member Salgu Wissmath of the San-Antonio Express News will moderate a conversation called "Beyond the binary: Reporting responsibly on trans and gender non-conforming communities" at the AAJA convention. Speakers will include TJA member DENNY of Reckon Magazine and TJA treasurer Minami Funakoshi of Reuters.

In the podcast episode "How to vote as a trans person," TransLash's Imara Jones interviewed fellow TJA member Jo Yurcaba of NBC News about voter ID laws, voter disenfranchisement, and how to navigate polls as someone whose name or gender markers might not line up between official documents and gender presentation.

New projects and publications

Independent journalists Rose Eveleth wrote, reported, and hosted the podcast "Tested: A surprising history of women's sports" for National Public Radio. TJA member Ozzy Llinas Goodman was also a producer on the project.

In addition, several TJA cofounders have launched their own press! Girl Dad, by culture writer Niko Stratis and Tuck Woodstock of Gender Reveal, was born out of their whimsical trans anthology based on 2 Fast, 2 Furious.

Read more here.

TJA events

August TJA x NLGJA book club

On Wednesday, August 28, 2024 at 8:30 p.m. ET, NLGJA x TJA's book club will gather to discuss “And The Band Played On” by  Randy Shilts. 

More info on our members site.

Journalism events

Science journalism training

Sciline is a free service that offers expert matching services, media briefings, and training to help journalists incorporate science into their reporting. They have a few upcoming sessions:

SciLine Crash Course: Social science essentials for local reporters
⏰ Monday, August 19^th (2-3 p.m. EDT)
✍️https://bit.ly/4dnp5y9

SciLine Media briefing: Resisting misinformation in your election reporting
⏰ Wednesday, August 28^th (1-2 p.m. EDT)
✍️https://bit.ly/4d4uHxy

SciLine 2024 Election hot button issue briefings and tip sheets for local journalists
⏰ Full videos and transcripts now available to freely use/clip/quote in news stories
✍️https://bit.ly/3yhtzra

Job listings

Science Friday, the award-winning public radio program that brings science news to millions of listeners each week, is looking for a co-host to become a regular on their weekly program. Job posting here.

Check out our jobs listserv for additional opportunities from EdSource, Stand With Trans, and TransLash Media. If you're an active TJA member, you can find a link to the listserv on your member dashboard.

Journalism industry resources

For entertainment journalists

The Press Inclusion Initiative, an effort to support a diverse press community at the Sundance Film Festival, is returning this year to provide unrestricted stipends to a small cohort of journalists who identify as BIPOC, women, LGBTQ+, and/or people with disabilities.

You can apply through August 21.

For job-seekers

Have you been laid off or dealt with professional instability this year? If so, the journalism jobs board Substack Inside the Newsroom is offering temporary free access to its services.

Email daniellevitt32@gmail.com for access.

For the industry

What do journalists from underrepresented communities need to pursue investigations?

IRE’s diversity and inclusion committee interviewed journalism community leaders to find out.

The ObjectiveLam Thuy Vo

A guide to practicing care in journalism

Lessons from jesikah maria ross

Center for Cooperative MediaJoe Amditis

How news media can prevent contributing to weight stigma - Center for Journalism Ethics

“If everyone in the U.S. saw half as many headlines about the obesity epidemic as they see now, the world would be a much better place.” Note on language: In this piece, “fat” is a neutral descriptor for body size … Continue reading →

Center for Journalism EthicsJane Houseal

“Incarceration” not “internment” – AAJA launches new style guide - Asian American Journalists Association

The AAJA Style Guide is dedicated to the memory of Los Angeles Times Assistant Managing Editor Henry Furhmann, who mentored many AAJA journalists and ensured “Asian American” was not divided by a hyphen The Asian American Journalists Association is proud to announce our revised Style Guide. The guide will be unveiled during AAJA’s national convention

Asian American Journalists Association -Yi-Shen Loo

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