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Dear ,
The Desk is growing. In the past few months, we have added several newsrooms to the fold, bringing the roster of reporters we work with to 17.
It’s exciting to get to know these new reporters and their editors. But already, I can see that it’s going to be a challenge. More journalists on the Desk means more ideas to develop, more stories to edit, more expectations from our audience.
That’s why I’m pleased that this month we’re welcoming a new data journalist and assistant editorial director to the team.
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I’ll start with Annika McGinnis, a data and investigative journalist based in New York. Before joining the Desk, she co-founded InfoNile, a Uganda-based geojournalism platform and journalists' network focused on water and environment across 10 Nile basin countries. At InfoNile, she spent eight years leading cross-border investigations and spearheading science journalism platforms.
Most recently, Annika was a Columbia Journalism Investigations fellow reporting on climate and public health. She has also reported for Reuters, USA Today and McClatchy newspapers, and her work has been recognized by Covering Climate Now, the Fetisov Journalism Awards and the Uganda National Journalism Awards, among others. She has a master’s in data journalism from Columbia University.
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On the Desk, Annika will work with our reporters to enhance their data work and visual presentation. She will also draw on her deep experience and knowledge of water issues to produce stories of her own.
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Meanwhile, we’re also adding Lina Tran as assistant editorial director. Lina is a journalist based in Chicago. Previously, she was an editor with the U.N. Environment Programme and a reporter at Milwaukee's NPR, where she covered everything from air quality to cicadas and apple pie baked in a paper bag. She was also a news and politics fellow at Grist and earlier wrote about the sun for NASA.
Lina’s work has appeared in outlets such as NPR, Short Wave, Science Friday and Undark, and has been recognized by the Public Media Journalists Association and Midwest Broadcast Journalists Association, among others. She is from the Gulf Coast of Alabama and a graduate of Tulane University.
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Lina will be the first full-time assistant editorial director in the Desk’s history. In this role, she’ll edit our expanding lineup of content, with a particular focus on digital and social media.
What excites me most about the addition of Annika and Lina isn’t just that they are talented journalists — they’re both experienced science journalists. The Desk’s biggest strength is that we go deep with our reporting. Having two more people on the team who know the science — and how to communicate it — will make our work even more sophisticated.
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Sincerely,
Chas Sisk
Editorial Director,
Ag & Water Desk |
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