Lewis Raven Wallace joins The Objective’s advisory board

As the year ends, The Objective welcomes a seventh member to its advisory board: Lewis Raven Wallace.

Wallace, an independent journalist and co-founder of southern movement collective Press On, is also the author and host of the book and podcast “The View from Somewhere.” 

Both pieces of media look at a journalism beyond objectivity, particularly one focused on community needs among the most marginalized — especially for queer, trans, and BIPOC communities.

“My book and podcast The View from Somewhere explores that history and tries to place that journalism in the canon,” he said, ”The Objective continues that work by reporting on what’s possible for journalism in the present.”

Gabe Schneider, co-executive director of The Objective, cites Wallace’s book and podcast as “direct inspiration” for the newsroom and its mission to examine systems of power and inequity in journalism.

“I’m incredibly excited for them to work with us more closely in challenging journalism institutes to actually engage with the communities they’re supposed to serve,” Schneider said.

The Objective’s advisory board of journalists and advocates provides feedback and input to help the newsroom better pursue its coverage of how newsrooms treat their employees, how journalists interact with their community, and what new forms of journalism can look like. Its other members are:

• Tanvi Misra, freelance writer and investigative journalist covering migration, urban policy, and criminal justice. 
• Karen K. Ho, a senior writer at ARTnews, covering art crime and business. 
• Anjali Khosla, writer and journalism professor at The New School. 
• Anita Varma, publicly engaged educator and journalism researcher at UT-Austin leading the Solidarity Journalism Initiative. 
• Hanaa’ Tameez, staff writer for Nieman Lab. 
• Cordelia Yu, acting director of experience and systems design in the Office of Regulatory and Oversight Systems at General Services Administration.

“In my work on The View from Somewhere, one of the main questions I’ve heard is, ‘if not objectivity, then what?’ People are hungry for new ways of thinking about and practicing journalism,” Wallace said. “The Objective answers that question directly, with in-depth reporting and criticism that helps make journalism better and more accountable. I’m proud to be joining the advisory board and supporting their important work.”

Misra, one of the original advisory board members of The Objective, said she’s stayed part of the board because “few other journalistic outfits recognize that the media is itself an institution of power that needs to be continually interrogated.”

“This industry loves to tout how it holds power to account but seldom turns that scrutiny on itself,” she said. “We try to hold others accountable but are reluctant to interrogate how we, ourselves, might be failing the most vulnerable among us — both in our newsrooms and in the public. That’s where The Objective comes in, doing the difficult — often unpopular — but crucial job of questioning prevailing narratives, critiquing the loudest voices, and calling out the inequities in our industry.”

The Objective’s end-of-year fundraiser is continuing through Dec. 31, and your donations will be matched up to $1,000 thanks to NewsMatch. The program is a collaborative effort between newsrooms, funders, and journalism organizations managed by the Institute for Nonprofit News.

And if you become a member ($10/month contribution) from today through Dec. 31, you’ll receive three complimentary stickers — plus be entered into a raffle to win a signed copy of Wallace’s book, The View from Somewhere.