Author

James Salanga

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A collage of several elements, including a screenshot from a Q&A with Christopher Blackwell, with the sentence "We have journalists on the ground in every place in the world, except prisons"; a screenshotted excerpt of the front page of The Prison News, a North Carolina prison paper; collected author photos for John J. Lennon, Phillip Vance Smith II, Blackwell, and Kwaneta Harris; the headline for the Bridging the Gap conference program, courtesy of Haymarket Books.
Incarcerated journalists lead first-ever conference on strengthening U.S. prison journalism
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May 28, 2026

Bridging the Gap, a conference focused on improving journalism in and on U.S. prisons and jails, will take place in Chicago on May 29 and 30.

A neon green raven facing right has the letters "Ravenous" cut out of its body. Its feet are splayed in a way that look like a fork and spoon.
Ravenous is the newest publication in a growing menu of food journalism co-ops
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April 17, 2026

As corporate media instability and “pivot to video” shift the landscape of culture reporting, new worker-run food publications like Ravenous feed cravings for long-form writing.

Graphic recording of The Objective’s Trans Media Convening panel, Narrative Change in Journalism. Top left section, below heading that says Narrative Change in Journalism: A swiss army knife that says “narrative change.” Many stories combine to form narratives that shape meaning and our realities. Multiple infrastructures work to shift narratives: Organizing, art, documentary. Journalism shapes reality by: telling us what’s happening, starting and expanding conversations (thought bubble that says “What even is gender?”), showing us what’s possible, presenting evidence in context, offering institutional guidance, and showing our power. Top right section: Journalism’s histories: A set of practices & traditions that upholds the status quo & ignores the margins. Omit: Stories about Black folks and everyone on the margins. A news station has a flag that says “myth of objectivity.” Another tradition shines a spotlight on the margins & refuses to look away! A la Ida B. Wells. A portrait of Ida B. Wells is shown. Bottom left section: Where has this brought us? 3 main approaches to coverage: 3D glasses with one pink lens and one blue lens. Cis lens is default and dominant: Nature documentary (behold the wild trans person), clinical (puzzle, not people), and scandalized (e.g. Jerry Springer, Ace Ventura, JK Rowling) & newsrooms (like CBS) are firing trans reporters. Below right section: What is our assignment? Pressure newsrooms, equip individual reporters to fight ‘em, humanize the story, multi-tactical, non-binary — work all the precious points & follow the data. Scoop the newsroom, tell a better story, work with & for each other, be our best resource. Build our own places. “Throw sand in the gears of genocide.” -Rasha Abdulhadi. Keep fighting!
Strategizing about a safer media ecosystem for trans people: The Objective’s first Trans Media Convening
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The Objective
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April 13, 2026

Over 70 trans journalists and allies gathered for the convening. Panelists included TransLash CEO and founder Imara Jones and Trans Journalists Association board president Kae Petrin.

Several workers in a circle picketing the Chicago office of ProPublica hold up signs that say "ProPublica workers on strike for a fair contract."
Workers at nation’s largest investigative newsroom, ProPublica, go on strike 
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April 8, 2026

ProPublica’s unionized workers are holding a one-day strike over generative AI protections, wage increases, and standards around layoffs. They’ve been negotiating for a contract for over 2 years.

Image of Texas with the Fort Worth Reporters Guild logo superimposed over Tarrant County/Fort Worth.
Fort Worth Report becomes Texas’s sixth unionized newsroom
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March 9, 2026

The Fort Worth Reporters Guild voted 11-1 to unionize, and will begin working with management on collective bargaining for a contract.

Two photos on an orange background. Left is a headshot of Anita Varma, a South Asian woman with glasses and straight hair past her shoulders. Varma is wearing a black-and-white patterned V-neck and black cardigan while posing against a background of trees. Next to Varma is a photo of her book's cover. The title is Solidarity in Journalism: How Ethical Reporting Fights For Social Justice. A painting of an orange, red, and yellow flame is the book background.
Q&A: ‘All journalism advocates’: Anita Varma on solidarity journalism
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March 9, 2026

Journalism professor Anita Varma on her forthcoming book, Solidarity in Journalism: How Ethical Reporting Fights for Social Justice, the limits of the advocacy vs. journalism conversation, and more.

A collage of the Media 2070 members (Anshantia Oso, Joseph Torres, Venneikia Williams, Diamond Hardman, Afton Paige) on The Objective orange-themed background. Anshantia is a Black woman with yellow floral earrings and natural hair above her shoulders. Joseph is a Latine man wearing a tan shirt with graying hair and an beard. Venneikia is a Black fem with a half-up, half-down hairdo with hair set in waves below their shoulders wearing an orange dress. Diamond is a Black woman with just-past-shoulder-length hair wearing a yellow floral shirt. Afton is a Black woman wearing a button-up with her hair in braids swung over her left shoulder. Above the members is the text, “Media 2070, An Invitation to Dream Up Media Reparations.”
Q&A: ‘We’re winning when media reparations is common-sense’: Media 2070’s new chapter
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February 13, 2026

In the midst of attacks on Black press and journalists, Media 2070 charts a tangible future for Black narrative power and media reparations.

A screenshot of the header of Feb. 11's The Journalist's Resource weekly newsletter. Next to the project's logo reads the headline: Significant changes coming to The Journalist's Resource
Journalist’s Resource downsizes
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February 12, 2026

After “several funders did not renew their grants,” the Harvard-based hub making academia accessible to reporters cut its program director and managing editor positions.

A photo from a Feb. 5 rally supporting the fired Post reporters, with a sign centered in the frame that says "Save the Post".
Washington Post lays off race and ethnicity reporters  
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February 5, 2026

After cutting around one-third of staff, the Washington Post says it will concentrate on “areas that demonstrate authority” — with a national reporting desk that is now overwhelmingly white.

A collage with several elements: A banner that says Breaking News: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette announces closure frames a photo of the Post-Gazette building. A closed sign is layered over the Gazette as is a stylized photo of a Gazette newspaper box and a screenshot of an article headline that says "Pittsburgh Post-Gazette workers return to office after 3-year strike."
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is closing
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January 7, 2026

After a historic three-year strike, staffers at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette returned to work in late November. Now, the 239-year-old paper is shuttering.