Q&A with Mechelle Hankerson of the Virginia Mercury

Mechelle Hankerson is a reporter at the Virginia Mercury, a new news organization based in Richmond. She previously worked at newspapers in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Norfolk, Virginia. In this interview, conducted by email, Hankerson discusses her role at the Mercury and offers advice to journalism students. Q. What is the Virginia Mercury? What are…

A 40-year-old intern in L.A.

Ten years ago this week, I was starting a seven-week stint at The Los Angeles Times. At the time, I had been in academia and out of the newsroom for three years, and I was feeling out of touch with rapid changes in journalism. I sought to be a 40-year-old intern, with a digital focus,…

Q&A with Alysha Love, editor at CNN Politics

Alysha Love is a multi-platform editor at CNN Politics. She previously worked as a web editor at Politico. Love is also a member of the Executive Committee of ACES: The Society for Editing. In this interview, conducted by email, Love discusses her job at CNN and her involvement in ACES. Q. Describe your job at…

Covering the aftermath of Hurricane Maria

Each spring, journalism students from UNC-Chapel Hill create a multimedia project that focuses on a place and topic. This year, another group of students visited Puerto Rico to document the island's struggles after Hurricane Maria hit in September 2017. The result is Aftermath, a website that includes video, photography, story text and infographics to tell…

Q&A with Gabe Whisnant, digital editor at the Spartanburg Herald-Journal

Gabe Whisnant is assistant managing editor, digital, at the Spartanburg Herald-Journal/GoUpstate.com in South Carolina. He previously worked as a news editor at The Shelby Star and sports editor at The Gaston Gazette in North Carolina. In this interview, conducted by email, Whisnant discusses his job in Spartanburg, news coverage of the Carolina Panthers training camp…

Learning from the Durham VOICE

For nearly 10 years, the Durham VOICE has covered the northeast-central area of Durham, North Carolina. The VOICE is a student-produced publication and a collaboration between UNC-Chapel Hill and N.C. Central University. Teen journalists contribute material as well. Students in my Advanced Editing class play a role in the VOICE too. On five occasions this…

Q&A with Elaina Athans, reporter at ABC11-WTVD

Elaina Athans is a reporter for ABC11-WTVD, a North Carolina TV station that covers Raleigh, Durham and Fayetteville. A graduate of Hofstra University, Athans previously worked at stations in New York and Maryland. In this interview, conducted by email, Athans discusses her job, including how she uses social media in her work. Q. Describe your…

Q&A with Matt Brooks, food digital editor at The Washington Post

Matt Brooks is food digital editor at The Washington Post. He previously worked at the Post as a sports reporter, blogger and editor. In this interview, conducted by email, Brooks discusses his role as a food editor, his transition from sports and some of his favorite things to eat. Q. Describe your job. What is…

Q&A with Karen Willenbrecht, editor at S&P Global Market Intelligence

Karen Willenbrecht is associate coal editor at S&P Global Market Intelligence. She previously worked as a copy editor at newspapers such as Stars And Stripes, The Denver Post and The News & Observer in Raleigh, North Carolina. In this interview, conducted by email, Willenbrecht discusses her job at S&P Global and her transition from newspaper…

One-and-done digital news

This week, I visited the website of the Louisville Courier-Journal for the first time. I did so via links on Twitter to a couple of its stories about a passenger being dragged off an overbooked United Airlines flight. The newspaper covered the story extensively because the flight was bound for Louisville and the roughed-up passenger…