Lessons from the Miami Herald’s Monica Richardson   Email not displaying correctly?
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Monica Richardson, right corner, is executive editor of the Miami Herald. She and her daughter recently attended a Marlins game with Herald interns and staffers. (Courtesy Monica Richardson)

Monica Richardson had an epiphany early in her career. While covering education at The Florida Times-Union, Richardson wanted to sit with the copy desk and learn different aspects of how the paper worked.

“And they said to me, ‘We’re not ready for you to do that yet.’ I remember thinking, it’s not what you’re ready for me to do, it’s what I’m ready for me to do."

“I had this moment of realization that my career belonged to me.”

Richardson’s now the executive editor of the Miami Herald ([link removed]) and el Nuevo Herald ([link removed]) , leading a newsroom that’s been through months of intense and overlapping breaking news, from the collapse of the Surfside condo ([link removed]) (“That building was like a microcosm of South Florida,” she said,) to the assassination of Haiti’s president to protests in support of the people of Cuba.

“McClatchy's investment in newsrooms and the company's mission around the issue of inclusion are a significant factor in our success as well as meeting the needs of our diverse audience,” she said.

Richardson learned early on that her path was her own. Her work in Miami is providing another lesson.

In July, she wrote about a brutal and racist email ([link removed]) she got after the Herald reported in an editorial that Florida Gov. Ron “DeSantis’ anti-riot law didn’t apply as Cuba protesters shut down a Miami-Dade road.” ([link removed])

“I was raised humble, raised to turn the other cheek and be the bigger person, to move on and get over it,” Richardson wrote. “That’s a smart lesson and a smart way to move through life at times. This isn’t one of those times. As a Black woman, I refuse to oblige the various ways that some people seem to demand that I simply take what they give. To the contrary, hate can’t be solved with silence. The reality is that the silence is as loud as the injustice of racism itself.”

With her piece, Richardson said, she wanted to expose something that was happening and, as a Black woman and community leader, show that that hate doesn’t have to be tolerated.

Last week, Katrice Hardy ([link removed]) was named the executive editor of The Dallas Morning News and Maria Reeve ([link removed]) was named the editor of the Houston Chronicle. Along with Richardson, they are the first Black women to serve in those roles.

“These are new opportunities for women to showcase what we already know, which is we work hard and we kick ass. I celebrate with them,” Richardson said. “I’m so excited to see that happen in the spirit of great journalism. On top of being great people, these are super journalists.”

I asked what she’d tell young journalists now. Her current advice is as powerful what she discovered years ago:

“Make the most of every opportunity and always keep the mission of journalism in the forefront of everything you do. … Ask yourself, ‘Why am I doing this?’ Then use that as the guide for everything you do in your career,” she said. “On a more personal note, something I always live by is to never let anyone or anything steal your joy. I became a journalist because making a difference brought me joy. I won't let anyone or anything take that from me.”
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While you’re here:
* Last week, I wrote about three universities that created newsrooms to cover uncovered communities ([link removed]) . I also heard about a few more, including the Kensington Voice ([link removed]) from Temple University and Germantown Info Hub ([link removed]) from Temple University and Jefferson University.
* Read lessons from building healthy membership communities ([link removed]) from Membership Puzzle Project.
* And then attend the free, online Membership Puzzle Project end-of-project summit ([link removed]) next week.
* Listen to the It’s All Journalism podcast and learn how WFAE in Charlotte partnered ([link removed]) with La Noticia to better serve Latino communities.
* Mark Jacob wrote about the chain-owned newsrooms going back into local hands ([link removed]) . I shared a list of 26 of them Gannett has sold ([link removed]) . You can see the full report on newsroom sales and acquisitions here ([link removed]) .
* Congrats to Katrice Hardy ([link removed]) , who was named executive editor of The Dallas Morning News. Hardy was most recently the executive editor of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Indianapolis Star.
* Congrats to Maria Douglas Reeve ([link removed]) , who was named editor of the Houston Chronicle. Reeve was previously that newsroom’s managing editor.
* Congrats to Robyn Tomlin ([link removed]) , who has been promoted from the editor of McClatchy’s News & Observer and Durham Herald-Sun to McClatchy’s vice president for local news.
* Josh Benton writes for Nieman Lab that “Most big American newspaper newsrooms are now led by someone other than a white man.” ([link removed])
* Check out this new experiment in serving younger audiences with the news. It’s called Forth ([link removed]) .
* Read this Q&A from the Local Media Association with Tracie Powell on “disrupting philanthropy, organizational culture and challenges to the journalism industry.” ([link removed])
* The Trace put together a guide ([link removed]) on reporting on victims compensation in your state.
* And check out this new local news congressional bill tracker ([link removed]) . ([link removed])
* I spoke with Frank News about ([link removed]) working to bring back obits on regular people ([link removed]) .
* And here’s one on a woman who left Jamaica to become a nurse in the U.K., the U.K. to build a family and career in the U.S., and then she retired and joined the Peace Corps ([link removed]) . I may have to work on my definition of regular people.

From our Sponsor:


Submit your entry to the Local that Works contest ([link removed]) by August 23 and you could win the $20,000 grand prize! Local that Works is open to public radio and TV stations, and local independent news organizations, including nonprofits, digital sites, community newspapers and ethnic media.

That’s it for me. I hope your work is bountiful, your deadlines meetable and your downtime plentiful.

Kristen
Kristen Hare
Editor, Locally
The Poynter Institute
@kristenhare ([link removed])

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