URL Weekly 03/01

Next-level reporting. Innovative Black & Brown publishers.

Friday, March 1, 2024

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Today is Friday, and we’re highlighting stories from across the URL Media network about inequalities in the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) community, tackling big issues with comedy, and how to get your foot in the door when you have no connections.

In tomorrow’s newsletter, we’re taking a look at the influence Black culture has had on country music and the work to reclaim that narrative. — Alicia Ramirez

Uplift. 🙌🏼 Respect. 💯 Love. 💛

🏛 VP Kamala Harris on issues facing the Black community: Vice President Kamala Harris joined WURD Radio live from the White House this week to discuss topics such as the state of Black people in the criminal justice system, funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and student loan forgiveness. 🎧 Listen to the full interview here.

More: Miss. legislators again considering university, HBCU closures (Black Girl Times)

Schiff, Porter lead in polls ahead of Calif. primary election: The California senate race has garnered much attention following the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s death last year at the age of 90. Black Voice News has the story here.

⛸ Howard University creates first-ever HBCU figure skating team: In a groundbreaking move, the Howard University Ice Skating Organization has emerged as the first intercollegiate ice skating team to grace an HBCU campus. But this organization is more than just a club. Watch The Yard has the story here.

📈 Midwest AANHPIs face inequalities: Change InSight, a national partnership with 19 nonprofits in the Midwest serving 30 Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) communities, recently released its second annual report, highlighting that major health risks include not being able to speak English well and the harmful practice of aggregate data. AsAmNews has the story here.

Join us in celebrating the launch of URL Media’s new hub for independent journalism by Black and Brown publishers! Discover the stories and perspectives that matter. Check it out here.

🇵🇸 Palestinians in the U.S. race to evacuate families from Gaza: Israel’s siege and bombardment of Gaza has killed nearly 30,000 Palestinians, including about 12,000 children. For the many U.S. Palestinians trying to get their families out of Gaza, the process is marred by chaos, confusion, and dead ends. Prism has the story here.

🦺 Construction contractor criminally charged in immigrant worker’s death: When 46-year-old immigrant construction worker Jose Vega was killed in 2021, his death was another incident in the growing number of trench-related fatalities for the year. But on Monday, his death made history when a Westchester County Grand Jury indicted his supervisor. Documented has the story here.

🏢 Getting to work on too much empty office space: The market for office space in and around Detroit is difficult to get a handle on. And even though fewer people are working in offices than five years ago, more are on the way for the city. Outlier Media has the story here.

⚖️ Fate of controversial Okla. education law could be decided soon: A legal challenge to a controversial Oklahoma statute that restricts educators from teaching race-related topics, currently under consideration in Oklahoma’s Western District Court, is likely to be decided soon. The Oklahoma Eagle has the story here.

🏫 EPA updates N.J. community about lead clean-up work at school: Recently, the playgrounds and green spaces at Ulysses S. Grant Intermediate School were sealed off after soil lead test results from the EPA showed elevated levels of lead. Trenton Journal has the story here.

🇭🇹 Benin pledges 2,000 soldiers for Haiti mission amid rising gang violence: Benin has pledged to deploy 2,000 soldiers as part of the Multinational Security Support (MSS) Mission to support the Haitian National Police in the fight against gangs and to restore security in Haiti. The Haitian Times has more here.

🍻 How a Jamaican immigrant transformed one of NYC’s oldest ‘white man’s bars’: One of the oldest bars in New York City, nestled on a side street in Woodhaven, Queens, is easy to miss. A few years ago, it was at risk of closing down after a landlord threatened to raise the rent to unaffordable rates. Now, Neir’s Tavern is celebrating its 195th year. Epicenter-NYC has the story here.

📸 A Somali artistic renaissance is coming, and this photographer can’t wait to capture it: Yasmin Yassin is a Somali-Canadian public health researcher who moved to Minnesota and became a documentary photographer for the likes of Nike, Apple, and the New Yorker. And that may not be the most interesting thing about her. Sahan Journal has her story here.

🎭 Tackling big issues with comedy: Writer and comedian Negin Farsad recently spoke with Immigrantly host Saadia Khan about the art of conversation, the power of humor to address societal issues, and her unique perspective on diversity in entertainment. 🎧 Listen to the full episode here.

🕊 Vigils across the nation mourn Native, nonbinary teen Nex Benedict: A nonbinary Native American student’s death in Oklahoma is being investigated as a crime, according to local news reports. Nex Benedict, 16, whose mother is a tribal citizen of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, died earlier this month after an altercation in a girl’s bathroom at their high school. Native News Online has the story here.

✍🏽 Showing up as your authentic self: This four-part series by palabra. explores identity, self-discovery, and authenticity, while addressing why newsrooms need more Latinx LGBTQIA+ journalists. Read more here.

🥘 Meet the TikTok queens bringing la cultura to your cooking: Some of us have a natural affinity for cooking, measuring with our eyes and hearts rather than with measuring spoons. But whether you’re at home in the kitchen or not, these five TikTok chefs will have you cooking with confidence. Luz Media has more here.

👞 Getting your foot in the door when you have no connections: Raquel Dominguez went from assistant to creative executive in just a few years, and now at OBB Media, she oversees content and strategy for Hailey Bieber, Kylie Jenner, Demi Lovato, and Kevin Hart. In this week’s episode of Latina to Latina, she shares how she got her foot in the door with no connections, learning by osmosis, and how to play it cool when you work with some of the biggest stars of your generation. 🎧 Listen to the full episode here.

🗞 There’s good news about the news: A report from the Knight Media Forum

S. Mitra Kalita, CEO of both URL Media and partner news organization Epicenter-NYC, recently spoke during the opening panel of the Knight Media Forum about empowering local journalism. Read more about her takeaways here.

Sara Lomax-Reese, CEO of WURD Radio, media entrepreneur for almost 30 years, served as Program Lead for the inaugural Facebook BIPOC Sustainability Accelerator and is a former John S. Knight Fellow.

S. Mitra Kalita, former SVP at CNN Digital, current CEO & Publisher at Kalita Mukul Creative Inc., which publishes Epicenter-NYC, The Unmuted and The Escape Home has worked at The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The LA Times, and has launched brands like Mint and Quartz.

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