The Southwest Michigan Journalism Collaborative (SWMJC) will host “Women in Media: Behind the Headlines” on April 16 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Epic Center in downtown Kalamazoo. The free event, which is open to the public, will feature a panel of local women working in journalism and media. Space is limited, and RSVPs are recommended.
Panelists included journalists who regularly cover housing and community issues — Watershed Voice editor-in-chief and founder Alek Haak-Frost, Brad Devereaux of MLive, Jordyn Hermani of Bridge Michigan, and freelance journalist Al Jones, project editor for On the Ground Kalamazoo — as well as housing advocates Gwendolyn Hooker of Kalamazoo-based Hope Through Navigation, Shanay Settles of the Calhoun County Health Department, and Patsy Moore of Mount Zion Baptist Church and Legacy Senior Living.
For Haak-Frost and Watershed Voice, affordable housing has long been more than a policy topic—it is a core part of the newsroom’s mission-based community journalism. Haak-Frost has written and overseen coverage that explores affordable housing both as a concept and as a lived experience, asking what it truly means, who it serves, and where it falls short.
The panel featured five journalists, each representing a different outlet within the collaborative, of which Watershed Voice is a member: Gordon Evans of WMUK, Lem Montero of Public Media Network, Aya Miller of MLive, Kathy Jennings of Second Wave Media, and Reed Williams of NowKalamazoo.
“The goal of it is to bridge the gap by creating greater access for people of color,” said BlackWellness Network Founder Valarie Cunningham, referring to the gap she has discerned between the level of ongoing care provided to African-Americans vs. the experience of White patients.
This story was originally published by MLive and is part of the Mental Wellness Project, a solutions-oriented journalism initiative covering mental health issues in southwest Michigan, created by the Southwest Michigan Journalism Collaborative. SWMJC is a group of 13 regional organizations (including Watershed Voice) dedicated to strengthening local journalism. For more info, visit swmichjournalism.com.
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