Texas

Marissa Greene

Marissa Greene covers faith and religion in Tarrant County, Texas, for the Fort Worth Report. Previously, Greene was an audience fellow for The Texas Tribune, where she wrote an explanatory article about the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals and produced Instagram and Twitter posts ahead of the state’s midterm elections. Greene got her start in journalism at Austin Community College, where she spearheaded the college’s student media organization. She reported how Winter Storm Uri underscored power concerns for an Asian American community as an Austin PBS intern. Her love for local reporting led her to internships with Austin and Dallas NPR member stations. She's a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, and has been the co-host and a producer of “Hi, How Are You?” a music and mental health podcast.

Michaela Rush

Michaela Rush covers the south and west neighborhoods of Dallas for the Dallas Free Press, a nonprofit news organization. Prior to joining RFA and DFP, Rush worked at The Battalion student newspaper at Texas A&M, most recently as the editor-in-chief, covering campus news, local businesses, student organizations and LGBTQ+ topics. Rush will graduate in May 2023 with a degree in English and minor in Spanish. Outside of journalism, she plays several instruments, and is a self-proclaimed "band nerd."

Samuel Shaw

Samuel Shaw covers rural-to-urban transformation in East Texas for the Longview News-Journal. Previously, Shaw was one of two applicants selected for the High Country News editorial internship, where he reported on infrastructure, housing and landscape across the West, with articles syndicated in The Atlantic and Mother Jones. Shaw also contributed to open-source investigations for the award-winning Airwars investigations team based in London, UK, focusing on civilian harm monitoring in Iraqi Kurdistan. He got his start penning stories after college when he founded The Speer, an independent online magazine exploring underreported topics on the Colorado Front Range, where he grew up. He holds a master's degree in journalism from Goldsmiths University in London and a bachelor's degree in Political Science from University of California Santa Cruz. Shaw's photography has won awards with C.LAB in London, while his photojournalism has been featured in High Country News, 5280 Magazine, The Land Desk, Boulder Weekly, East London Lines and Rat Park Magazine. As a prototypical Colorado-California kid, he's frequently spotted on two wheels, two skis or a surfboard.

Sofi Zeman

Sofi Zeman covers education, safety and crime in Uvalde, Texas, for the Uvalde Leader News. Before joining the Uvalde team, she reported on education and state government for the Columbia Missourian and Missouri News Network, respectively. A few of her favorite past projects include writing about inequity in Missouri's clemency process and investigating corporal punishment policies in the public schools system. She graduated from the Missouri School of Journalism with a bachelor's in print journalism and a minor in Spanish.

Tannistha Sinha

Tannistha Sinha covers politics in Houston for the Houston Defender Network. She graduated with a master's of science in journalism from the University of Southern California last year, and was the recipient of the Annenberg Graduate fellowship. While pursuing stories for the curriculum, she also served as a reporter and USC editor at the student-led newsroom Annenberg Media, and interned at the inequality desk of BuzzFeed News, where she focused on socioeconomic stories. After graduating, she joined HousingWire Media as a general assignment reporter, where she covered housing and real estate trends across the country, and concentrated on affordable housing and propTech. She grew up in Kolkata, India, and completed her undergraduate and graduate studies in English literature from Jadavpur University. Being an avid debater, she represented her university in several public speaking competitions across India. Her works have also been published by notable Indian newsrooms like The Hindu, The Telegraph, CNN News18, NDTV and The Wire.

Fort Worth Report

Fort Worth Report, a nonprofit digital newsroom, was launched in April 2021 to provide original reporting on local government, schools, economic development, health care and other news in Tarrant County, home to Fort Worth. By providing free access to nonpartisan journalism about issues that affect the daily lives of residents, this news organization’s mission is to engage, educate and empower readers.

Dallas Free Press

Dallas Free Press, a nonprofit news site, launched in January 2020 with the mission of amplifying voices and exploring solutions to the city’s systemic inequities. It focuses community journalism efforts on three zip codes in South Dallas and West Dallas, which are predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods, respectively.

The Texas Tribune

The Texas Tribune is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, digital-first news organization that informs and engages with Texans on public policy, politics, government and statewide issues. This news organization's site provides vital information and news to millions of Texans for free, and its journalism is distributed through more than 60 statewide media partners to local outlets. Partnerships with platforms including ProPublica, Apple News, and SmartNews put its content before a nationwide audience.

Tyler Morning Telegraph

The Tyler Morning Telegraph is part of third-generation, family-owned community newspaper and multimedia news organization. We are committed to digital-first community journalism—not just reporting the news, but also holding officials accountable for their actions. We work to keep the public informed of the news through our print and digital platforms. We strive to be fair, accurate and respectful while reporting the news, from hard-hitting investigations to the daily news and features. Our goal is to use all available journalism tools in the service of reporting on, and bettering, our community.

Uvalde Leader-News

The Uvalde Leader-News is a semi-weekly, locally-owned newspaper that traces its beginnings to 1879. The newspaper's primary coverage area is Uvalde County (population 27,000), which includes the city of Uvalde with 17,000 residents. Virtually all of our content, which includes extensive coverage of local governmental bodies, is produced by our five-person newsroom staff.