Changing The World: 50 Powerful Women Journos Take The Lead
Survey Says: 50 Women Can Change The World In Journalism was a huge success.
The crisis COVID-19 presents to everyone across the globe is dramatic, life-changing and career-shifting.
At Take The Lead, sharing good news about women who make news can be a welcome pivot.
“At @takeleadwomen, sharing good news about #women who make news can be a welcome pivot from the #COVID-19 crisis. ”
A new comprehensive report from the inaugural 50 Women Can Change The World in Journalism program reveals remarkable results.
“A comprehensive report from the inaugural #50WomenCan Change The World in #Journalism program reveals remarkable results. ”
One hundred percent of the participants in the 2019 cohort recommend the program, while many reported an increase in raises, promotions, job changes, leadership responsibilities, and the success of specific projects.
Learn more about 50 Women Can Change The World Programs
The first ever Take The Lead: 50 Women Can Change the World in Journalism program was spearheaded and developed by Take The Lead’s co-founder and president, Gloria Feldt and was funded by The Ford Foundation and The Democracy Fund. A report from Dot Connector Studio followed the participants and collected data for six months to evaluate the success of this program’s first journalism cohort. The results are uplifting.
“The first ever @takeleadwomen: #50WomenCan Change the World in Journalism program was spearheaded and developed by @GloriaFeldt, and funded by @DemocracyFund and @FordFoundation. ”
Watch The Take The Lead 50 Women Can Change The World In Journalism video
Ninety seven percent of the participants reported that they have maintained contact and connections with other participants, while 81 percent say they have supported other women as a result of this program.
Close to 80 percent of the participants reported higher levels of intention for their careers, while 82 percent said the specific plans helped them reach higher levels of leadership.
Read more in Take The Lead: Media Reality Check: Six Women Leaders on Why We Need More Women Media Makers and Women’s Stories
According to the report, “The program’s impact is realized by providing participants with practical tools, coaching, role models, and cohort-building. Through the program, participants develop and work individual and collaborative action plans to advance themselves, their organizations, and their industry.
The survey shows the program contributed to participants experiencing additional professional growth such as increased confidence, and the ability to “achieve significant advances by implementing their Strategic Leadership Action Plans, part of the core curriculum.”
A key value of the program, the report shows, was the opportunity to meet and collaborate with 50 women in different aspects of journalism and journalism entities across the country. The report shows, “Many participants collaborated with each other in formal and informal capacities across the country and credited the connections they made within the cohort as one of the most powerful aspects of the program. A majority of cohort members reported using what they learned in this program to organize and support the women around them.”
“The #50WomeCan report says: “ A majority of cohort members reported using what they learned in this program to organize and support the women around them.” #WomenInJournalism”
Read more in Take The Lead on The Real Story: 5 Issues Facing Women Leaders in Journalism
The survey data shows that 40 percent of the cohort took on additional leadership responsibilities since completing the program, and 20 percent said they received a raise or a promotion after completing the program.
“After #50WomenCan in Journalism, 40 percent of the cohort took on additional leadership responsibilities since completing the program. #WomenLeaders”
Take The Lead team chose a cohort that met three major requirements: diversity of race and age; representation in various forms of media— print, online, television, radio, etc.—and diversity of roles. A quarter of participants work as statehouse or community reporters. Women of color made up over 50 percent of the cohort. Locations spanned the country: 40 percent were New York City-based; 25 percent joined from elsewhere in the Northeast; and 35 percent came from other locations around the United States, such as Alabama, Arizona, California, Illinois, North Carolina, and Utah.
Katherine Rowlands, president and executive director of Bay City News, said about the program: “It was striking to me how much the Strategic Leadership Action Plan and learning these tools has been a through line for me.”
Read more in Take The Lead: Making History: Why We Need More Women Leaders in Journalism
Feldt facilitated the program alongside Take The Lead Leadership Ambassador Patricia Jerido, principal consultant at Leadership Matters Consulting, who served as lead trainer, and Fara Warner, Take The Lead Leadership Ambassador, and independent editorial consultant for Solutions Journalism Network and the Poynter Institute for Media Studies.
The program culminated in a graduation ceremony where Pulitzer Prize winner Mi-Ai Parrish, former president and publisher at USA TODAY Network and McClatchy, served as emcee, and Kimberly Godwin, executive vice president of news, CBS News, was interviewed by Feldt. Antonia Hylton of Vice News and P. Kim Bui of The Arizona Republic were cohort speakers.
Read more in Take The Lead: Can You Hear Me Now? Women Journos Speak Up On Take The Lead Day.
Media entrepreneur Angilee Shah reported at the second 50 Women Can meeting, “Internally, something did change.” Shah and others discussed how they have shifted what they think of as a “win.” “One thing I did realize is in the last year I haven’t been crediting wins properly, I’ve been discrediting the work that I’ve done,” said Shah.
“Media #entrepreneur @Angshah reported at the second #50WomenCan meeting: “Internally, something did change.” #Women #Journalism”
Read more from Gloria Feldt on 50 Women in Journalism
Journalist Carla Murphy noted that since participating in 50 Women Can Change The World In Journalism, she has been more explicitly incorporating her story in her work. This led directly to Murphy being offered a fellowship from the Economic Hardship Reporting Project.
In a reflection published after her participation in the program, Murphy wrote about the power of sharing her personal story: “Turns out, I had the building blocks of my story all along, and #50WomenCan helped me to actualize it. I have a new website now, which I’m still tweaking. And it seems counter-intuitive, but it takes effort to know your own story. It took me four months, two coaching calls, two group video chats, an intense 12-question leadership plan, brainstorming sessions and feedback from my #50WomenCan cohort to come up with mine. I’m ready to make a shift and able to do some good work to make it happen.”
“Journalist @Carlamurphy writes, “Turns out, I had the building blocks of my story all along, and #50WomenCan helped me to actualize it.” ”
Read more in Take The Lead: Why More Women Leadership In Media Would Change The Stories of The World.
Journalist Daisy Contreras reported after completing the program, “I’ve been taking ownership of a beat that did not exist before. It’s been growing, and the community is taking notice of that.”
“#Journalist @DaisyJourno reported after completing the program, “I’ve been taking ownership of a beat that did not exist before. It’s been growing, and the community is taking notice of that.””
Since participating in Take The Lead, Contreras attended the Excellence in Journalism conference as a Dori Maynard Diversity Leadership Fellow. Her application included insights from her training at Take The Lead. Contreras also received a scholarship for the Public Media Journalists Association conference. She accepted a job with WGBH and PRI’s The World program.
Contreras writes, “The Take The Lead program helped me find my voice, and in many ways, pushed me to embrace difficult work situations. Being part of the cohort has also made me stronger where I feel like I have a solid group of women to back me up and talk through problems (and share wins!).”
“@DaisyJourno writes, “Being part of the cohort has also made me stronger where I feel like I have a solid group of #women to back me up.” #50WomenCan”
Read more in Take The Lead on 50 Women in Journalism
Individual and collaborative initiatives and new actions after the program include Alabama participant, Kelly Scott who worked with Eve Pearlman and Michelle Holmes to develop and build Reckon Women, a Facebook group focused on the issues Alabama needs to tackle to make it a place for women to thrive.
Additionally, they created a newsletter on women’s issues in the South and it has grown to more than 5,000 subscribers. Scott and the Reckon Women team held their first series of events to demystify the legislative process to help women engage in January 2020.
Michelle Génecé Patterson, senior producer, CNN Heroes, noted that she keeps her Take The Lead binder handy as a constant reminder for forward momentum. She realized that she felt disconnected from her path as soon as she moved the materials out of sight.
“Michelle Génecé Patterson, senior producer @CNNHeroes, noted that she keeps her @takeleadwomen binder handy as a constant reminder for forward #momentum.”
A significant number of cohort members report they are intentionally featuring more women in their work. Nancy Colasurdo said, “My perspective on gender roles in the workplace and society has shifted and widened because of the program. My role in 50 Women Can Change the World in Journalism has directly influenced about half of the columns I’ve written since the program started.”
“A significant number of #50WomenCan cohort members report they are intentionally featuring more women in their work. #WomenInJournalism”
Read more in Take The Lead about Women Do News
One of the major outcomes of the 50 Women in Journalism Can program was the two-part Women Do News campaign. Members of the cohort, Angilee Shah, Jareen Imam, Katherine Rowlands and Emily Gertz created this mission on behalf of women journalists.
“One of the major outcomes of the #50WomenCan in Journalism program was the two-part #WomenDoNews campaign created by @Angshah, @JareenAI, @News_Kat and @Ejgertz.”
These four accomplished journalists, as part of Take The Lead’s inaugural 50 Women Can Change The World in Journalism cohort, carried out a plan to specifically increase the visibility, recognition and credibility of women journalists around the world. They launched The Women Do News campaign to nominate women journalists for articles on Wikipedia and “to harness our power and collectively make change.”
Read more in Take The Lead on Women Do News outcomes
Collective impact involved sharing job information, making introductions, exchanging feedback, sponsoring each others’ podcasts, subscribing to each others’ newsletters, helping each other with business issues, and developing a practice of advancing younger women.
Members of the cohort are serving as accountability partners, working on organizational strategies together, traveling to visit each other’s organizations, clarifying intentions, collaborating on stories, participating in webinars, co-leading workshops, and applying for grants.
“Members of the #50WomenCan cohort are serving as accountability partners, collaborating on stories, and more. #WomenSupportingWomen”
Daniela Altimari, a statehouse reporter at the Hartford Courant, said after she completed the program, “I am making more progress than I ever imagined.” She asked for and received a raise, she said. “But equally as important was the push the program gave me to become a leader both in my newsroom and across the company.”
