Angilee Shah – journalist, editor, dreamer

A promenadre with people walking and restaurant goers, with a large photo of faith leaders hanging from trees.

Our #Charlottesville

Written by Angilee Shah on August 12th, 2022.

Today, I wanted to send a quick note about our coverage of the fifth anniversary of the Unite the Right rally of 2017 here in Charlottesville, Virginia. I’ve been so proud of our team at Charlottesville Tomorrow for their dedication to providing reports and essays that we hope help this community move forward.

Our managing editor, Jessie Higgins, explained our editorial choices very well in a spot for our local community radio station, WTJU.

If you listen to @wtjuradio, you might hear managing editor Jessie Higgins talk about our coverage of #charlottesville this week. Here's why we focused on hearing from people in our community. pic.twitter.com/vW2bjeCUMr
— Charlottesville Tomorrow (@cvilletomorrow) August 12, 2022

I know almost everyone remembers what happened here. The images of Klan-like torch marchers surrounding activists and students, the brazen violence and intimidation are seared into my mind. I was working in national news at the time, far away in Minneapolis, and still it feels like a turning point in my journey.

But coming here and getting to know so many people in Charlottesville, I’m also very moved by how thoughtful and brave people here have been to not just condemn white supremacists, white nationalism, racist and anti-Semitic violence, but to look deeper at ourselves too. It’s not an easy path, and there is plenty to argue and debate. Still, we press on.

There is a lot of national conversation because the rally and violence here in 2017 was indeed a national event. I hope you can, with intention, look at what our local press is reporting too. This is a great day to check out Charlottesville Tomorrow no matter where you live.

Here’s a great place to start: Jessie’s introduction of our coverage with a full list of our stories this week.

An animated GIF shows a satellite image of a town at the top with a road leading down the bottom. A large, white building gradually comes into view off to the side of the road.

What does it take to detain an immigrant?

Written by Angilee Shah on May 9th, 2022May 10th, 2022.

In Farmville, Virginia it takes a private company that profits from holding as many people as possible, a Town Council that takes a cut of the profit, and a federal government agency that makes the payout. Many of my neighbors in Charlottesville, Virginia, might not know that not too far away, immigrants from around the […]

Woman in beige sweater and black face mask in studio at microphone, iwth corner of 101.3 Jamz banner behind her

2022 Goals: Get more opportunities for more people in news media

Written by Angilee Shah on February 28th, 2022March 2nd, 2022.

Hello 2022! This year hasn’t started the way many of us intended but for me, I’m working hard to stay ambitious, community-oriented and continue to design my work life to support the rest of my life and help me be my best self. This email update is as much about what I’ve been up to […]

Vector image of four people searching in different directions, with telescopes and magnifying glass

Guest column: Sincerely, Leaders of Color

Written by Angilee Shah on August 27th, 2021August 27th, 2021.

If you have ever been a newsroom manager, hiring editor, assigning editor, or really anyone who has built up a network of colleagues that is diverse, you’ve probably been asked for help recruiting for an open position. By my best count, I’ve gotten about 20 requests for ideas for job candidates this year alone. And I […]

Image of mural on side of a wall, showing industrial scenes with a Black woman in futuristic armor holding a tree tward a blue sky, mountain scene

How do you get news about… you?

Written by Angilee Shah on July 27th, 2021.

When Crazy Rich Asians became the highest grossing romantic comedy in years, I realized how much I associated romantic narratives with Molly Ringwald and John Cusack. Asians were part of the narrative for me, but only through the lens of films made by those outside the US. (Thanks, Shah Rukh Khan.) But now, there was […]

Mural of blueish-gray wave with stickman surfer in corner

Register: Writing when it counts

Written by Angilee Shah on December 8th, 2020December 9th, 2020.

This year I’ve worked with many incredible and courageous people who are helping to move us all forward by writing with conviction. Sometimes, though, the more important something is, the more difficult it is to commit what you want to say to words. This year, I’ve worked with people who were writing proposals for crucial […]

quote block on purple: "There should not just be diversity in numbers, but diversity among those who have power in news media. In other words, there should be equity."

Even in crisis — especially in crisis — we need equity

Written by Angilee Shah on April 30th, 2020April 30th, 2020.

Some groups have been excluded from the most powerful halls of U.S. news media for as long as U.S. news media have existed. The structures and institutions we rely on for news were designed, like many U.S. institutions, to grant power to a select few. Here is one example: We recently saw the 50th anniversary […]

hand-drawn "Weekly News," with children's writing, five issues laid out

A short note: Newsrooms that serve

Written by Angilee Shah on January 16th, 2020January 15th, 2020.

It’s been one year and my niece and her friends’ news startup is going strong! They reached two-thirds circulation of their class and are now reviewing their costs (copying machines and staples) and distribution (reading period is a good time for news) while still serving their classmates. I’ve spent a lot of the last year […]

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Join Women Do News and be a champion for your colleagues

Written by Angilee Shah on September 11th, 2019September 10th, 2019.

Our challenge is this: Increase the representation of women journalists so that they have more opportunities and can take their rightful places as those who shape how we understand our world through news media.

woman on rocky beach looking out at new york city skyline

In collaborations, who gets paid?

Written by Angilee Shah on July 2nd, 2019July 8th, 2019.

This is a short note to tackle something head on that I’ve been having sideways conversations about for a few months. It’s a very “inside-journalism” subject, so please forgive me if you aren’t in the media. Hopefully, this is still interesting and applicable to your industry. Many of my colleagues have asked to know more […]