Since 2021, PCGVR’s multidisciplinary research team, led by trauma surgeon and PCGVR Director of Research Dr. Jessica Beard, has published six peer-reviewed studies that together tell a clear and urgent story: the way local television news covers community firearm violence is systematically harmful, inequitable, and disconnected from the public health realities of the crisis.
Eric Marsh Sr. speaks during a panel discussion recently in Philadelphia. He has been named Director of the Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting beginning May 1, 2026. Photograph by Kriston Jae Bethel for PCGVR.
Appointment marks new chapter for organization as it deepens impact and expands reach
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Philadelphia, PA — The Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting (PCGVR) today announced that Eric Marsh Sr. has been named Director of the organization, succeeding founder and outgoing Director Jim MacMillan. The leadership transition, which has been underway for more than a year, takes effect this Friday, May 1, 2026. MacMillan will remain in an advisory role through the end of June to ensure a seamless handoff.
The announcement represents a planned succession and strategic evolution for PCGVR, which collaborates with journalists, researchers, and the survivor community across the United States to advance more empathetic, ethical, and impactful journalism about gun violence. Since its establishment in 2020, PCGVR has grown from a Philadelphia-based initiative into a nationally recognized organization with flagship programs including Survivor Connection, the Association of Gun Violence Reporters, and a multidisciplinary research collaborative.
Marsh joined PCGVR as Director of Operations in early 2025, though he had been part of the PCGVR community for several years prior, participating in events and building relationships with partners and funders. Before arriving at PCGVR, he held roles in nonprofit leadership, public health, city government, and news media. Since joining the staff, Marsh has overseen strategic planning, played an instrumental role in producing PCGVR’s What Now National Conference last fall, and managed two of the organization’s flagship programs. He is currently a fellow in the Sulzberger Executive Leadership Program at Columbia University.
“My goal has always been to build an organization that is strong enough to last beyond my own involvement. Passing the torch has never been an afterthought—it has been a measure of success,” MacMillan said. “I am proud to make this announcement from a position of stability, clarity, and growth for PCGVR. Eric is a builder, a connector, and someone who understands how to bring people together to create durable change. I am delighted to be leaving PCGVR in such capable hands.”
Marsh brings to the role a background in community organizing, entrepreneurship, and coalition building, as well as a deeply personal connection to the mission. He has lost two loved ones to gun violence and, like all PCGVR team members, firmly believes that changing the way stories of gun violence are told is essential to preventing it.
“I am honored to step into this role and to build on the strong foundation Jim created. His vision for PCGVR has changed the landscape of gun violence journalism, and I am proud to carry that work forward,” Marsh said. “I’m in this work for real change—to support ethical journalism, prevent violence, and create a safer, more well-informed community. We have already begun our next chapter: deepening local impact, expanding national reach, and strengthening our networks in newsrooms and communities affected by gun violence.”
Under Marsh’s leadership, PCGVR will continue its local work in Philadelphia while expanding its national footprint—strengthening journalism networks, amplifying evidence-based solutions, and working with communities impacted by gun violence. The organization will continue working closely with researchers, journalists, lived-experience experts, and philanthropic partners to advance its mission of preventing gun violence through narrative change.
Eric Marsh Sr. and Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting founding Director Jim MacMillan stand together for a photograph at their offices in January 2025, when Marsh first joined the staff as Director of Operations.
About PCGVR: The Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting collaborates across the United States with journalists, researchers, and the survivor community to advance more empathetic, ethical, and impactful journalism. Learn more at PCGVR.org.
Media Inquiries: pcgvr.org/contact
Above: Dr. Jessica Beard discusses research at PCGVR’s What Now national conference last fall. Photograph by Kriston Jae Bethel.
Philadelphia has seen encouraging signs of progress in reducing gun violence. But even as incidents decline, researchers say another factor deserves attention: how the news media covers those shootings and whether certain forms of reporting can cause harm to the communities most affected. — Temple Now
“Gun violence is preventable. Reporting should help people understand why it happens and what works to stop it.” — Dr. Jessica Beard, PCGVR Director of Research
• Read the Temple Now coverage: Changing the narrative: Researchers call for a new approach to reporting gun violence [Temple Now]
• Read the peer-reviewed study: Examining disparities in harmful reporting on community firearm violence in Philadelphia television news reports [Injury Epidemiology]
• Contact Dr. Beard via: pcgvr.org/contact
More PCGVR research news:
• Dr. Beard and a colleague also had a commentary published this month in the Journal of the American Medical Association, in response to Toward a Safer World by 2040: The JAMA Summit Report on Reducing Firearm Violence and Harms, which was published last fall.
• We felt deeply honored to find PCGVR recognized in “Breaking Barriers in Academic Surgery,” a chapter from our friend and colleague Dr. Elinore Kaufman in new book “Women in Surgery: Navigating Challenges and Triumphs.”
• We were also pleased to find several studies from our research director and collaborative cited in this important recent study: Quantifying racial disparities in media representations of gun violence at scale, published by the National Academy of Sciences.
PCGVR Survivor Connection Director Oronde McClain stands with Adeiyewunmi (Ade) Osinubi, MD, an emergency medicine resident physician at Penn Medicine. Dr. Osinubi invited Oronde to speak during her grand rounds presentation last month on the longterm health impacts of firearm violence.
Also this month, the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine checked in on Oronde: Healing After Harm: Rebuilding Hope One Story at a Time
Above, left to right: AGVR’s Sammy Caiola, Abené Clayton and Jenn Mascia take part in a panel during our What Now National Conference last fall. Photograph for PCGVR by Kriston Jae Bethel.
For nearly six years, the PCGVR newsletter has explored gun violence, prevention, and the role of the media, with an added focus on what’s happening here in Philadelphia and our activities at the Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting. Now, we’re taking the next step.
Going forward, subscribers will receive AGVR News, a free monthly email newsletter from the Association of Gun Violence Reporters, the emerging national organization that we launched last year. That newsletter is written, edited, and produced by AGVR staffers, all working journalists who cover gun violence and prevention every day in newsrooms across the country. It brings together more perspectives, deeper on-the-ground reporting, and a broader view of the field.
Many of you have already been receiving both newsletters; now that work will come together in one place and we’re glad you’ll be part of it. You will still receive critical updates from PCGVR periodically through this channel as well.
Director of Research Dr. Jessica Beard and the Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting have been invited and have signed on as partners in the new Global Coalition for WHO Action on Firearm Violence, a new movement to prevent firearm harm through the power of public health. Visit: whoaction.org
PCGVR Director of Operations Eric Marsh, Sr., at top right, joined a panel of experts in Philadelphia recently for Community Conversations: Public Safety, Public Voice, the latest event in a citywide series hosted by Every Voice Every Vote, “to identify ongoing challenges and explore how Philadelphians across neighborhoods, government, and media can work together toward equity, accountability, and safer communities.” Photographs for PCGVR by Kriston Jae Bethel.
PCGVR Survivor Connection Director Oronde McClain was recognized with the Billies Award for Inspiration last week, from our friends and partners at Billy Penn at WHYY.
We collaborate with Billy Penn each week to produce and share this Weekly Brief, and both Billy Penn and WHYY have generously reported on our work on many occasions:
WHYY also hosted our inaugural Better Gun Violence Reporting Summit in 2019.
PCGVR directors Oronde McClain, Dr. Jessica Beard and Eric Marsh. Sr., were on hand last Friday for a symposium on how health systems are addressing gun violence in Philadelphia: Health Systems in Action: Our Role in Gun Violence Response and Prevention. Dr. Beard also presented. [Accelerate Health Equity via Eventbrite]
Eric and our development consultant Beth Warshaw then presented later Friday at the recently-renamed People’s Media Fund’s first Earned Revenue Summit. At the same time, PCGVR director Jim MacMillan was in Los Angeles to attend the Annual Forum of the Impact Guild, a professional network for people who create, use, or distribute media, arts, or entertainment for social good or healthy democracy. [Impact Guild]
Most community firearm violence clips sampled from Philadelphia TV news stations during 2021 contained harmful content (99.7 %) and most harmful content scores were similar, according to new research from PCGVR’s multidisciplinary research collaborative: Comparison of community firearm violence news reports across four local television stations in Philadelphia, PA, USA: A quantitative media content analysis [Preventive Medicine Reports]
In our prior qualitative interview study, firearm-injured people expressed that episodic crime stories of their own shootings were dehumanizing and traumatizing. Participants noted news elements, such as graphic content and naming the treating hospital, resulted in trauma flashbacks and threats to personal safety. Our modified Delphi consensus study previously identified 12 news content elements that are potentially harmful to firearm-injured people, impacted communities, and society.
Above: PCGVR research collaborative participants meet at Temple University Hospital last year. Photographs by Kriston Bethel for PCGVR.
Co-Director Sammy Caiola convened a local gathering of the Association of Gun Violence Reporters in Philadelphia at our Center City workspace recently. [AGVR]
Photographs by Eric Marsh, Sr. for PCGVR
Now you can buy gifts or get yourself something and support our work at the same time. We inform journalistic practices to prevent harm and illuminate programs and policies that prevent gun violence. But we need your help. Visit: PCGVR.org/shop