Leadership Team
Why I care about gun violence reporting: Because I was shot in the head when I was 10 years old. Because the purpose I found in my healing is helping others in the survivor community. Because I’ve met enough journalists to know that they don’t want to cause harm, and that if we work together, we can change the world.
What I’m doing to make a difference: Connecting journalists with members of the survivor community whose voices may have otherwise been overlooked or underplayed, training journalists, inspiring communities, amplifying solutions and stories that have the power to prevent violence.
Previous Founding Staff Member
Maxayn Gooden
First Credible Messenger Journalist
Credible Messenger Community Manager
Executive Producer: Community Voices of Healing, Reflection and Hope
Why I care about gun violence reporting: Because I want my patients to stop being shot. Because I want their communities to heal. Because I believe in the power of journalism to not only tell the public what happened, but why it happened and how we can stop it from happening again.
What I’m doing to make a difference: Collaborating with interdisciplinary teams of researchers, journalists, public health professionals and lived-experience experts to identify problems, research solutions, and create best practices that are powered by a public health approach. Shouting from the rooftops that gun violence is preventable, not inevitable.
Key Contributors
Prof. Yvonne Latty
Journalism Education Advisor
Prof. Jennifer Midberry
Journalism Research Advisor
Dr. Jean Wright
Trauma Education Instructor
Why I care about gun violence reporting: Because I know what it’s like to learn from the news that your loved one was murdered. Because I know what it feels like when the news gets it wrong. Because I believe in the power of journalism to heal communities, to amplify solutions, and to prevent violence.
What I’m doing to make a difference: Working with the survivor community, journalists, and funders to create programs that will continue to disrupt the way gun violence is reported, to the benefit of all stakeholders.
Critical Consultants
Kriston Bethel
Photography
Tamara Cherry / Pickup Communications
Trauma-informed communications
Beth Warshaw
Development
Why I care about gun violence reporting: Because I didn’t realize that for decades of documenting gun violence as a photojournalist, I was causing harm. Because I know the media can harm and can heal and that if given the knowledge and the choice, journalists will always choose the latter. Because I want to prevent violence.
What I’m doing to make a difference: Meeting with community members, collaborating with researchers, seeking out funders, and seizing every opportunity to use the words “prevention” and “solutions” and amplify voices within the survivor community.
Previous Key Contributors
Alison Burdo
Mark Hecker
Shannon Hodges
Sheila Hodges
Maria Mitra
Caroline Suárez
John Paul Titlow
Dashawn Walker