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Years ago, I was preparing a presentation for an IRE panel when a newsroom manager cautioned me not to “give away too many of my secrets.”
I responded, “Where do you think I learned most of those secrets?!”
To outsiders, the IRE ethos can be tough to comprehend. We work in a fiercely competitive industry but, inside our organization, the spirit of mentorship, collaboration, and desire to help others excel in the craft we love is deeply engrained. As a member of IRE’s Board of Directors for the past four years, I’ve worked to keep that spirit at the forefront. As a current member of the Executive Committee, I’ve helped lead IRE through critical decisions, gaining valuable institutional knowledge.
As chair of the Member Services Committee, I expanded outreach to insure we’re meeting your needs in an ever-changing newsroom landscape. Our extensive member survey informed IRE’s new strategic plan with actionable items to strengthen our organization. We’ve created initiatives to help new members, students and first-time attendees feel more included at conferences. We’re expanding regional networking opportunities, and we recently embarked on a retention study to gain insight from former members – to help reduce churn and identify ways to keep veteran members engaged and feeling valued.
I’ve strengthened IRE’s commitment to mentorship, recruited new mentors, and helped grow our online mentoring platform, allowing mentees to self-schedule sessions with mentors year-round. One of my proudest accomplishments has been developing IRE’s Campus Campaign, which attracted more than 500 new student members and raised more than $40,000 by engaging universities to send students and educators to our virtual conferences during the pandemic. Students are our most diverse participants, and this program offers an opportunity to foster greater diversity within our organization and future newsrooms.
I chaired our Elections Task Force and drafted new procedures to insure we have fair elections with clearly established deadlines. We’ve encouraged greater candidate diversity, including direct outreach to international members who are underrepresented among our leadership.
Journalists are facing a perilous time. Threats are growing across the world and within our own industry – with endless layoffs and devastating cuts to newsroom budgets and staff. The training IRE provides is more critical than ever and should not be restricted to only those who can afford it. We’ve worked to keep conferences and training affordable while generating funds to increase fellowships and scholarships. But we must work harder to encourage newsrooms, universities, and other stakeholders to invest in training and expand outreach. IRE must ensure a welcoming and inclusive environment for journalists from every background, race, gender, platform, and market size, to learn new skills, build their careers, and better their communities.
IRE has developed my skills as a reporter, mentor, and leader in ways I never imagined. I am incredibly passionate about helping the next generation of investigative journalists use the power of our craft to effect change. I hope you will grant me the opportunity to continue working to better IRE and better serve you as a member.
Ashley Graham, WBBH-TV: I am thrilled to nominate Jodie Fleischer for re-election to the IRE Board. Over the years I have witnessed Jodie's commitment to developing early-career journalists into strong investigators. Her guidance from when she met me as a college student helped me grow over five years to become an investigative reporter and produce impactful stories. IRE's recent partnership with Journalism Mentors is just one example of the effort Jodie has taken to expand the investigative journalism field and help younger journalists grow and expand their skills, especially journalists who are part of traditionally underserved communities. I am confident that with another term on the IRE board, Jodie will continue to help the organization build a strong corps of young investigative journalists across all platforms who are committed to uncovering powerful stories.
Brian M. Rosenthal, The New York Times: I heartily nominate Jodie Fleischer as a candidate for re-election to the IRE Board. Jodie and I joined the Board together in 2019, and I have seen first-hand how she is a tireless leader for our organization. While chairing the Member Services Committee, she has led efforts to ensure that we are serving our members and reaching out to new communities, especially our students and local journalists. As we continue to navigate the fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic and lead IRE into the future, we need Board members who have extensive experience and passion. That is Jodie.
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