The Salt Lake Tribune soon will add two journalists — one to cover Utah’s growing tech and business sector, the other to add video to our storytelling repertoire — with the assistance of Report for America.
The national service program supports local journalism across the country by increasing the number of reporters exploring local issues that are undercovered. The organization announced its 2022 grant recipients Wednesday.
One Tribune reporter will cover Utah’s tech sector and other business stories. Technology has been a fast-growing part of Utah’s economy, embodied by the Silicon Slopes initiative bringing together tech companies statewide.
The other reporter will be a videographer, whose assignments will include chronicling the drying of the Colorado River and Great Salt Lake. The Tribune has employed video in its news gathering before, but never has had a reporter devoted full-time to working behind the video camera.
“Readers have told us they want more reporting on Utah’s growing business community,” said Lauren Gustus, The Tribune’s executive editor. “And if we are to remain relevant, we have to meet people where they are, which means we must offer our journalism in video. We’re grateful to RFA for supporting both roles.”
The Tribune has previously welcomed Report for America journalists:
• Becky Jacobs covers women’s issues, and inequality Utah women experience in wages, college graduation rates and political involvement, among other measures.
• Zak Podmore started in San Juan County and recently expanded his reporting to cover additional stories in southeastern Utah.
• Alixel Cabrera covers one of the most diverse and dynamic parts of the state: The west side of Salt Lake County.
Started in 2017, Report for America is a donor-financed initiative of The GroundTruth Project, a nonprofit media organization with a long history of training and supporting teams of rising journalists.
The Tribune and Report for America now will work to recruit reporters to fill these two new roles. To apply for the one-year posts at The Tribune and other newsrooms, visit reportforamerica.org.
Report for America covers half of each reporter’s salary. The Tribune, like other RFA newsrooms, is seeking donations to support the balance. If you would like to contribute, please visit sltrib.com/reportforamerica.
