Rebecca Martin Selected As Newsroom Cohort Manager

Rebecca Martin joins the California Local News Fellowship this month as newsroom cohort manager, leading newsroom partnerships. She joins the program as it selects its next group of newsrooms for the fourth cohort of fellows, set to begin in September. "I’m so excited to join the California Local News Fellowship team! I am passionate about the importance of community-based local news and the talent of new journalists pushing the industry forward. I can’t wait to contribute to this one-of-a-kind program supporting local news and emerging journalists in our state." Rebecca brings more than 20 years of experience producing, editing and leading journalists across platforms. She spent more than two decades in editorial leadership roles at YR Media (formerly Youth Radio), an award-winning nonprofit journalism organization. Over its history, YR Media served as NPR’s youth desk, and Rebecca oversaw the mentoring and training of thousands of emerging journalists. Rebecca’s teams earned top honors in journalism, including Peabody, duPont and Murrow awards, and her partnerships ranged from The New York Times and Radiotopia to local radio stations. She has helped build networks connecting urban and rural communities from California’s Central Valley to Appalachia. She spent more than a decade helping develop and lead the California Youth Media Network.

Before YR Media, Rebecca worked at PRX’s The World, NPR and CNN. A UC Berkeley alumna, she began her journalism career as a student reporter and worked in the KALX newsroom as an undergraduate.

“Rebecca has spent her career mentoring journalists and forging ambitious newsroom partnerships,” said Monica Campbell, director of the California Local News Fellowship. "She brings exactly the experience we need as the fellowship continues to grow across California.”