I spent the day at The Maynard Institute‘s Regional News Leaders Roundtable this weekend, where I represented India Currents, talking about the state of news media in California. Important, necessary conversations.
But here’s what struck me:
We often talk about rebuilding trust in media as if it’s a distribution problem, a platform problem, or even a business model problem.
What if it’s actually a proximity problem?
The distance between who is telling the story and who is living it.
Because in that room were the future of journalism—already doing the work, often without recognition or resources:
A young woman who is half Indian and half Salvadoran—navigating multiple cultural identities with ease.
Another who returned to India as an adult to reconnect with her roots.
A recent immigrant, learning tabla, freelancing, making a documentary—while trying to find belonging in a country where immigrants are increasingly vilified.
If our newsrooms don’t reflect these lived experiences—not as subjects, but as storytellers—we will keep talking about trust as something to “fix,” instead of something to build.
Grateful to The Maynard Institute for investing in these voices and making these trainings accessible to so many reporters and freelancers.
