A new kind of newsroom: The 19th* Deputy Editor Abby Johnston on innovative reporting

By Grace Lamb-Atkinson


“Made me proud to be studying journalism”

“Provided much-needed inspiration”

"Eye-opening and enlightening"

“Gave me hope”

“Do you offer internships?”

When those reactions to a guest speaker roll in from students, you know you’ve done something right.

As UNC Hussman journalism students prepare for a vastly changed industry, they heard from a leader of a newsroom that looks a lot like the future. Abby Johnston, the deputy editor of The 19th*, joined Teaching Associate Professor Lindsay King’s broadcast journalism class this week to speak about nonprofit, gender-focused journalism with a digital business model and network of reporters who were scattered across the country even before the pandemic hit.

The 19th* is a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom reporting on gender, politics and policy. The organization says, “The 19th Amendment remains unfinished business, a fact we acknowledge in our logo with an asterisk — a visible reminder of those who have been omitted from our democracy. The expansion of the franchise continues today, and The 19th* aims to capture this ongoing American story.”

The 19th* officially launched in August after a spring of stories released in partnership with other news organizations. Johnston, a former digital strategy editor and manager for Texas Observer, Frontline and Texas Monthly, gave a behind-the-scenes look at the successful launch of the 19th* during a period of political upheaval and physical restrictions.

King’s students responded with palpable curiosity — and even some relief.

"A lot of us have been on edge," senior Trevor Stevenson said. "It's settling to know that journalists are coming back and saying they can do their jobs and make great content right now."

Classmate Kyle Arendas ’22 agreed: “The industry is highly competitive. Hearing from successful journalists in the field provides much-needed inspiration.”

Graduate student Giulia Heyward '21 (M.A.), a Roy H. Park Fellow, is not in King’s class but made a point to attend the lecture.

“We all have questions about what this field will look like,” Heyward said. “It was great that she was able to level with us and talk about the business that goes into running a new kind of news organization. It was really enlightening.”

The organization came about, Johnston told the class, when founder and CEO Emily Ramshaw was on maternity leave after the 2016 election. Ramshaw was considering how the election cycle coverage would have turned out if America had a publication focusing on gender politics and policy. She assumed that someone would launch one soon. When none came, the 19th* was born.

“It made me see journalism in a different light,” Sarah Gray Barr ’22 reflected. Johnston’s explanation of the 19th*’s business model “made me realize there are so many different paths I could take.”

Johnston told the class that The 19th* "focuses a lot of time and energy on telling the non-obvious stories of the day." Because the group is nonprofit and nonpartisan, “We get the luxury and time to sit back and think through angle; to really lift stories up that others are ignoring.”

And it has done so. In a partnership with the Washington Post in May, reporter Errin Haynes wrote one of the first major national print articles about Breonna Taylor, whose story had gone under-covered at the national level before Haynes’ landmark reporting. Recently, economics reporter Chabeli Carrazana made a splash by using publicly available data to reveal gender pay disparity in the Trump White House. The 19th* marked the centennial of the 19th Amendment with a virtual summit in August at which Senator Kamala Harris chose to give her first interview after being chosen to be the Democratic vice presidential nominee.

King was inspired to invite Johnston to speak after attending the summit.

“I was so excited to have an organization that not only celebrates women but wants to amplify voices of the underrepresented,” she said. “I wanted to bring that to my classroom.”

Stevenson '21 was not familiar with The 19th* before the talk, but after researching and listening to Johnston, he appreciated the organization's focus on a wide range of underrepresented stories: "It was eye opening and enlightening and satisfying to know this publication exists."

Stevenson also noted that Johnston "spoke about how Black women are covered, which is very important to me being a Black person. I now have a lot of respect for the 19th."

Johnston also stressed that the focus on gender makes the coverage of the 19th* broad and rewarding rather than narrowing its scope. She noted that examining policies that impact all women often leads to important coverage of racial relationships, issues facing the LGBTQ community, gender disparities and political news.

“We have a responsibility to get the stories you don’t usually hear,” she said.

Those values also lead the members of the 19th* staff to focus on diversity in their newsroom and coverage. Johnston highlighted how few assigning editors (her own job) are female in the industry. The 19th* reporting staff is also markedly diverse.

“Our role is showing what powerful journalism can be with a newsroom that looks like ours.”

The emphasis on diverse, deep-diving, nonpartisan journalism “gives me hope,” student Barr said. “They bring so much to light, in so many fields. Their work isn’t pushed by a certain corporation or political agenda. It made me proud to be a journalist.”

Her fellow students were just as fascinated — questions poured in throughout Johnston’s lecture from both King’s students and other participants. Many were interested to hear that the 19th* launched with a socially distanced, digitally connected newsroom even before the coronavirus pandemic. The organization’s reporters live and work in different communities throughout the country — purposefully.

“We want to let people work where they want to live,” Johnston explained. But the 19th* also believes that the best stories come from reporters who are embedded in communities for long periods of time, rather than traveling in from main media hubs like New York and Washington DC. Its founders wanted to tell stories from communities that may have been overlooked by more distant, concentrated newsrooms in major cities.

“Having a network of reporters who know the lay of the land throughout the country can be very critical,” Johnston said.

So the 19th* was ready to tackle the remote work challenges that have plagued many traditional newsrooms during COVID-19. “I hope the industry pivots to having people distributed,” Johnston added. “We feel incredibly fortunate that we’ve geared ourselves to operate in that way.”

Stevenson, who is a broadcast journalist, listened to Johnston's description of The 19th*'s innovative system closely. "Being fresh in journalism, I'm interested to explore different types of newsrooms. The 19th* tries to be as collaborative as possible and build a community, which is something I think journalists need."

Heyward agreed that the start up-like nature of the 19th* was inspirational for many students. “Students here at UNC are self-starters in their own right and looking for ways to be flexible in their fields.”

That’s exactly what King was hoping. “My challenge this semester for myself was to find the up-and-coming grassroots, entrepreneurial journalistic platforms,” she said. 

King, along with other UNC Hussman faculty and staff, is acutely aware that many students are feeling unprecedented pressure this semester as they face a stressful job market and rapidly changing fields. She feels that her fellow faculty, along with UNC Hussman Career Services, are making a particular effort to find contacts among alumni and their networks who can provide perspective on the professional world.

“It can be scary, but people are making it, companies are hiring,” she said. “I feel empowered and supported by Dean King and other faculty at Hussman to bring these guests in to speak. I’m so happy with the supportive environment that we have for students to hear from outside professionals.”

“Hearing from leading industry voices is one of the hallmarks of a UNC Hussman education,” said Susan King, dean of the school. “This week alone, our students were able to engage in discussion with Marty Baron, the executive editor of the Washington Post and Abby Johnston of the 19th*. That range of journalistic experience demonstrates the wide network of opportunities that our faculty take such care to offer to students.”

Heyward, who also provides teaching assistance to undergraduates, agreed on the importance of those talks. “It’s one of the most important things students can have access to,” she said. “It’s so valuable to have so many professors dedicate time to bringing in professional journalists.”

And King’s students, like most UNC Hussman students, took full advantage of their time with Johnston, asking thoughtful, incisive and challenging questions.

But the one question on many students' minds? “Do you have internships?”

Johnston, laughing, said the 19th*, which already accepts fellows, is working on expanding its internships.

For students hoping to work in a groundbreaking, forward-looking newsroom: stay tuned.