Press Release

Michele Gonzalez Named Texas-Based Associate Director of NAHJ’s Parity Project

Washington, D.C. – The National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) has named Michele Gonzalez its new Texas-based associate director of NAHJ’s Parity Project. Gonzalez currently serves as the association’s professional development manager.

Gonzalez will be based in Dallas and will work with partnering media companies located in Texas, Colorado and the Southwest region of the United States.

“Michele brings a wealth of experience and immense talent to this program,” said NAHJ Parity Project director Kevin Olivas. “She will draw on her experience as a former professional journalist and NAHJ veteran staff member to work with both student journalists and newsroom executives. She will help these organizations improve editorial diversity and coverage when it comes to Latinos.”

A Louisiana native and graduate of Northeast Louisiana University, Gonzalez’s professional experience includes a stint as a producer at KEDM Radio, an NPR affiliate in Monroe, La. She also directed TV news programs at KTVE-TV in Monroe.

Prior to joining the NAHJ staff, Gonzalez worked as a project coordinator and membership manager for the Radio and Television News Directors Association (RTNDA) in Washington, D.C.

Her work with RTNDA included overseeing its Environmental Journalism Center, which examined urban sprawl and bioterrorism.

Since January 2004, Gonzalez has managed NAHJ’s annual awards competition and Noche de Triunfos Awards Gala. In addition, she was responsible for coordinating the association’s career expo and workshop programming at its annual convention.

Gonzalez assumes her new duties as associate director in late February. In January 2005, NAHJ hired former newspaper reporter Rosa María Santana as the Parity Project’s West Coast associate director.

The Parity Project works with selected English-language media companies that serve communities with large Latino populations, but do not have a representative percentage of Latino journalists in their newsrooms.

The Robert R. McCormick Tribune Foundation is the primary sponsor of the project. Other sponsors of the project include the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and NAHJ members and individuals committed to diversity.