Media Party
This story is about Media Party New York 2026
I tell stories from the front and back lines of the newsroom. This story is about Media Party New York 2026.
I signed up as soon as I read the call for lightning talks at Media Party. In 2024, I presented a talk about gender disparity on Wikipedia. This time, I proposed expanding the Wikipedian in Residence program to newsrooms. Before I left my apartment for the party, I sent my husband what we call a “cute check” to solidify my confidence in how I looked.
Preparing for the event involved inviting all my favorite Wikimedians and journalists. My poet friend told me his secret to public speaking. He finds friendly faces in the crowd and focuses on them when he speaks. My Wikipedian friends understood the importance of newsrooms in providing reliable sources that support the Wikipedia platform. My journalist friends know that Wikipedia is a platform that their news audiences use and trust.
Media Party New York 2026 launched Friday night with presentations on the current evolutions in journalism. Unlike other news conferences, this one celebrates what is possible in journalism, which is why I am always ready to celebrate with the community. I told people I met as they filed into the Brown Institute for Media Innovation that I was the headliner, since I was the last to speak that night.
After my Wikinewsroom proposal, we went to the after-party. A woman approached me and asked where my confidence came from. I told her that I fully embrace and support all the communities that support me. Wikipedia and journalism are two communities I love, and I will yell my support to whoever will listen. I told her that imposter syndrome can be strong in women who feel they’ve been told they are less than, even when they have the credentials to prove their true worth. I stepped down from the Women Do News board to streamline my volunteer bandwidth, but my resting lizard brain will always support women journalists.
I saw one of my favorite leaders in journalism the next day, Lisa Gibbs. She looked at me a few times. Probably because she loved my hair. Probably because I was sitting in the front row. But most definitely because we’ve met before. Gibbs interviewed me for a job at the Associated Press in 2023. The role wasn’t right for me, and we both knew it at the time. The best thing about working in journalism is that I never have to worry about not seeing strong leaders when they don’t hire me. I know that I’ll see them again. This is why I never say “goodbye” after a layoff. I say, “See you in the next newsroom!”
Another familiar face was Mike Reilley from Journalist’s Toolbox. He led a workshop with the best title of the weekend: “AI Tools That Won’t Get You Fired.” I told him we knew each other because I worked for a small tech company he promoted as one of his favorite AI news tools.
Another workshop introduced me to Brandon Tracy. I was intrigued by the workshop because Tracy works for the Wikimedia Foundation and was presenting solutions that Wiki APIs could provide to news publications. After his workshop, Tracy and I sat on benches in the lobby, and I realized that he’s my favorite type of person. I love Wikimedians. But this Wikimedian is a Vermonter! You don’t understand. Vermonters are obsessed with each other. We sat and talked about Vermont and our families. I was delighted to find out that he’s more generations of Vermont than I am. Wow. And he even knew someone who was from my tiny small town. What a delight! This is the power of Media Party.
At the hackathon, I worked with some of my favorite people there to build a Wikinews Pulse prototype. Wikinews is being deprioritized by the Wikimedia Foundation, and we wanted to build tools to bring it back. The tool would help news organizations amplify their content by sending it directly to the Wikipedia editors’ Discord servers.
We didn’t win the hackathon. That’s totally fine. Wikinews Pulse will live on as a project beyond Media Party. I told the organizers that I wore their merch in the emergency room recently. Those shirts are super comfy. Thank you to the organizers for giving me a pink one this year. I can’t wait for the party to roll back into the city.
I don’t know who needs to hear this, but I’ve spoken to a room full of journalists several times at the one journalism school that didn’t admit me.
Here’s a cute photo of Doctor Princess Freddy Furiosa, because you read all the way down to the bottom of my newsletter.