Introducing the 2023 Summit Student Newsroom
The News Product Alliance is proud to showcase another group of talented students that will cover this year’s NPA Summit.
I’m Brian Lopez, and I’ll be the editor of this year’s student newsroom.
The student newsroom will cover a variety of topics at this week’s event — ranging from how to best utilize AI, ways to better connect with your audience, best practices for product management, and more. The articles they write will be published on NPA’s website in the weeks following the summit. If you're attending the Summit, you can support this year's student newsroom by introducing yourself during the event and helping our students make connections across the industry.
Get to know them below.
Maile Allen is a senior at the University of Texas at Austin, where she will graduate with a degree in government and journalism. She is interested in data journalism and product design. During this year's Summit, Maile wants to learn more about news products, prototyping and hopes to network with people that can give her insight into the industry. When she isn’t busy with school or attending conferences, you can find her either singing karaoke, watching movies or reading a book.
You can connect with Maile on LinkedIn.
Haley Fuller is a graduate student at Northwestern University, specializing in media innovation and content strategy. She is currently based in San Francisco as she finishes up her program. Haley is looking forward to learning about current trends in audience engagement, news products and connecting with people that want to make news more accessible. In her free time, she is either figure skating, needlepointing or listening to Taylor Swift.
You can follow Haley on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.
Sofia Gualy is a senior at Texas State University based in San Marcos, TX and will graduate with a degree in digital media innovation. While at the Summit, Sofia aims to gain valuable writing experience and network with others that share similar interests as her. Before being part of NPA, Sofia has written music reviews, was part of the social media team at her school’s radio station and created a website for one of her friends. In her free time, you can find her at a concert or a music festival, crocheting or just hanging out with her cat, Chicken.
Campbell Hamai is a senior at the University of Missouri-Columbia or Mizzou, as it is more commonly known. She will graduate with a degree in journalism and English and then go on to get her master’s in English. Since she will be joining the professional world soon, Campbell hopes to gain insight on how professionals network, and gain confidence as she enters the workforce. Campbell says she’s a homebody and enjoys playing her violin, cooking and taking walks through gardens or museums.
Aria Yang is a second-year graduate student at UC Berkeley, School of Journalism, with a focus on multimedia and data visualization. She is currently based in Berkeley, CA and loves writing blogs about pop culture, Gen-Z and all things technology. Aria has worked in audience engagement and product management. During the Summit, she hopes to hone in on her understanding of news products as she wants to work in a newsroom product role in the future.
And now… a little bit more about me, Brian Lopez. I’m a reporter with The Texas Tribune based in Austin, TX. I graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington in 2020 with a degree in journalism. Over the last year, I’ve been interested in news products after my organization started putting more emphasis on product development. Alongside our students, I hope to learn more about this side of the news industry. In my spare time though, I’m playing video games, trying to hit the gym or watching soccer.
You can follow me on Twitter and we can connect on LinkedIn.
I’ll be joined by Aviva Loeb, who will be mentoring our students at this Summit. Aviva is an audience growth specialist at The Washington Post. She got her B.S in communication from the University of Vermont. During the Summit, she will focus on making sure that the students are making connections that could change their career path. When not at work or doing anything NPA related, Aviva is spending time with her dog or playing Dungeons and Dragons.
💡 The student newsroom is sponsored by Knight Lab at Northwestern and University of Missouri’s School of Journalism.
