Jordan Graham: Solidarity from a former SCNG journalist

I cut my teeth as a reporter at the Orange County Register, learning from the newspaper’s veteran journalists how to unearth and tell stories that inform residents and hold power to account. Newspaper watchdog reporters sometimes are the only truly independent check on local government. That is why it has been awful to watch the paper’s hedge fund owners squeeze the newspaper for short-term profits and deprive it of the resources it needs for sustainable success. I left in 2019 after 6 years, due in part to this squeeze. I’ve seen many peers leave for similar reasons. That is why I support the journalists of the Southern California News Group unionizing in order to protect their jobs and allow them to continue to tell the stories that make their work essential to the region.

Jordan Graham was a reporter for the Orange County Register/SCNG. He's currently a student at the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy.