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The Oaklandside aims to amplify community voices

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That brings me to today. I’m honored and humbled to have returned to Oakland to build and lead the team now launching The Oaklandside, a nonprofit news outlet wholly dedicated to serving local information needs, amplifying community voices and investigating systems in and for Oakland. We believe all Oakland residents deserve access to more in-depth reporting, perspectives and information resources to help them better understand, enjoy and impact this beautiful city. 


Our seven-person newsroom is launching in a time of fierce local and national pushback against deep-rooted systems of persecution and injustice aimed at Black Americans. The Oaklandside will bring informed perspectives, deep context, historical research and an equity lens to its coverage of police brutality and mass criminalization in Oakland and beyond.


Our organization is built on a strong foundation of listening. Since late summer 2019, we’ve been asking a wide range of Oaklanders about the journalism they want to see more of in their city—and how they might work with us to create it. We heard a deep desire for more journalism that reflects the beauty and value Oakland residents see in their communities. Oaklanders also asked us to report on “systems,” not just “symptoms,” and to center the voices and expertise of people directly impacted by policy. We also received countless messages about the importance of building a newsroom and a pool of contributors that reflect the diversity of the communities we aim to serve.

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