Julia Wallace

I teach entrepreneurship, ethics, and gender in the media workplace classes. I lead various innovative efforts at Cronkite, including the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation SW Reporting Project, which focuses on coverage of health disparities. I have also run the Mayo Clinic-Cronkite Medical Journalism Fellowship and was the head coach of a leadership training program for public media leaders, funded by the Corporation of Public Broadcasting. I trained investigative journalists in two Eastern European countries.

Assisted leadership on long-term strategic planning

I served as the leader for Cox Media Group Ohio. I oversaw WHIO-TV, the number one CBS affiliate in the country; three radio stations (news talk, country and rock); the Dayton Daily News, the Springfield News Sun; the Journal News; weekly newspapers in suburban Cincinnati and various digital products serving Southern Ohio. I helped build a converged operation that led to success on every platform, including exceeding financial goals and significant ratings growth for WHIO TV.

Responsible for news and programming for CMG Ohio’s newspapers, radio stations and TV stations as well as its digital products. Re-organized the newsroom for audience growth on every platform.

Joined Cox in Atlanta in 2001 as managing editor and become the first woman editor in 2002. During my tenure, we won two Pulitzer Prizes and were nominated for two others. We focused on investigative reporting, leading to indictments against more than 50 people—from school superintendents to state legislators to county commissioners to a serial husband killer. More than 30 people were indicted in a public school cheating scandal that rocked the city after several years of digging by the AJC. Campaigned for open records and meetings. We also built one of the most robust newspaper websites in the country, aggressively focusing on digital audience. In 2007, we hit one billion page views through aggressive breaking news, strong sports coverage and insightful opinions.

As managing editor, directed a top-to-bottom redesign of the newspaper that launched on Jan. 1, 2000. It brought innovative story-telling and distinctive columnists to the newspaper.

Focused on in-depth reporting, including a year-long series tracking a dozen third grade Latinx students to see the challenges they faced in excelling in school. Honored by Gannett as one of the top newspapers in the chain.

Proud to be part of work that made a difference. After a 7-year-old was gunned down while his mother held his hand and walked him to school, we focused on gang violence, eventually leading to a gang truce. Two reporters dug into the finances of Congressman Dan Rostenkowski, then one of the most powerful people in the country. Eventually, that work led to his indictment and guilty plea for mail fraud. The Sun-Times launched one of the first newspaper websites in the U.S. in 1993.

Began as a night national reporter two weeks after the launch of the newspaper and rose to managing editor of special projects. Responsible for political coverage and news Olympics coverage in 1988. Started one of the first computer-assisted journalism units in the country in 1989 and helped launched the USA Today/Gallup poll.

Most proud of my coverage of Filipino dissident Benigno Aquino, when he was released from prison to come to the U.S. for heart surgery. As a reporter, I spent considerable time with him and his wife, Corazon, documenting his desire to return to the Philippines and bring back democracy. Several years later, he was gunned down when he attempted to do that. Corazon went on to become president of the Philippines.