Panel Discussion at The Potter’s House of Dallas: “Fake News” or Not?

March 25 event pageJoin PEN America, All Things Edunia, Black Voters Matter, Dallas CORE, and Raise Your Hand Texas at the Potter’s House of Dallas for panel discussion and Q&A about the vital importance of accessible, accurate information to foster civic engagement and explore the connection between disinformation and other anti-democratic trends.

This event is scheduled for Saturday March 25th at 10:00am-12:00pm Central at The Potter’s House of Dallas, as part of a series of teach-ins sponsored by United MegaCare Ministry In Civics. The panelists will discuss their experiences as journalists and trusted messengers, their community engagement in the Dallas-Fort Worth region, and their work of delivering reliable local news to the community. March 25 event

The conversation will focus on civic responsibility, healthy news habits that fight mis/disinformation, and strategies for having good faith interactions with family, friends, and neighbors. The goal of this conversation is to influence, inform, and inspire the audience to control their own narrative–access to credible information about education, public health, economics and financial security, and environmental issues is the key to empowering and owning narratives, especially for communities of color and those historically underserved by mainstream media.

 

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SPEAKERS

Leona Allen Headshot 2022Leona Allen, a Pulitzer-Prize winner, became Deputy Publisher of The Dallas Morning News in August 2020. She’s responsible for diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives across the company. In April 2022, her role expanded to include Chief Talent and Diversity Officer for The News and Medium Giant, the company’s marketing services agency. During her 36-year career and nearly 28 years at the company, she’s also served as deputy managing editor for Local News, assistant managing editor, night city editor, suburban editor and deputy Metro editor. In those roles, she was deeply involved in community relations and ensuring that coverage was representative of all aspects of the communities our products served. More recently, she was a member of the editorial board specializing in politics, education and racial justice issues. She’s been involved in advancing diversity, equity and inclusion efforts her entire career. The Dallas native previously worked as an editor and reporter at The Dallas Times Herald and the Akron Beacon Journal. While in Akron, she was part of the Pulitzer Prize-winning reporting team that won the Public Service award for a yearlong series on race relations in that city. She served nearly a decade as the chair of Dallas Morning News Charities that has contributed $30 million over the years to organizations that serve the hungry and homeless in North Texas. And she’s vice president of the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas board of directors. She’s a proud graduate of North Texas State University and Skyline High School in Dallas.

Eva Coleman headshotEva D. Coleman is a Telly award-winning producer with over 28 years of professional experience in television, radio and newspaper in Dallas-Fort Worth. She is the Lifestyle & Culture editor for I Messenger Media LLC print and online publications (I Messenger / Texas Metro News / Garland Journal), Communications Director for Aubrey Independent School District, a former video production professor for Collin College, and for over a decade, served as Executive Producer of Frisco ISD-TV in Frisco, Texas… credited with launching the school district’s first-ever cable television program. She also served as a Social Media Marketing and Photojournalism instructor at Lebanon Trail High School after spending over a decade as Audio/ Video Production instructor at the Frisco ISD Career and Technical Education Center. She is the former Executive Producer of Frisco High School’s first-ever television program, RACC-TV, serving in that role and as Broadcast Journalism teacher from 2004-2008. In addition, Eva created and launched Ranger News Network (RNN) at Frisco’s sixth high school, Lone Star, in 2010. She serves as the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) Region III Director and President of the Dallas-Fort Worth Association of Black Journalists (DFW/ABJ).

Jazmyn Ferguson headshotJazmyn Ferguson (she/her/hers), is a Director of Organizing Strategy at Leadership for Educational Equity, where she is able to stand on the shoulders of the giants that came before her to advance equity and inclusion, particularly in the education system. Jazmyn also supports the work of Dallas CORE, a group of organizers who are passionate about equity in the Dallas metro area. She has received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Emory University and her Master of Social Work degree from the University of Southern California. Jazmyn cares deeply about ensuring that the youth are involved in the decisions that affect them through empowering and uplifting their voices. She hopes to continue to serve others through engaging in policy and advocacy work.

Matthew Hall headshotMatthew Hall joined Raise Your Hand Texas in fall 2019 as regional advocacy director for the Tarrant County area. Today he serves as the Senior Regional Advocacy Director for the region. He spent four legislative sessions in the Texas Capitol, serving as a Luna Scholar and aide to former State Senator Robert Duncan of Lubbock and legislative director for State Representative Ana Hernandez of Houston, helping organize diverse coalitions around critical issues, including public education, pension, veterans’ affairs, and human trafficking. Outside the legislature, Matthew spearheaded numerous coalition-building and grassroots advocacy initiatives across Texas and the American Southwest and has contributed his expertise to several leadership development programs, including the North Texas-based Latino Center for Leadership Development. Additionally, he served as a communications and policy advisor to the Board of Hispanic Caucus Chairs, a national nonprofit consisting of bipartisan Latino state lawmakers in positions of legislative leadership. Matthew earned a master’s degree in political science from Texas State University – San Marcos, as well as a bachelor’s degree in political science from Texas A&M International University in Laredo. A Fort Worth native and third-generation Tarrant County resident, Matthew is excited to work with lifelong neighbors to advance public schools.

Denita Jones headshotDenita Jones is a mom of 5 great kids, a lifelong community advocate, and works for Black Voters Matter as Texas Regional Organizer. She was born and raised in Greenwood, Mississippi. Her mother was an educator and her father worked in law enforcement. Jones believes that her parents’ occupations have greatly influenced her path towards becoming a public servant, especially one who focuses on the combined forces of the education and prison systems. Her parents instilled the idea that an opportunity is always available to better the community by making sure resources are available to its citizens. Jones has transformed this idea into a lifestyle by advocating for juvenile offenders, education for children with learning disabilities, and against systemic racism. When Denita is not advocating for her children or others, she spends her time volunteering as the current Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) with the League of Women Voters Dallas, DEI Vice Chair with SAGE. She is also Precinct Chair for Precinct 1038. Denita prides herself in advocacy and educating her children in the lessons that are not found in textbooks.