E15 The Rewrite: Aundrea Cline-Thomas on Journalism Career Reinvention

Dr. Kortni (00:00)
Welcome to the Compassionate Newsroom, your gateway to transforming the heart and soul of journalism. I'm your host, Dr. Kortni Alston Lemon. I'm a former news director and television reporter turned happiness scholar. Now I train news leaders and journalists worldwide, teaching them how to cultivate workplace wellbeing and resilience with positive psychology. Each week, join me as I share evidence-based strategies.

and talk with some of the most inspiring people in the industry, including news leaders, journalists, trainers, and mental health experts. Together we'll share actionable approaches to help you. Imagine a newsroom that not only cares about the story, but profoundly values the people behind them. A place where compassion is the competitive advantage. Don't just listen, become part of this transformative journey. Subscribe to and share The Compassionate Newsroom. Let's champion a more supportive,

healthier and happier newsroom culture, one episode at a time.

Dr. Kortni (01:02)
Happy Wellbeing Wednesday. I'm Dr. Kortni and you're listening to episode 15 of the Compassionate Newsroom. In news, layoffs have become all too common. I've often thought about what the industry can do to help. Well, today you'll find the solution to that question. Her name is Aundrea Cline Thomas. She's a three time Emmy award winning journalist

with 15 years of experience working in various markets, including Philadelphia and New York. Recognizing our industry's challenges, Aundrea founded the Rewrite, a vibrant community that empowers journalists to reimagine and reinvent their careers. This initiative partners with industry experts to offer comprehensive guidance, tools, and resources for professional growth and personal resilience.

Aundrea joins us in the studio to give valuable tips on how newsleaders can support their teams through transitions. Let's get started.

Dr. Kortni (02:02)
Aundrea Cline-Thomas, I am so happy that you're here today.

AUNDREA (02:06)
Dr. Kortni, thank you for having me. It's always a yes. Anything you need. I'm like, it's a yes. It's a yes. Tell me where to show up.

Dr. Kortni (02:08)
Yeah.

back... back

at ya!

back at you. You are just incredible. So proud of the amazing work that you've done. And we're going to talk about that a little bit later in the podcast. your journey so empowering and inspiring. I just treasure all of the things that you have achieved and the value that you bring to making a difference in the lives of other human beings. You are extraordinary.

Honestly, you are. So let's talk about this remarkable journey that you've had in news. I love to hear some examples of great leaders that you have come across in newsrooms and how did they stand out in your career?

AUNDREA (02:40)
Thank you so much. That means a lot. Thank you so much.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah, you know, it started in grad school and that's where I went to University of Maryland and got my degree in broadcast journalism. My undergrad degree was in communications more broadly, but Cassandra Clayton was a professor of mine. She used to be an NBC correspondent and she was hard. I mean, I would write story after story. She'd like, go back, go back. And I just was like, man, this lady will like not let up.

And then one day she told me, she goes, you have it. I see it. You have it in you. And it just came from her heart. And nobody had ever told me that, you know, this lofty dream could, could happen, you know, for me. And she was really like one of the first people to ever say, you know, you could actually do this. And Margie Rettenberg also comes to mind where she was a producer at WRC in DC and I'm still in contact with her. It's I intern there.

And she did that too, where I was just, I was a quiet intern, you know, I wasn't, I wasn't boisterous. I was pretty forgettable, you know, but I would just squirreled around and say, Hey, I just rewrote this, this foci. Like, could you take a look if you just have time? If you have time, it's fine. It's fine. And she was also very encouraging kind of before I really launched into newsrooms.

And then when I started my professional career, Sandy Boonstra and Michelle Bonnet, that's a news director and assistant news director at WTVF in Nashville, the CBS affiliate, I think one of the greatest stations in the entire country. And their leadership is something that I think a lot about, that I've deconstructed a lot in my mind. One, in terms of how I wanna show up now that I am a leader.

but also in deconstructing my experiences in various newsrooms. They set the bar so high and nobody else matched them, honestly. And even though they were compassionate in all the ways, they also were winners. They won, the ratings beat out everybody. They were competitive women at the same time. So I think that sometimes in journalism, when we think about compassion, we don't think about winning.

like it's not a winning, it's a nice to have, but I think it's actually was a core function of their winning strategy.

Dr. Kortni (04:59)
That's so true.

I love this. Tell us what their compassionate leadership looked like.

AUNDREA (05:10)
It looked like from the very moment I interviewed for a job that I was respected in the interview. I was in my 20s. I was a young kid. You know, what do I know? I didn't really know anything, right? But I was still respected as a professional in my interview. And it was never the feeling of you should just be happy to work here. And just in the interview process, which is a vibe that's often like, let me see if you're

good enough to be here. That was never the vibe. It was like, let's see if we're a right fit for each other. And then when I came, I was welcomed on day one by the staff. had a desk. It's it sounds so little, but it's something that didn't happen in a lot of places. I had a desk already.

right? And there was the staff had had put welcome, Aundrea, like, we're so happy to have you on the computer. Just I mean, it wasn't like just wrote it out. And like when I walked in, you must be new. Welcome walk. We're so happy to have and you know, it's head down, right? Where I was just welcomed. And it was so jarring to me. Also, I'm from Maryland, right? So I'm not from the south. And so like the whole southern hospitality was still like something that was just like,

What? You know, I don't know you. And then the team like would welcome me out like, hey, we're gonna go do this. Want to come and I didn't come at the beginning. Like they were kind of I didn't come at the beginning. But it was a welcome staff. And they got to know us Michelle Bonas, Assistant News Director who had like our direct that was like our direct point of contact. Sandy was doing a lot of the upper management stuff. But in the morning meetings,

We had conversations, they would crack jokes, they got to know our personalities, like there was room, they created a room and space and expectation for kindness. And even when they had to let somebody go, they did it with kindness and dignity. They didn't strip people's dignity even in the worst case scenarios. When somebody moved on, everybody was celebrated. They came to my going away party, you know?

everyone was celebrated and just we were loved. But also there was that room of like, we're about to kick the other stations butt, right? Like we were competitive, okay? We wanted to win. And so one wasn't at the expense of the other and it was one of the best places I have ever worked. made friends that I'm still so close to today.

I am so happy that I got that experience in my career. Because it really just changed everything. And I grew a lot. I wasn't great at that point. I had a lot of room to grow. But they created the space where I could grow. And I wanted to grow because I wanted to win the awards. And I wanted to, you know, I wanted all of that. And they created the space where they weren't beating me down, but they were giving me the tools to get better.

Dr. Kortni (08:02)
it brings me even to the introduction of this podcast where I talk about compassion really being the competitive advantage. And I think, as you just mentioned, it's something that we don't really go and dive into enough. And I love the example that you've just given because it speaks to the value of compassion being that competitive advantage. And I really treasure how they inspired you.

AUNDREA (08:07)
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Dr. Kortni (08:26)
So

what are some of the takeaways that you've gotten from them, that now you bring into your leadership?

AUNDREA (08:30)
Mm-hmm.

think it's seeing people. It just reinforced seeing people. Journalism is such a tough business and the competition, the competitive nature can sometimes I've been in newsrooms where they foster that competitive nature internally as a way to inspire people to bring their A game every day. Our competitive nature in that newsroom at WTVF was external. Internally,

we were helping each other get better. So it's an MPPA newsroom. mean, like best photographers I've ever worked with ever. And within the photography ranks, mean, like they've won all the awards. Their investigative unit is one of the best in the country. They have had laws change. I'm talking about big J journalism, right? So this is not airy, very fluffy. This is big J journalism that's happening here.

And if a photographer saw another photographer get this like cool shot, they might be like, I got to step my game up. But they're going to ask them, how did you do that? How did that? And somebody is like, this is how it was done. You know, so it's just the competition was external, not internal. And then they would say, you love I was hired, ended up being an education reporter. And when they saw that I love that, they made like encouraged me to lean into it even more.

And I think it's just culture. think you can run faster and further in love than you can, you know what I mean? When somebody is like putting like, you know, boulders in your way, you know? I really do when you have a clear path to run as opposed to hurdles being put in your way. And I think that's demonstrated by their retention. I think it's demonstrated by the way we all still keep in touch.

They're really, it's a special place and special people. And I left, I remember being on the plane when I was leaving. when I tell you, was boo hooing on that plane, because I was just like, I just had a special moment. It's not gonna be like this ever again. It was a special place, really special place, yeah.

Dr. Kortni (10:30)
Wow. Yeah.

for, leaders that are listening, news leaders in particularly, to be inspired by, right? To see about ways to be able to replicate that because here you are no longer in that newsroom, but yet it has impacted you so much, right? I think that's the value of good leadership in how it stays with you,

AUNDREA (10:38)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah. Yeah.

It's been more than 10 years. And by the way, we had like four owner, I was there for four years, a little over four years, and we had like four owners during that time. So it's not like it was like the golden years of news, like back in the day. Like there was also still like uncertainty and upheaval. And this was in the time of like the media consolidations, like the big time like.

Dr. Kortni (10:55)
and it has. Wow.

AUNDREA (11:22)
when it ended up becoming like the big five companies outside of the O &Os, Like consolidating, buying up all these. It was like family owned first and then it just went to three or four owners during that time when I was there. So there was also lot of uncertainty, a lot of change. They were navigating a lot at the same time.

Dr. Kortni (11:42)
that says a lot about your leadership, that they were dealing with that, but yet didn't create a culture that was having all of you stressed. mean, you're sure to stress, I'm sure it's there, right? But not really protecting you and seemingly making you feel seen, safe and supported. So it says really a lot about their depth in terms of leadership.

AUNDREA (11:44)
Mm-hmm.

Dr. Kortni (12:05)
you mentioned because when I was starting out in the industry and one-man banding and getting to learn so much about good photography you mentioned NPPA for those who are not in our country what is NPPA?

AUNDREA (12:16)
Mm-hmm.

Okay,

it's the National Press Photographers Association and it is like the gold standard in visual storytelling and news in the States. And a lot of our photographers, I mean, that's how I learned how to write. That's why I wanted to be there. It was like on my list. I was like, Lord, help me get to this place. I know if I could just be in that building, I will be better because there was so much excellence oozing.

out of every nook and cranny in that space. And so, yeah, it was just their eye for the story and the excellence in which they shot the story is pretty remarkable.

Dr. Kortni (13:01)
It really is. really is.

Sometimes I actually go and I go to their website just to be inspired by really, as you mentioned, those that are really exemplary when it comes down to storytelling. So was interesting that you talked about helping you become a great writer because to me, it speaks a lot about your incredible company.

AUNDREA (13:13)
Yes. Yes.

Mm-hmm.

Yes.

Dr. Kortni (13:27)
in the Rewrite and

how you help so many people really Rewrite the story of their lives. Tell us how you were inspired to start this community and what does it help address in terms of the needs of journalists.

AUNDREA (13:38)
Right.

Yeah.

Well, the Rewrite is a community of journalists and storytellers who are invested in reassessing, reimagining and reinventing their careers, specifically in this moment in the face of the instability in the industry. And it started from my own personal story of transition, where I came to a crossroads in July of 2022, left the traditional media landscape to launch my own company, launch...

my business called Mountain Court Media, which the Rewrite is under. But now we just celebrated our year anniversary of the Rewrite. Yes. Thank you. Now it's about curating resources and tools specifically to help journalists really continue making an impact, whether it's in the business or out of the business.

Dr. Kortni (14:20)
Yay! Congratulations!

AUNDREA (14:35)
I think I want to frame it this way. So when people come in, we ask them to take a survey, about 25 % do, asking them a few questions just to get to know people. And I have some of the survey results here and saying, why do you want to launch a Rewrite? Almost 61 % say it's because of the impact that the career has on their family and personal life. 54 % say stress is taking a toll on their mental health.

45 % say it's a toxic work environment. This is more than 100 respondents. This is what they've told us. And so what we're seeing in the landscape right now is that these consolidations are happening. There are not as many jobs for journalists anymore. So when you consider the pool of journalists who are seeking opportunities and the

pool of opportunities, most journalists will have to transition. how do you even do that? And so I am here to be the translator and help shorten that learning curve to help folks continue making an impact. Again, whether they want to stay in the industry or leave, because I am a true believer, is that you should run towards something and not away from something. I think that we can live the life that we design and not live the life that we think we have to settle for.

in this work of just being able to like interface with like such amazing storytellers, journalists are bleeding in plain sight. They are hurting. They are hurting and bleeding in plain sight. And so what I thought I was just gonna say, let me teach you how to change your mindset and introduce you to a broader world out there where you can continue to like, you know, with your skills. That's what I thought.

But the work that I'm doing is really helping people heal their broken hearts. That's really the real work that I'm doing because you can't go do something else and show up fully for that thing and the fullness of like what you have to offer your incredible skills, limping, right? And so either whether it's the trauma of...

the stories that we have to cover and the news cycles, the big news are just coming faster and more furious. The pain that folks are privy to and witnessing and are on the front lines of couple that with the toxic newsrooms that are really normalized in this space and in the name of being competitive. Or it's enduring the layoffs after you have given your whole life. You have given your whole life.

to this career, I always say we are the dreamers who made our dreams a reality, which is a special place to be. So many of us wanted to do this as kids, and then we did and sacrificed everything, and then we did. And now, because of the business model no longer being sustainable, people are really feeling like the rug is pulled out from under them.

It has been a joy, like, ooh, boy, talk about, like, this is the most incredible story I've ever been able to tell, is the one of being able to help people and be a partner on their journey to, we say, we can make your next chapter your best chapter. And that's really what it's all about.

Dr. Kortni (17:53)
I'm still so in awe that you invited me to be a speaker for the new cohort for the Rewrite and had a chance to experience you and your incredible community. And I love that what you just shared, you helped them heal from their broken heart. How does the Rewrite help do that?

AUNDREA (17:57)
Yes.

Yes.

Mm-hmm.

So we partner with experts. I'm so happy that you are among our experts. And we take a 360 degree view on this. And so we don't really market the mental health piece of what we do, because everyone's like, I just need another job. People don't even know. I just need another job. OK, OK, OK. We could help. We could help with that. But we partner with the experts. I basically do what I did in journalism. So you have this hypothesis of, wow.

Dr. Kortni (18:19)
You

I'm

AUNDREA (18:41)
Here are the numbers, thousands of people are being laid off and those who stay behind are having to deal with so much more on their plate and there are thousands of people are at a crossroads. Who are the best people who have the expertise who can help them with their stories? What I did every day as a reporter and I go find the experts like yourself, partner with experts to help facilitate

whether it be a course, webinars, we're launching a community this year so we can have more consistent touch points and help people have a more personalized process. we do that. I send out emails every single week with tips, tools, resources, and then also a curated list of job postings that a person with our background can fulfill.

Like this week was more than 100 jobs actually, because everyone's starting to post jobs so much again after the holidays. so yeah, so it's a robust curated list of jobs from all over the country. And let me tell you, for our celebration for the one year anniversary, we had a woman on from the UK. So she was on in the middle of the night. And she sent me a message, she'd been in the business for

31 years. And she was laid off. And then family stuff happened because we forget that journalists also have a whole life like a whole personal life life is life thing at the same time. Yeah. And so she had some personal stuff that she had to grapple with. And she was broken. And she she said, you know, I really feel like I actually feel like this can happen for me now.

Dr. Kortni (20:03)
Isn't that the truth? Yes.

AUNDREA (20:15)
Like I really do, I'm so glad I stayed up and I feel like this can happen for me now. And that is just what I live for, okay? That is it. Because journalists don't do it for the money, they don't do it for the accolades, they do it to make a difference. And we can't just let these difference makers flounder and then just take something unfulfilling. we have a lot of work to do.

We still have a lot this world, this country, this world has a lot of work to do. And I think that we signed up to be a part of the solution. And I think we can continue that in traditional ways and in other ways that sometimes have more of an impact than the traditional ways have. So I just want to open at least that possibility for folks.

Dr. Kortni (21:00)
we're now talking more openly about well-being in years ago was like, shh, you know, Yeah, just shake it off. Just shake it off, you know? And I love the work that you're doing and how you are, healing individuals in what can be the next best chapter of their life.

AUNDREA (21:05)
Yes.

Yes.

Absolutely.

Dr. Kortni (21:22)
So one thing

that I often thought about, I will admit, when I was a news director and when I started to really dig deep and look at the industry in itself.

I often thought about what news organizations should do in regards to or can do or consider doing or try to begin to pilot how to help the transition for journalists. What are your thoughts on that in terms of news organizations serving journalists, even as it relates to the transitional process?

AUNDREA (21:37)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

would add that when we say the journalists, we also mean the manager, the news director, the GM, that everybody needs compassion in this space. The uncertainty is at the very top and to the very junior employee and everything in between, right? So I don't want it to just be framed around, you know, an employee.

rank the lower end of the org chart. It's all the way throughout. And I think the first thing is transparency. Brene Brown says, clarity is kind, right? And in my own leadership development, it's something that I tell myself often. So we...

have a pretty intrusive career if you think about how we go into people, we parachute into people's lives during oftentimes one of the worst days of their lives. And then we tell all their business, right? However, we don't do that internally. We're not doing that internally. So I think that every newsroom needs to have a frank conversation with everybody and saying, hey,

We are in a tough time in our industry. You don't have to give out trade secrets. you have to have a real frank conversation with everybody. So there is not false hope, right? I've heard from members of the Rewrite, had one woman who took the course and she was just like.

My contract's coming up next year. At this point, she was like maybe eight or nine months out. So I want to take the course to just kind of get started. Thank God she did. Because by the holidays, she texts me. She's like, I just had a meeting with my news director. And I was told, not only will I not be renewed when my contract comes up, they're eliminating the whole department. But now she has months, she has four months to try to kind of prepare her life.

It is taking people upwards of six months and longer to find a new job. The job market is saturated. So this whole idea of people coming to work and you're like in three weeks, we're shutting down the whole operation is not what we need to do because the writing was on the wall a lot earlier than that. People are living real lives. They have real responsibilities. They have healthcare. They have children.

Transparency, think, first and foremost, is what's necessary and whenever possible, giving people enough of a heads up so their lives don't have to explode because of mismanagement, essentially. We are in the communications industry, and that's what internally everybody deserves is communication. There's so much that's out of our control about the numbers, but what is in control is how we communicate, what's really happening.

so people can make the best decisions for our lives. That's why I got into journalism is to find out the information and present it so people can make better decisions for their lives. Let's do that internally. I think that's the first thing. Secondly is that utilizing technology not to replace people, but to create efficiencies, right? And so the people who are left behind after huge upheaval, so that the content demands remain the same.

Now you're doing it with a lot fewer people. And journalism has been notoriously awful about adopting technology. Awful. And so journalism has to open its doors to technology, not again, not as a replacement, but as an efficiency mechanism so you don't burn out your staff when the content demands remain the same and fewer people are there to do it.

And lastly, think that we really need to talk about when we have, they're like, there's a number to call for mental health resources. Well, okay, it's not enough to have a number, you need to have a culture to where saying, hey, I'm struggling right now, does not deem somebody less than or incompetent. Because for instance,

We were going through a global pandemic. People, like I live in New York City, which was the epicenter of the epicenter in the United States. And I cannot tell you how scary that was. go out and do, and I, everybody, you're not everybody. A lot of people were home, but I was going out and people in the newsroom were getting sick left and right, sick, sick, sick. don't, thankfully everybody survived, but people lost parents.

during this, this was real life that was happening. there has to be a way for people to take care of themselves mentally without having to tell their manager with whom they might not have an actual relationship with all the details of what they're going through. And just to say, I just need a moment and having the understanding and the culture to say, this person's a really hard worker. If they say they need a moment, we need to give them a moment.

and not have it mean anything about their competency or their commitment or anything like that.

Dr. Kortni (27:02)
I, wow, yes, that's first off, those are a lot of great, not only models for us to think about cultivating, but the core of it speaks to really developing a culture of care. And I really value what you've shared for us, I will admit, I love all things Brene Brown.

AUNDREA (27:14)
Yes.

Yes, as do

I.

Dr. Kortni (27:23)
Yes,

Dr. Brene Brown is one of my favorite scholars her area being vulnerability, shame, and empathy, which speaks to so much in terms of some great core values in leadership. I'm curious from your personal experiences, do you have a story about a well-supported

newsroom that you were a part of during a transition and what specific actions helped make a difference.

AUNDREA (27:52)
I don't.

And that's why I created the Rewrite, because I wanted to create what I needed. I wanted to create what I know my friends needed. And what I have done is because community is so important to me, is I would not be able to be here talking to you if I did not have a community. And I know we look to leaders, but I look across, not above me in terms of, I look to my peers.

Right? Because they have en masse, like in the totality of my career, they have been the supportive space. They have been the soft space to fall. that's why I created the Rewrite with such urgency and such passion, because I knew there was such a void there. And I wanted to create what I needed and what I know I think is lacking in the industry.

Dr. Kortni (28:42)
That's interesting you say that because I had a guest on the podcast. name is Emma Thompson and she is one of the network of trainers for self-investigation, which is an organization nonprofit that was created during the pandemic from by journalists to help support the wellbeing of journalists. she has worked at Reuters and she was a part of their peer support

AUNDREA (28:47)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Dr. Kortni (29:06)
network in terms of helping journalists. And I think these are models that we need to really start to look at here in the United States that we can be inspired by all throughout the world, worldwide. But having that peer support is really important. And I really value that you share that and what it can do in terms of helping provide

AUNDREA (29:24)
Mm-hmm.

Dr. Kortni (29:29)
the level of psychological safety for members because it validates so many different levels of your experience and what that can mean. I really value that you shared that. I will actually link in the show notes Emma's episode for those who are listening. again, because she's just incredibly impactful in understanding the model of how peer support networks.

AUNDREA (29:32)
Yeah.

Dr. Kortni (29:56)
can can can help yes absolutely

AUNDREA (29:58)
to that really quickly?

I think it's hard to help people that you don't see. In the US, Hoda Kotb just left the Today Show, which is like one of the premier morning shows, network morning shows. And I have never, ever seen a send off. mean, first of all, the send off has been like six weeks, right?

Dr. Kortni (30:18)
You

AUNDREA (30:19)
It's been the longest send off ever in the history of Evers, right? But what everybody says is that in her entire career, she saw people. And this is the love that she's getting back It wasn't like, let me, it wasn't anything major. It was just the, how are you and staying an extra beat to listen to the answer.

Right? And I know there's so much stress and there's deadlines and there's scanners and there's, you know, edicts from corporate and it's different, but we're in the people business. First and foremost, human to human connection. That's how we connect to our viewers is by telling stories of people. And as professional communicators, we know just how powerful that is. And so,

in terms of building psychological safety and going back to Nashville. Nashville didn't help me in a transition because they didn't need to help me in a transition, right? And so that's why that wasn't an example in there, but I was seen, I was cared for. When a colleague got breast cancer, we rallied around. When another colleague, he had cancer on his first day of treatment, people at work showed up.

with signs outside of the facility. So when he drove up and he didn't know, just, everybody kind of figured it out. And when he showed up, they were cheering him on. That's not something that's gonna be on, they didn't put it on the news. That was just the culture of people being seen. And so you didn't just do your work alone, you didn't do life alone either. And that's not just the news director doing it. That's a...

culture where it's the desk assistant shows up to do it. The intern comes along too, you know? And so once that's set, yeah, just, everything flows from there, but it was just the most loving place.

Dr. Kortni (32:06)
I love this. gosh, and I treasure seeing Hoda Kobe's send off. I love seeing the post on Instagram with all of them wearing Hoda, purple Hoda hats. And I actually really am excited about her next chapter, her Rewrite, because she is apparently gonna focus in on wellness. And I think that also says a great deal in regards to the level of impact that she wants to continue

AUNDREA (32:15)
Yes.

Yes. Yes.

wellness.

Dr. Kortni (32:31)
you to make. You've kind of answered it, but I want to still ask this question. What advice do you give news leaders to foster that environment of psychological safety, foster that environment for people to feel seen, people to feel safe and supported? What advice do you give to them in terms of that?

AUNDREA (32:33)
Yes.

Okay.

Yeah.

I think it's whenever you can, just have a conversation that has nothing to do with work.

How are you doing? Listen, think of, somebody has a picture of a child on their desk. Ask about how that kid is doing. Like, find ways to connect with them and ways that connect with you. But I also understand I have a really dear friend who is a GM at a station. And this is like random. She posted a picture online of the grocery store. It's...

As we're recording this, there's a lot of snow happening all over, like the South. And the grocery store shelves were empty and she posted something and I said something to her, I can't even remember. And she was like, this is, I usually use a grocery delivery service because I remember going grocery shopping during COVID and really worrying about my employees dying.

like literally, that I'm responsible for them. So I just can't go to the grocery store. That's part of my like PTSD. Because I just associate it with that feeling of how I felt when I was getting things, because she was getting masks, she was getting Lysol, she was getting trying to keep her employees safe. And I think that just in the newsrooms, think leadership demonstrates it, but it's everybody else's.

responsibility to respond to it, because it's not a singular responsibility of just let's create moments to see each other and ask, how are you doing? And ask, this TV show was on, like, let's create room to like talk about it. You know, it's it's the random, the depth is not in the stories, is not in the actual work. The depth is in the monotony. It's in the...

things that you might not say matters, but actually if you look at it, it matters so much. If somebody loves something, let's lean into what they love. Let's make a joke about what they love. Let's not, you know, let's do all of that. And also I think another thing we haven't talked about is who you promote. One promoting from within is great, but also who you promote. Are you promoting somebody with bad behavior?

Cause that signals that behavior doesn't matter, right? Are you promoting the jerk in the newsroom who talks to people crazy? We all know who that person is. It's not like we're not hiding anything, right? How, how do you welcome people in the newsroom? I had a, I did an interview where they didn't even walk me to the elevator at the end of the interview. If first of all, the interview was like being in a firing range. was like one question after another, after another, and they didn't even walk me into the elevator.

and I signed on with that company. It should have been a precursor. I should have known what the environment was going to be like. And they didn't give me a tour when I came of like, this is where this is, this is where this is. So after a few weeks, I had to do an intro and tag in the newsroom and or I'm sorry, in the studio. And I was like, I asked somebody, I whispered, I was like, hi, I don't actually know where the studio is. Can you point me in the direction of the studio? I don't know. I actually know where it was. I had been there for like a month.

I don't actually know, but nobody showed me around. what I'm learning in my own business is onboarding is very important. How you welcome somebody, it sets the tone for everything. It sets the tone to their openness to you, the openness to their culture. And then also how you let people leave. Also sends.

very clear messages to everybody who's left behind. And so I think the in-between work becomes easier if you welcome people well and if you send people off well.

Dr. Kortni (36:31)
Wow, powerful, isn't it? The onboarding as well as, you know, the culture of care. I really value that you shared that, Aundrea. I am curious in terms of the vision of your future. What is next for you? What upcoming projects? What will we see next with the Rewrite? I love hearing about the community. So what's coming up?

AUNDREA (36:38)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Yes. Yes.

Yes. Yes. Yes.

Well, I really want to partner with organizations to really help them do this. I love journalism. And I think that when we talk about career and reinventions, the idea is that we're telling people to leave their jobs. We're not telling people to leave their jobs. We're telling people to, hey, create options for yourself. And what is wonderful that's happened that we haven't touched on is that

I said while I was grinding in this career, like a whole other world opened up. So now that I'm not in the traditional space, I never stopped storytelling at all, right? So I can continue storytelling. So in the Rewrite, I want to partner with organizations to help bring this content, leverage my experts. We're building out a community so we can have a more consistent touch point with folks.

We can challenge them because your Rewrite does not happen one in isolation. Your Rewrite is best done in community. If I didn't have my community has been a lighthouse for me. They have changed my whole life. And it's like, it's work. This is not easy. Reinvention transformation is the hardest thing. Have you ever tried to lose some weight? It's the hardest thing to transform.

It's the hardest thing to transform. And so we wanna be able to hold people's hand and have more of a personalized experience with them and also give them a community that's not just journalists, but also a broader community. So if your network is too insular, you need to meet new people, this is a safe space. We're creating a, as you were talking about the culture of care, come as you are. There is no judgment here. We are just here to say, okay.

Let's assess where you are. We have a quiz to help people assess, okay, this is where your starting point is. And then we provide resources along the way to help you have a more personalized journey. And it's a place where you can come in our community and say, man, I had a tough day. And folks won't say, you should, at least it's not this. They can say, man, I get it. I get it. But it's also the place where they can say, I did this amazing thing and everyone's sharing them on. That's what we're creating. So yes.

launching the community, partnering with organizations. I measure success by impact, not vanity metrics of how many people are here. It's how many people can we help transform based on how they wanna transform. That's another thing about journalism. We are always talking about other people's stories. The hardest story to tell is your own. And so it's a reframing that's very uncomfortable for people, quite frankly, but we're teaching them how to do it that you can Rewrite your story today.

no matter where you are, no matter where you're starting, wherever you are in the globe, and you don't have to do it alone. We're gonna all do it together. Yeah.

Dr. Kortni (39:37)
This is so

powerful. I am so excited Honestly, Aundrea, you are incredible.

So this is, often say this because when I have great conversations like this one, I don't ever want them to end. so, and one of the things that I'm doing as a scholar, I wanna to see what we all are saying in the industry in regards to what compassionate leadership.

AUNDREA (39:49)
Yes.

Dr. Kortni (40:02)
looks like and what it means. So what is it what does it look like in terms of your perspective?

AUNDREA (40:03)
Yeah.

Yeah, compassionate leadership looks human. It looks imperfect. It looks like saying, I don't know the answers. It looks like saying, I not just expect something from somebody, I presume that everybody is doing the best they can within context.

But if you hire well, and the person is a hard worker, it's presuming that they're doing the best they can. And when they falter, asking questions before making assumptions. Life, people are working, but they're also living at the same time. And so I think that's what compassionate leadership is. It's also winning. And so it's a winning.

equation because as we said earlier I don't think there has to be one one without the other.

Dr. Kortni (41:10)
I treasure this and I treasure you. Thank you for being here today.

AUNDREA (41:13)
I treasure you as well. Thank you. And thank you for

the work that you're doing and even having these conversations. I believe that everybody really wants this to happen. think it just, in this upheaval is such great opportunity. It's not all bad, right? It is such great opportunity. If we're gonna break it, let's build it back better and have this be a part of it. And just one last thing I wanna add. I know I'm talking a lot, but.

Dr. Kortni (41:31)
Absolutely.

No, you're,

you're, look, that's why you're gonna come back, right?

AUNDREA (41:43)
Hey, anytime

I say, anytime you tell me, I will show up. But I will say very vulnerably and transparently that like I was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress. And that was part of the reason why I left my last position. And oftentimes we say burnout and stuff like that. And we put the onus on the person who's experiencing it to figure it out.

But I was in a position where that was the only way, like as if somebody didn't have proper coping mechanisms. And I believe I was in environments consistently for years and years where it created that reality for me, not because I didn't have the tools, it was because that was the culture that had been created and there was no other way for my body to respond to it other than to be experiencing all the things that came with that.

And so my departure wasn't because I didn't love journalism, it was because I needed to save myself. And I think that if somebody is listening to this and just putting their head down and going through and not realizing the signs and normalizing, think newsrooms are pretty traumatic places or people who we are experiencing trauma just in the stories, even in the most kind places, just the stories that we have to cover are very traumatic and we are first responders.

And we are in places where people are normalizing coping mechanisms that are actually very unhealthy. But when you're in a community where everybody is coping in the best way they can without models of what a healthy coping mechanism is, sometimes it allows us to ignore signs that are detrimental to us. just if anybody is experiencing that, I just really encourage you to understand that it's not weak.

that you're not crazy, that joy is available, that there is an option where you can continue in a different way. And I left with the hypothesis of, is this even available to me? I just left with a hypothesis. I didn't know if in fact it was true. I can say now on the other side that I know it. It is absolutely true.

and your next chapter can absolutely be your best chapter. And as I said before, this is the best story that I have ever been able to tell. But I had to go through all of that to be equipped to tell this story and help other people tell their own. just in case anybody is going through that, because I feel like if they're listening to this podcast and they have a kind of proclivity to care about this or might be experiencing something themselves that they're not even talking about.

openly.

Dr. Kortni (44:16)
Absolutely. Being able to talk about it is so important and being able to make sure that you have that support, right, is so important. And I honestly thank you so much for the courage in terms of sharing not just simply the levels in terms of elements of your story, but allowing us to really dive deep in terms of what it is and who you are and the impact that you're making. If I couldn't love you,

AUNDREA (44:25)
Mm-hmm.

Thank you.

Dr. Kortni (44:46)
anymore.

I guess, I guess it just grows and grows. You are incredible. Thank you for being here.

AUNDREA (44:53)
Thank you, you as well. I'm so

happy that you invited me. Thank you for having

Dr. Kortni (45:00)
for tuning into the Compassionate Newsroom podcast. Together we can transform workplace wellbeing in news. If you found value in today's episode, please share it with a colleague to help foster a supportive environment in the industry. And don't forget to subscribe and also visit our website for more resources at thecompassionatenewsroom.com.