SF News Hub

A New Voice in News Diversity

By Julie Tonroy Even though she always read the newspaper cover-to-cover, she rarely saw stories that she felt spoke to her. Yet she never saw her cultural and ethnic identity reflected in the news. Now 43, Gabriela Segovia McGahan, a Native American/ Latina journalist, is changing all that. Working for AOL's Patch.com, a newly sprouted national network of hyper-local news forums in 800 American communities, she is making sure that the diversity in her local community of Pacifica, C...

Hunger strike fuels debate on media coverage of prison crisis

By Vivien Freund As thousands of inmates in the California prison system resumed their hunger strike, Bay Area journalists gathered Wednesday evening (Oct. 5, 2011) to discuss mainstream media coverage of the California prison crisis and the role of new media in getting prisoners’ stories out. The forum was hosted by San Francisco Bay Area Journalists (SFBAJ) and it brought together a panel of key players in a debate moderated by Tom Murphy, SFBAJ organizer. While Murphy tried to steer...

Oakland Police Brutality Scrutinized

By Jennifer Witherspoon If you are the big tree, let me tell you that We are the small axe, sharp and ready Ready to cut you down (well sharp) To cut you down OAKLAND - These Bob Marley lyrics are the inspiration for the title and theme of a new documentary film, "Operation Small Axe,” by JR Valrey. The idea behind the film is that the Oakland police are “terrorizing” the black community, that the court system is reinforcing this treatment and the black community needs to fight b...

ABC vs. Rock n Roll

ABC threatens to shut down all-ages venues in San Francisco for what some think is unfair legal practice. By RUBY PEREZ It’s hot, sweaty and packed. Hands marked with Xs push to the front, lying about a friend they need to find. Cheers and whoops erupt from all over the crowd, waiting for the band to present themselves, others begin shuffling in anticipation, creating a slow push-pull effect. The excitement in the air is sickening. The lights dim. The band takes the stage. The first ch...

Seeking the Truth

Learn more about the movie by checking out our growing list of interviews from the San Francisco Chronicle and San Francisco State.