Danny Bakewell Jr. has lengthy been a driving drive in media and neighborhood management. As government editor and chief of employees of the Los Angeles Sentinel, he has helped information some of the influential Black newspapers within the nation by an period of digital transformation and continued advocacy.
Now, because the newly elected president of the Los Angeles Press Membership, he brings his many years of expertise, his advocacy roots, and his deep dedication to range into one of many area’s most revered journalistic establishments.
“I’d outline the LA Press Membership as an advocacy group that gives sources and alternative to each present and future journalists,” Bakewell Jr. mentioned.
That mission, below his management, is turning into extra inclusive, extra proactive, and extra related to communities which have traditionally been underserved within the media panorama.
A longtime board member and media government, Bakewell Jr. formally took the reins as president simply two months in the past. But in that quick time, he’s already made his imaginative and prescient clear: extra outreach, extra mentorship, and extra direct help for working journalists.
One cornerstone of that imaginative and prescient is the Foot within the Door Fellowship, a mentorship program that pairs early-career journalists with seasoned professionals, together with newsroom leaders.
“It’s a chance to be educated, to listen to real-world experiences, and to work one-on-one with a mentor to assist chart the course of a profession,” he defined. It’s designed not solely to show abilities but additionally to construct confidence, networks, and entry.
However the work doesn’t cease with mentorship. Bakewell Jr. is decided to widen the Membership’s attain by forging connections with establishments that haven’t historically been a part of its orbit.
He’s already made outreach efforts to Compton Faculty and Cal State College Dominguez Hills, aiming to convey college students from their journalism and media departments into the Membership’s programming.
“It’s about ensuring they even know these alternatives exist,” he mentioned.
That concentrate on outreach is paired with sensible help. Throughout a current disaster, the Membership launched a grant initiative to assist journalists impacted by California’s devastating wildfires.
From changing broken gear like laptops and cameras to providing gasoline stipends and monetary aid, the Membership confirmed up for reporters within the discipline.
“We simply wish to make sure that journalists have what they want—not simply in spirit, however in motion,” Bakewell Jr. mentioned.
Whereas illustration and help are on the coronary heart of his agenda, he’s additionally main with innovation.
This yr, below his path, the Membership made a symbolic shift at its annual awards gala. As a substitute of presenting the normal President’s Award to a single recipient, the Membership acknowledged a number of main information networks—ABC, CBS, NBC, KTLA, and Spectrum—for his or her complete and ongoing protection of the wildfires.
“This was about acknowledging the collective effort. These journalists confirmed up for our communities when it mattered most,” he mentioned.
Nonetheless settling into the presidency, Bakewell Jr. acknowledges that a lot of his influence continues to be to come back.
“I’ve solely been president for 60 days,” he famous. “However I’m excited to proceed rising the Membership—by partnerships, new applications, and extra significant illustration of the journalists shaping our tales.”
He’s fast to credit score others, particularly Govt Director Diana Ljungaeus, whom he calls “the engine that makes all the pieces go.”
Bakewell Jr. views his personal position as a facilitator—somebody who might help steer the Membership into new territory whereas constructing on the muse his predecessors established.
Although usually requested whether or not he sees a future in politics, Bakewell Jr. says his focus stays firmly on media.
“I’m very passionate concerning the issues I’m captivated with,” he mentioned. “
Public service is available in many types, and proper now, mine is right here—with the Press Membership, with our journalists, and with the work we nonetheless need to do.”
For Danny Bakewell Jr., the presidency isn’t only a title—it’s a platform. And he intends to make use of it to amplify voices, develop alternative, and make sure the press continues to serve the general public in each nook of Los Angeles.
