Alumni working in the U.S.

As graduation approaches for the Class of ‘23, some grads will pack up their new journalism degrees to leave Toronto and Ontario while others will leave the country altogether. 

While School of Journalism alumni have landed all over the world, we know some were attracted to the bright lights of the United States. We caught up with some of them to hear their experiences and why their work is important to them:

Sasha-Ann Simons, host of Reset at WBEZ Chicago 

Sasha-Ann Simons, ‘11, is currently the host of Reset (external link)  at WBEZ, Chicago's NPR News Source, a daily show covering the people living in Chicago. You can hear Simon’s latest work here (external link) .

She is an award-winning journalist who has been working in Canadian and American newsrooms for over a decade, having made her start in television news before switching to radio. Simons has previously worked at WXXI News, the PBS and NPR member station in Rochester, New York, for which she received multiple awards. Before moving to Chicago, Simons worked at Washington’s WAMU where she regularly hosted shows and was a national reporter covering issues of race, identity and economic mobility. Her impressive journalism portfolio aside, she has served as an emcee and moderator at various events.

“I have always been an optimist, I just knew I would end up with a career in this industry … I just knew there was no other option and then as an added bonus I got to do it in two different countries.”

In your opinion, how does the journalism landscape in the U.S. differ from the one in Toronto, and what drew you towards it?

I feel this may have changed in recent years, but at least in the early 2010s, when I was making the choice to start thinking about returning to the U.S. I think it was more so feeling that my work would be on a bigger stage. As far as a beat I would have chosen to cover, whether it be politics, education or housing, I felt like there was a lot more to unpack here in the U.S. I may have just had these rose-colored glasses at one point thinking there would be more going on, and then Obama was president at the time. So, of course, why wouldn't I want to come and work in the United States while they're being led by the first-ever Black president? As a journalist, you just wanted to work in Washington D.C., you wanted to work in the capital, you wanted to be around that energy, and I found at the time it was just not happening in Canada, and I was more attracted to that. 

A lot of the reporting you have done and continue to do centres on issues of race, identity and economic mobility. How did you initially start developing this niche?

I started that beat in Washington. I have lived and worked in three regions: upstate New York, then in Washington, D.C. and now I'm in Chicago. I was hired as the housing and urban development reporter and I found that covering housing in Washington D.C. was unlike anything I had ever experienced before, I was immediately introduced to the Washington D.C. that people don't talk about. When you think of Washington, you think of the nation's capital, the Capitol Building, the White House, the President and you think of all the political drama, but there's actually a population of Washingtonians, of people who are born and raised there who are really, really struggling in certain areas. Putting me on a beat like housing, I was able to see that up close. I was going to parts of the city that are under-resourced, underfunded, and flat out ignored when it comes to a lot of issues. I used my reporting to amplify their stories.

About eight months into that role. A colleague of mine who covered race was leaving, and he had done a really good job of highlighting issues going on in the Latino and Hispanic communities in the region. I thought I could pick up the mantle, basically. I pitched to my boss, asking if I could take over that beat. I officially held the race and identity title after that. There was just so much intersectionality, it was wild! I would be covering health, education, politics, affordability, housing and all of it intersects with race. It became an addiction to continue covering those stories, because the more you dig, the more you find and the more upset you get, the more hurt you feel, because a lot of the people that you're talking about, and whose stories you are telling, look like you. 

So that got me thinking: what is happening? Why was this policy set up in that way? That curiosity, I approached every single story with, stuck with me. I started to make myself available for panel discussions and different think tanks around Washington, and they would always pick me as one of the reporters in the city who was able to chime in on the discussion. Eventually, it kind of became a niche for myself. As a talk show host in Chicago, you better believe I'm going to make sure that that narrative is present all throughout my show and I'm going to focus on those same stories.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Shanelle Kaul, correspondent at CBS, CBS News Radio and Newspath

Shanelle Kaul, MJ ‘12, has just recently arrived in New York as a correspondent for CBS. Most recently, she was an anchor and reporter at CP24, where she covered stories ranging from the sexual assault scandal at St. Michael’s College to the Black Lives Matter protests. Before Toronto she worked at Global Regina and CTV News Edmonton covering stories such as the Juno Awards (external link) , Fort McMurray wildfires (external link)  in 2016 and more investigative stories.

“I made lifelong friendships and was lucky to meet some amazing mentors while studying at TMU. Huge shoutout to Jagg Carr-Locke, Gavin Adamson and Gary Gould. It is why I was so thrilled and honored to return as an instructor two years ago, our j-school is truly a special place.”

You’ve recently joined CBS News as a correspondent. What pushed you to pursue journalism outside of Canada? When you graduated from j-school, did you see yourself working in the US?

I’m so thrilled to be on this new adventure! I’ve always loved traveling, meeting new people, and hearing their stories… so working abroad really was my dream. I grew up following journalists like Monita Rajpal and Ali Velshi – and realized that moving to American networks gave them the platform and opportunity to tell stories with global impact. 

Not to mention, New York is sort of a TV mecca – it is an incredibly electric city to live and work in as a broadcaster – so moving here has truly been a dream come true. Plus (and this might be controversial) the pizza and bagels are better here!

In an article for TMU you spoke about being of South Asian descent and how that has informed your career thus far. You said, “When you enter a space or industry that doesn’t reflect your own culture or community, being authentic can be uncomfortable.” What were some of the steps in your career thus far that helped you find your power in being authentic in those spaces?

A couple of years ago, I took part in a career coaching event and a student wearing a turban told me he wanted to be a sports broadcaster. I asked him what he would like to know and how I could help and his first question was: “Do you think I’d have to cut my hair?”

What I wish I could have said was “Absolutely not! What a ridiculous question! Look at this long list of people who wear turbans and also anchor the news in this country.” But I couldn’t, because at that moment, I couldn’t even name ONE. And when you don't have role models who share your experiences, you either believe something is out of reach, or that you have to change parts of yourself to become the thing you see. When you are so used to being ‘othered’, it is very hard to see the connection between authenticity and power. 

I began to talk more about this struggle with my inner circle of trusted friends and mentors a few years ago and realized that feeling of being ‘othered’ is collective, and usually by design. Knowing I wasn’t alone felt so damn good. I also found a huge community that supports my work and constantly reminds me of my responsibility and impact. When I would go home to Mississauga or Brampton… young South Asian girls would run to me and tell me they too want to be a journalist one day. The owner of every restaurant and Indian grocery store we’d visit, would hug me and tell me how proud they were of me… how they love seeing “one of them” up there on TV. I think that is when I realized that I wasn’t just doing this for me.. I was doing this for my community. And there is so much power in that. 

Recently, I’ve used that empowerment to advocate for more diverse news coverage. When Queen Elizabeth II died last year, I felt strongly that the majority of international reporting was very linear and initially ignored the perspective of people whose lives were forever changed by colonialism. It assumed everyone, everywhere around the world had the same reaction, and that never happens. In every other situation, journalists make an effort to get all perspectives of a story, so why was this time different? I raised this concern in my own newsroom and was able to bring on a diverse guest for a short piece about how BIPOC Canadians who come from previously colonized nations were processing this news, and what this meant for the future of the monarchy. It was a huge victory because I knew that that side of the story may not have been shared with our viewers otherwise. 

Why did you choose journalism as a career path for yourself and what keeps you motivated to continue working in this industry?

I come from an immigrant family and was born to parents who survived wars and civil unrest, so news was always such a huge part of our lives. For them, it was a lifeline, at times. 

Growing up being exposed to a lot of news, I grew to see it as a form of currency. If you learn about what’s happening in the world, you have the ability and agency to make informed decisions, and maybe even create change.. in your little part of the planet. I think about kids who set up lemonade stands to raise money for a community cause… or families who open up their homes to refugees from war-torn countries. It is because they watch the news, they see what’s happening in the world, and they feel inspired to make a difference. It is really about connecting people through stories and that is what keeps me going. 

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Katia Dmitrieva, U.S. economy reporter/editor at Bloomberg

Katia Dmitrieva, ‘12, is based in Washington D.C. As an award-winning reporter with over a decade of experience in the industry, she has covered stories in Toronto and the U.S. ranging from politics (external link)  to real estate to banking.

“When I was in journalism school I definitely pictured my career and what I wanted to do in a very specific way … thinking of business journalism as something very boring - I never read business sections of newspapers, I chucked them out, but journalism is journalism. So I had to learn to keep an open mind.”

When you first started journalism school, did you ever see yourself being where you are right now in your career?

No, definitely not. [laughs] I was in an arts program. That was when I started freelancing a bit and writing for some local publications. It was after an internship at The New Indian Express in Chennai, that I finally realized that this is what I want to do. Up until then I never thought that I would actually be a journalist, because it seemed like such a tough thing to get into. Even while I was in j-school, I didn't think that I would ever write for the world's biggest business news publication. 

What motivated you to make the move to the U.S.?

Trump was president, and there was a lot of stuff happening in the U.S. at the time. I think, as a reporter, it was just fascinating to me the major changes that were underway. I was previously covering real estate and the housing market and I remember one of the first stories I worked on that had a flavor of politics was the Trump Hotel Tower (external link)  in Toronto. Talking with my colleagues after that, keeping in touch and seeing the kind of coverage that was coming out was frankly, just a really interesting time. I saw a posting come up for this economics position and I was like, this is awesome! One of the motivating factors that pushed me into wanting to be a journalist is explaining stuff to people in a way that they can understand. Sometimes it involves a lot of complex theories, a lot of numbers and data to try and spot trends. I think doing that in the U.S., for the economy team is such a broad, big beat. I think that is what drew me to coming here for this job.

You clearly have vast experience in your field and you know your niche very well, so what would you say has been the highlight of your career thus far?

First of all, I wouldn't call myself an expert on that, because it's tough to be an expert on the U.S. economy! 

There have been a couple of stories that I'm really proud of. The first one that comes to mind is a story I did during the pandemic about home health care workers (external link) . It was a story that I had been thinking of for a while. Home health care workers in the U.S., as I'm sure in Canada, are some of the poorest paid employees and in the U.S., they are disproportionately women of color. So, you have employees who are willing to go to people's homes, they are taking care of some of the most vulnerable, oldest people in communities for something like $14 an hour in some cases. There's not a lot of money, there's not a lot of job protection, and this is one of the most important jobs right now and for the next couple of decades as the population ages. It was just so strange to me that these women are paid so little for this important work. That is one of the stories I'm most proud of because it tackles some issues of systemic racism.

I worked on another story about abortion in the U.S. (external link)  and how difficult it was going to become after Texas passed that law. It was sort of like a foreshadowing for what other women would go through. This just shows you how broad economics or business coverage can be because the lead of the story didn't start with the federal reserve or economic growth, it was a story of two women trying to get access to care and unable to do so because of a new law.

If you could picture yourself as a j-school student again, what advice would you give yourself?

Keeping an open mind in terms of things to write about and career. Continue branching out and experimenting with different stories and different ways to tell stories, and especially when you're in school - I think that that is so important. A lot of that energy will stay with you throughout the rest of your career. If you want to try photojournalism - you should do that. If you want to try telling a story through a digital narrative style - you should do that, because that is where you learn.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.