Maynard Family Update: Momo Chang joins Civil Eats
The Maynard Institute congratulates Momo Chang on her new role as Senior Editor at Civil Eats, a news source for critical thought about the American food system. Chang joined the Maynard Institute to manage the Oakland Voices alumni program in November 2019, a few months before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. She quickly adapted to the Oakland Voices alumni program to meet the moment. Chang launched virtual events and led a wave of alumni reporting on the pandemic and other community stories.
“I have had the pleasure of working with Momo at the Oakland Tribune and Oakland Voices. She is a wonderful person, journalist and editor. She is thoughtful, insightful and has always had the capacity to connect with different kinds of folks, a skill that made her a perfect fit to engage Voices alumni,” Martin G. Reynolds, Co-Director of the Maynard Institute, said of Momo Chang.
“Under her direction, we significantly increased the stories coming from Oakland Voices alumni, created new learning opportunities for them, and also benefited from Momo’s connections to the wider journalism community through annual meet-ups she would help coordinate. She also began to widen her work with the Maynard Institute around events and thought leadership before this new opportunity emerged. I am sad to see her go but happy for Civil Eats, and will do my best to find a way to bring her back into the Maynard family fold.”
Looking back at nearly five years with Oakland Voices
“It’s been my honor and privilege to work with so many community journalists from all backgrounds, who each brought their own unique perspectives and experiences,” Chang said.
“We had no idea what the times ahead would look like,” she said in a written statement to the Maynard Institute. “Together, and mostly virtually for the first year, we gathered to talk about Oakland, the pandemic, and to share stories and story ideas.”
Even through the logistical difficulties presented to all journalists by the COVID-19 pandemic, Chang helped steer the Oakland Voices newsroom towards impactful choices and stories that both reflected and informed the community and its unique struggles and community heroes.
As co-director of Oakland Voices, Chang’s dedication to Oakland and its people was evident in her fidelity to the stories of the ever-changing city. In addition to contributing articles, she also devoted time to the Oakland Voices alumni and their growth as journalists and storytellers.
Meaningful stories and mentorship
“Oakland Voices is a small but mighty community journalism program that’s made waves in the local community. This is in large part due to the journalism academy members and our alumni group of correspondents who continue to harness the power of telling stories that reflect the diversity of the Oakland community. We covered school closures, health equity issues, our winning basketball teams, the teachers and firefighters of Oakland, arts and culture, and so much more,” Chang wrote.
Though her time with the Maynard Institute has come to an end, Chang’s mentorship of the Oakland Voices alumni leaves a lasting mark on the small-scale, hyper-local outlet, and though her journalism journey is far from over, her influence on Oakland community journalists will forever be part of her legacy.
“I’m especially proud of Oakland Voices’ alumni network of dozens of community journalists, who’ve contributed stories and their voices to the Oakland Voices site,” she continued. “Our alumni have also published their works in outlets such as the The Oaklandside, Guardian US, NOSH, SF Chronicle, and many others. I know that the journalism academy and our alumni will continue to use their voices to tell meaningful stories about Oakland.”
“I wore many hats over the past few years, including editing stories, collaborating with partners like Oaklandside, putting on events… How lucky I am to have worked with some wonderful people, to help tell stories of a town that is near and dear to my heart. Oakland has its challenges, but one thing I know is that the people are what makes its heart beat.”
Maynard Family for Life
“I want to thank Maynard co-executive directors Martin Reynolds and Evelyn Hsu, and Oakland Voices co-director Rasheed Shabazz — and all of the staff members and our board members, who I’ve learned so much from. Working alongside everyone the past few years has been a joy, and these are experiences I’ll carry with me through the rest of my career,” Chang said.
Rasheed Shabazz co-led Oakland Voices with Chang, and worked closely with her in mentoring and devloping the Oakland Voices Community Correspondents.
“Momo was already an accomplished reporter when she came to Oakland Voices. It was amazing to work with her as she deepened her skills as an editor, facilitator, social media maven, and mentor,” Shabazz said. “My predecessor Brenda Payton invited her to speak to the 2016 class. I invited her in 2019. I look forward to the 2025 class learning from her.”
Left to right: Momo Chang, Marabet Morales Sikahall, Brandy Collins at an Oakland Voices session. Photo credit: Rasheed Shabazz.
Maynard 200 Fellow Class of 2023
When the Maynard 200 Fellowship expanded to include a curriculum track designed for frontline editors and managers, Chang joined the thriving professional network of over 200 fellows.
“It was always a great joy to collaborate with Momo, and it is fitting that one of her last projects was a reporting piece that leveraged the expertise of Oakland Voices and Maynard 200 journalists,” said Maynard 200 Director Odette Alcazaren-Keeley.
I am thankful to have had the opportunity to connect her editorial leadership with one of her fellow M200 alums, Mason Bryan of Prison Journalism Project. This piece is but one example of various impactful coverage she has expertly guided, empowering diverse journalists to tell more authentic stories. It’s a testament to the totality of who she is — a news leader, empathetic colleague and an inspiring friend.”
Left to right: Odette Alcazaren-Keeley, Martin G. Reynolds, Evelyn Hsu and Momo Chang during the 2023 Maynard 200 Fellowship at TCU’s Bob Schieffer College of Communication. Photo credit: Jaida Joiner.
Contributions to Professional Community Building
Chang also helped organize and execute Maynard Institute events such as our recent data training for journalists on heat-related incidences of gun violence, featuring her Maynard 200 Fellow alum Helina Selemon and Maynard 200 Faculty Aaron Glantz, “Data for Journalists Covering Climate Change and Gun Violence.” Chang also wrote a recap of the resources from this training.
The Oaklandside invited Chang to participate in a sold-out panel discussion on Bay Area Journalism as part of their Culture Makers lecture series in 2023. Later that year, she teamed up with co-host Pendarvis Harshaw to organize a recurring networking meetup for Bay Area journalists.
Left to right: Martin G. Reynolds, Odette Alcazaren-Keeley, Phil Yu, blogger of Angry Asian Man and co-author of RISE, Momo Chang, Jeff Chang, creater of They Call Us Bruce podcast and co-author of RISE, and Evelyn Hsu at the Maynard Family AAJA Happy Hour. Photo credit: Michelle Felix.
When professional associations were returning to in-person conferences in 2022, Chang helped coordinate and co-host the Maynard Institute’s outdoor happy hour reunion at the Asian American Journalists Association convention in Los Angeles. She was instrumental in recruiting guest speaker authors of the book Rise: A Pop History of Asian America from the Nineties to Now. Chang also contributed to a conference panel session on freelancing.
About Civil Eats and the intersectionality of food stories
As a longtime journalist, editor, and organizer, Chang served nearly five years as co-director of Oakland Voices. We agree the new role at Civil Eats is a great fit considering Chang’s experience as a culturally sensitive food writer.
Founded in 2009, Civil Eats is an online outlet delving into stories about sustainable agriculture and encouraging critical conversations on the American food system in an effort to “build economically and socially just communities.”
Like Momo Chang, Civil Eats “doesn’t shy away from pursuing difficult or complicated stories.” Both solutions-oriented, centering human wellbeing and community, and focused on the overlooked layers of context and detail missing from many other publications, Chang and Civil Eats are a great fit for one another.
Civil Eats recently took to X, formerly Twitter, to announce Momo’s new role, saying “We are very excited to announce that veteran journalist Momo Chang will be joining the Civil Eats team as our senior editor!”
“I’m delighted that I’m now a part of Civil Eats as their senior editor, to work with this award-winning team of journalists, and to tell stories about our food systems, farmers and farming, fishing, and national and local policies on food that affect all of us,” Chang said.
“I look forward to helping build on the canon of work that Civil Eats has been publishing for the past 15 years,” she responded to Civil Eats on Twitter.
We look forward to watching Momo continue her journalism journey growing and shaping the incredible work of Civil Eats. She will always remain part of the extended #MaynardFamily.