Engagement Journalism
Below are various iterations of my work from my time in the Engagement Journalism program at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY. The community I chose to work with for the duration of the program was birth mothers and adoptees fighting for adoption reform. I worked collaboratively with this community to assess accountability needs and information gaps, utilizing listening posts, callouts, extensive social engagement, crowd-sourcing and working with community leaders and experts. Together we came up with the news product, "Voices of Adoption," which became a multimedia, multi-platform project, that went viral on TikTok, earning 140k views and over 2,000 comments on it's post addressing the Dobbs opinion leak.
Complicating the Narrative with the Adoption Constellation
Connecting the Dots: How Might We Create a Win-Win with Adoption Education?
National Adoption Month EXPLAINED, Part 2
National Adoption Month EXPLAINED, Part 1
Mental Health & Adoption: A Panel!
Join us this Sunday at 3PM EST (NYC time) for a panel discussion about inherent mental health impacts of adoption and how to navigate this holiday season. This is a LIVA AMA (ask me anything) event, so please come with your questions!
Joining us will be three incredible adoption-competent therapists, who are also themselves impacted by adoption, Marcella Moslow, Amy Barker D'Alessandro and Jennifer Joy Phoenix.
We wanted this to reach as many people in the community as possible as possible, so here are all the ways in which you can tune in:
TikTok: @sajotheadopteehag's page (app-only, does not work on web)
Facebook: Conversations About Adoption ( https://www.facebook.com/groups/conve...) private group as well as the Adoption Savvy Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/getadoptions...)
Twitter: @amandakmchugh (
/ amandakmchugh.. )
YouTube: www.whatnowproductions.com
Twitch: @whatnowproductions
Amanda Kari McHugh, adoptee, journalist and founder of Voices of Adoption will be moderating the panel.
We will also have Sara Jo moderating the TikTok chat amd Jen Matthews moderating Facebook!
Looking forward to seeing you all this Sunday.
_____________________________________________ #adoptiontruth #adoptee #adoptiontrauma #adopteevoices
"*we are using the term birth mother in our graphics because it is what is used legally in adoptions and it is also what AP style says to use. We are aware and empathetic to the fact that this is a term that many mothers dislike. During the live event, we will make sure that our panelists are referred to by a term that is their preference, which will also hopefully help educate a general audience about other terms that are often preferred. It is not our personal perspective that birth mothers are birthing vessels and nothing more. We respect and appreciate all mothers in the adoption constellation."
November is National Adoption Month!
Adoptee Remembrance Day
TikTok · Is Adoption the Alternative to Abortion?
Room for Growth: Evaluating lessons from listening to my community.
Additional Engagement-Like Projects
Below are projects I produced, in which I employed engagement tactics to make them come to life.
Virtual Panel: Proposition 22 +AB5
Hearing one thing from press, another from drivers you know, and still yet another from that super-liberal friend of yours?
Well here's a panel to help clear things up! For our panel, we've got four well-informed activists, freelancers, and small business owners who have been very active in the fight for job freedom since AB5's inception.
Amanda Kari McHugh, a former rideshare driver and freelance documentary filmmaker, will be moderating, and there will be an open Q&A at the end!
The Family Tree
Can't spare the cash but still want help?
Promoting our project via social media and e-mail helps us reach those who can and because of that is most valuable!
Sharing the link to our Kickstarter to a mailing list of more than 500 people, or a facebook group of 1,000+ will **earn you a credit as an "Outreach Partner" in the film credits and on our website! It's a way to bring creative projects to life. Learn more about accountability.
• Santa Claus Gift of Giving Reward
Selfless LA Springs Into Life
"LBD Films documented the formative stages of Selfless LA, a non profit organization dedicated to serving the community. Through artist collaboration and by working with organizations such as the Los Angeles Youth Network and various charitable organizations aimed at fighting homelessness, Selfless LA seeks to end the stigma that LA is a city driven only by ego."