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Guest: Julie Makinen (journalist, editor, newsroom leader, and local news advocate)

Julie Makinen has done the rare thing in journalism: she’s worked at the highest levels of national and international newsrooms and chosen to bring that experience home to local journalism in the Coachella Valley. In this episode, Julie walks through her unexpected path from Stanford human biology major (med school was the plan… until it wasn’t) to a career that took her from the Washington Post to the LA Times, the New York Times ecosystem, and reporting/editing roles across Hong Kong and Beijing before leading The Desert Sun newsroom in Palm Springs.

Jason and Julie also dig into the big question: how local journalism survives now and what philanthropy, community support, and organizations like the Coachella Valley Journalism Foundation can realistically do to keep reporting alive. CVJF’s mission includes celebrating journalists, funding more reporting, and connecting the public to the work.

In this episode

• How a Stanford biology major became a lifelong journalist
• The internship moment that changed everything (Washington Post “big league” initiation)
• Why foreign correspondence is exhilarating and clarifying
• What it’s like running a newsroom covering a massive desert region with limited staff
• The uncomfortable truth about philanthropy supporting for-profit newsrooms
• Why “going nonprofit” isn’t a magic fix
• The business mistake that trained audiences to expect “free” news
• Why great journalism takes teams (not just solo newsletters and podcasts)
• The mission and future of the Coachella Valley Journalism Foundation

Mentioned in the conversation

Coachella Valley Journalism Foundation (CVJF)

• CVJF’s mission: promote and support sustainable community journalism in the Coachella Valley.
• CVJF’s Hall of Fame honors media professionals and supports the future of local reporting.

Hall of Fame keynote: Tonya Mosley
Tonya Mosley co-hosts Fresh Air alongside Terry Gross.

Call to action

If you care about local reporting—city halls, schools, public safety, water, development, the stories that shape daily life—support the people doing the work.

• Learn more, donate, and get on the CVJF mailing list: https://cvjf.org/
• Check the Hall of Fame page for the latest event details and tickets https://cvjf.org/cvjf-hall-of-fame/

And wherever you live: find a local journalism support org, subscribe to a local outlet you trust, and show up. Local news doesn’t survive on applause.

Let Life After News inspire your next chapter. Because leaving the news doesn’t mean the story’s over—it means a new one’s just beginning.