Since its foundation, the journalism industry has been predominantly white and male. Happily, we’re beginning to see more accomplished female journalists, but work still needs to be done to diversify newsrooms as a whole. In honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, we’re spotlighting Asian American female journalists for their love, dedication, and passion to journalism — despite the barriers that come with being a woman of color. Whether you find this post in May or any time of year, we’re excited for you to discover these trailblazers.
Connie Chung
Where They’ve Worked: CBS, ABC, NBC, CNN
Why We’re Celebrating Connie: Constance Yu-Hwa Chung Povich, a journalist for almost half a century now, was the first Asian American and second woman to ever be a nightly news anchor at a major network. After graduating with a journalism degree from University of Maryland, Connie started as a correspondent for CBS Evening News, later becoming the co-anchor for the Evening News. Despite controversy for her blunt questions in several interviews, Connie stayed on top, going from a CBS co-anchor to an ABC co-host of ‘20/20’ to hosting her own show on CNN, ‘Connie Chung Tonight.’ Understanding her worth and maintaining her passion, Connie was and still is a journalism icon, 50 years later, for Asian American women.
Notable Awards: 3 Emmy Awards, Peabody Award
Juju Chang
Where They’ve Worked: ABC
Why We’re Celebrating Juju: Hyunju “Juju” Chang is currently the anchor of ABC’s Nightline, previously serving as ABC’s anchor for Good Morning America and contributing to ‘20/20.’ Juju graduated from Stanford University with a Bachelor’s in political science and communications. Now, she is America’s most seen Asian female talking lead. Juju is well known for her in-depth, personal narratives behind the scenes of pressing news, like her examination of the controversial “Remain in Mexico” immigration policy through the lens of a pregnant woman and her family, among others, camped along the Rio Grande. For her reporting from the 1991 Gulf War to violence against transgender women of color to co-anchoring an ABC News Live special about the rise of hate crimes toward the Asian American and Pacific Islander community in 2021, Juju is an award-winning journalist and viewed as the new Connie Chung.
Notable Awards: 3 Emmy Awards, 2 Gracie Awards, DuPont Award
Where to Follow: @JujuChangABC
Elaine Quijano
Where They’ve Worked: CBS, CNN
Why We’re Celebrating Elaine: Elaine Quijano, a current anchor for the Sunday edition of CBS Evening News and occasionally for CBS This Morning, previously worked at CNN as a White House correspondent. In 2016, Elaine became the first Asian American to moderate a vice presidential debate. Since her graduation from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Elaine has covered the September 11 terrorist attacks, major stories in Kuwait, the Boston Marathon bombings, the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting, and convinced President Obama’s office to send correspondence to the families of military members that committed suicide.
Notable Awards: Emmy Award, DuPont Award
Where to Follow: @Elaine_Quijano
Janet Wu
Where They’ve Worked: WCVB-TV, WCBS
Why We’re Celebrating Janet: Janet Wu is a multimedia journalist and adjunct professor at Emerson College. She is an Op-Ed contributor for the Boston Globe, and has been published in the New York Times and in the 2019 “Norton Sampler of Essays.” She is a reporter for WCVB-TV and for WCBS in New York City. Janet is a graduate from Yale for philosophy and psychology, and has a masters in journalism and international affairs from Columbia University. She is also a founding member of SheGives, a philanthropic organization of women in Boston who support a wide range of local nonprofit organizations, working on issues like health, homelessness, education, the arts, and the environment.
Notable Awards: Murrow Award
Where to Follow: @JanetWuNews
Asma Khalid
Where They’ve Worked: NPR
Why We’re Celebrating Asma: Asma Khalid is a political correspondent for NPR who co-hosts NPR’s Politics Podcast. Asma has reported on the 2014, 2016, and 2018 elections and covered the 2020 presidential campaign. Before joining NPR’s political team, Asma helped launch and lead a new initiative, called BostonomiX, to chronicle the fast-growing innovation economy for Boston’s NPR station WBUR. After graduating from Indiana University with a bachelor’s in Journalism and Political Science and from the University of Cambridge with a Master of Philosophy in Middle East and Islamic Studies, Asma went on to major reporting from the Boston Marathon Bombings to the trial of James “Whitey” Bulger to the climate of Pakistan after the killing of Osama bin Laden in 2011.
Notable Awards: Missouri Honor Medal
Where to Follow: @asmamk
Deeyah Khan
Where They’ve Worked: Fuuse
Why We’re Celebrating Deeyah: Deeyah Khan is a documentary film director and the founder of Fuuse, a music, arts, and film production company that allows women, minorities, and third-culture kids to share their own stories. Having won 27 major awards and 12 additional nominations, Deeyah is known as one of Norway’s most successful filmmakers. She became the first UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador in 2016 for artistic freedom and creativity and has made six documentaries to date. Deeyah has traveled the world, speaking with white supremacists and jihadists to understand their motivations, for two of her documentaries: Emmy award winner White Right: Meeting the Enemy and BAFTA nominee Jihad: A Story of the Others.
Notable Awards: 2 Emmy Awards, Peabody Award
Where to Follow: @Deeyah_Khan
Ellen Nakashima
Where They’ve Worked: The Washington Post
Why We’re Celebrating Ellen: Ellen Nakashima covers national security for the Washington Post. She is an award-winning journalist for her coverage of cybersecurity counterterrorism and intelligence issues. Since her graduation from the University of California, Berkeley with a bachelor’s in humanities, Ellen has reported on the hidden scope of government surveillance and its policy implications, examined the Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, served as a Southeast Asia correspondent, and covered the White House and Virginia state politics over the past two decades.
Notable Awards: 2 Pulitzer Prizes, Gerald Loeb Award
Where to Follow: @nakashimae
Farnaz Fassihi
Where They’ve Worked: New York Times, Wall Street Journal
Why We’re Celebrating Farnaz: Farnaz Fassihi writes about Iran for the New York Times. After her gradation from the University of Tehran, she worked as a senior writer and war correspondent at the Wall Street Journal as a conflict reporter based in the Middle East covering wars and uprisings. Farnaz served as the WSJ’s overseas correspondent reporting on the happenings in Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq, Israel, Egypt, Turkey, and more. She has been honored with over a dozen awards for her international reporting and work at the WSJ overseeing the newspaper’s coverage and team of reporters. Prior to joining the WSJ, Farnaz covered the September 11 attacks, the war in Afghanistan, Second Palestinian intifada and Iraq under Saddam Hussein as a reporter for The Star-Ledger of Newark, NJ.
Notable Awards: Robert F. Kennedy Award, Overseas Press Club’s Hal Boyle Award, Ellis Island Medal of Honor
Where to Follow: @farnazfassihi
Hind Hassan
Where They’ve Worked: VICE News, Sky News
Why We’re Celebrating Hind: Hind Hassan is a correspondent for VICE News, covering a wide range of global stories including the humanitarian crisis in Iraq, protests in Sudan, tension in Kashmir and the rise of populism in Eastern Europe. Hind was part of a VICE News team that became the first international journalists to gain access to Argun Prison in Chechnya where it is alleged that gay men are tortured. After her graduation from the City University of London with a master’s in broadcast journalism, Hind joined Sky News and reported on the U.K. terror trials and the state of Syrian refugees.
Where to Follow: @HindHassanNews
Priya Anand
Where They’ve Worked: Bloomberg, The Information, BuzzFeed News
Why We’re Celebrating Priya: Priya Anand is a reporter for Bloomberg Business covering startups, and previously covered Amazon.com Inc. for The Information as well as tech and transportation for BuzzFeed News. Since her graduation from the George Washington University, Priya has also been published in the Wall Street Journal, Politico, and the Houston Chronicle.
Where to Follow: @Priyasideas
Sarah Khan
Where They’ve Worked: Travel + Leisure, Gotham, Condé Nast
Why We’re Celebrating Sarah: Sarah Khan is an award-winning travel writer and has lived in five countries on three continents. She previously worked as an editor at Travel + Leisure and Gotham magazines in New York City. Khan’s work has been published in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Condé Nast Traveler, Saveur, Food & Wine, Surface, Vogue India, Virtuoso Life, and several other publications. Sarah has a bachelor’s in English and Communications from Boston University and a master’s in journalism from Syracuse University. She has delved into versatile pieces ranging from covering a 1,500-mile road trip across Namibia to interviewing influencers on their heritages to creating a perfect three-day New York City itinerary.
Notable Awards: 4 Gold in the Society of American Travel Writers’ Awards,
Where to Follow: @BySarahKhan
Know someone who should be on this list? Suggest them in our open form here!
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