Propublica announced on Thursday that Wendi C. Thomas, founder of Justice via the award-winning nonprofit newsroom MLK50: Justice, will be rejoining Propublica’s renowned fellow program. Thomas will work with Propublica to pursue a research project until April 2027.
“I’m excited to bring Wendy back to the local reporting network,” said Charles Ornstein, local managing editor at Propublica. “Wendy is an important voice for those who know Memphis, know the South and often ignored, uncomfortable, and force them to stand up to the unpleasant truth.”
Thomas was a local reporting network partner for Propopub Publica from 2019 to 2021, during which her series “Profit from the Poor” exposed the predatory debt collection practices of Memphis’ largest health care system, and eliminated hospitals by backtracking patient debt. The series has received the Selden Ring Award for Investigative Reporting, the Gerald Robe Award for Local Reporting, the Association of Healthcare Journalists for Business Reporting, and was number one in the Investigative Reporter & Editor Award in the Print/Online category.
MLK50: Justice by Journalism was founded in 2017 after Thomas came up with this idea when it was the previous year in a fellowship for the Neiman Foundation at Harvard University. Launched for $3,000, the MLK50 has grown into an organization with an annual budget of over $2 million, making a measurable difference for the most vulnerable Memphians. Thomas previously served as Metro columnist and assistant managing editor roles on Memphis commercial appeals, working for Charlotte Observer, Tennessee and Indianapolis Star. She is a Butler University alumni and is a proud product of the Memphis city school.
In addition to the recognition she received in her work as a local reporting network partner, Thomas is the 2023 recipient of the IF Stone Medal for Journalistic Independence and the 2022 recipient of the Local Champion Award for Freedom of Press from the Freedom of Press Committee. MLK50: In recognition of her work in creating Justice via Justice, she was awarded the 2019 Association of Black Journalists Best Practice Award and the 2018 Journalist of the Year by Journalism and Women’s Symposium.
“Propublica has done the best job of my career and allowed me to learn from some of the smartest minds in the business,” Thomas said. “We are pleased to be back to create more ‘good troubles’ on behalf of the city’s most vulnerable residents. ”
Starting in 2018, the Local Reporting Network is working on over 100 different projects with over 80 newsrooms. As part of Propublica’s 50 state initiative, announced last year, we will work with every state news organization on accountability stories over the next few years.
