Tania E. Lopez has decided to take on a new career path. A criminal justice reporter at Newsday for the past 6 years, she’s leaving the paper for a job in communications.
Her last day at Newsday is July 22.
“I love the newspaper business and I will never stop loving the profession. The skills I have acquired are priceless. The decision to leave the newspaper business is one that has taken me years of deep soul searching to make.”
Tania tells Media Moves why she decided to accept a position as Deputy Press Secretary for New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli:
“I always told journalism students that being a journalist is a calling, a public service, and that it is one you must take very seriously as our democracy and the chronicling of history depends on it. It’s the kind of profession that is not about you or your awards or your title or your byline in the paper. I could care less about my name being put on a story so long as it sees the light of day and makes a difference. You must have that fire in your belly to achieve that.
Once that fire starts to dwindle, you have to think about how that could affect your reporting. Well, I’m taking my own advice. That fire I had is not entirely gone, the spark is still there. But rather than live in denial and just ‘go through the motions’ I’ve decided it’s best to move on and add new skills to my arsenal. I started in public relations before I even became a reporter. This position came at the right time and I’m thrilled to start a new chapter.”
She starts her new role on July 28.
Tania joined Newsday in 2011 to cover the crime beat in Suffolk County. She was previously a reporter at the Indianapolis Star, where she spent almost 7 years as an education reporter. Before that, she worked as an education reporter for the Belleville News-Democrat from 2002 to 2004.
