On Wednesday, June 3rd over 30 DSPolitical employees tuned in to listen and learn from the guest speaker of a new series headed by DSPolitical’s Diversity and Inclusion Taskforce. This new ongoing event, known as The DEI Speaker Series, is an initiative to expose DSPolitical employees to ideas and lessons from leaders of diverse backgrounds within the fields of politics, data, and technology. Speakers are invited to share stories of their career experiences, the paths they’ve taken, and the lessons they’ve learned along the way. The DEI Taskforce hopes these events will give DSPolitical employees even more inspiration for their work and for the paths they imagine for themselves from here and beyond. 

Shawna Thomas, celebrated producer and journalist, kicked off The DEI Speaker Series as our very first guest speaker. Shawna is a Content Development Executive at Quibi, and formerly the DC Bureau Chief & Correspondent for Vice News, and Senior Producer for NBC News’ Meet the Press. Her many accolades include winning a Peabody Award as well as an Emmy – 4 times. She’s covered some of the most important stories of our recent political landscape, including the last 3 presidential elections, the 2018 Kavanugh confirmation hearing and helped manage VICE News’ coverage of 2017 white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, VA. 

During the event, Shawna spoke about the course her career has taken, including her unique beginnings as a Fox News intern and her return to school for a Masters degree in Journalism. She advised on tough career-based questions, such as, “What are the things you wished you knew earlier in your career?” and, “How did you get past a point in your career where things weren’t going your way?” 

Shawna also spoke candidly about her unique perspective on the current state of our nation, journalism, and media. By the time the hour was up and the event was scheduled to end, questions were still coming in from the DSPolitical audience for Shawna to answer!

Thank you to Shawna and the DEI Task Force for an insightful event and the start of an incredible initiative here at DSPolitical!