ProPublica selects 11 journalists for investigative editor training
More than 130 applicants competed for spots in the 2026 Investigative Editor Training Program, which aims to expand the ranks of editors focused on accountability and impact journalism.
ProPublica has announced the selection of 11 journalists for its 2026 Investigative Editor Training Program, a cohort drawn from more than 130 applicants. The program, established in 2023, seeks to expand the ranks of editors in newsrooms across the country whose work is aimed at accountability and impact. Since its inception, the initiative has trained more than 31 journalists.
The selected participants will begin with a five-day intensive editing boot camp in New York. Courses and panel discussions will be led by ProPublica’s senior editors. Following the boot camp, participants will gather virtually throughout the year for continuing development seminars and be assigned a ProPublica senior editor as a mentor for advice on their work and careers.
Managing Editor Ginger Thompson, who oversees the program, noted the high level of interest in the initiative. “Each year, we are thrilled by the number of people who reach out to us for this training,” Thompson said. “It’s ProPublica’s way of supporting investigative reporting at a time when our mission couldn’t be more vital.”
The 2026 cohort includes journalists from a range of prominent outlets. Aaron Sankin, data editor at The Marshall Project, brings experience winning the Edward R. Murrow Award and the Gerald Loeb Award. Deblina Chakraborty serves as senior science editor at CNN, while Josh McGhee is the Chicago bureau chief of MindSite News. Kynala Phillips edits the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Neighborhood Dispatch, and Karen Chávez is executive editor of USA Today’s Asheville Citizen Times.
Also selected are Kevin Uhrmacher, deputy news applications editor at ProPublica; Margaret Ho, assistant editor in The New York Times’ Washington bureau; Padma Rama, senior political editor at NPR; Rosalie Chan, senior editor at Business Insider; Thy Vo, investigative editor for InvestigateWest; and Yoohyun Jung, data editor at The Boston Globe. Jung was part of the Spotlight team that was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2025.
Alumni of the program currently work in newsrooms including The Boston Globe, KQED, The Texas Tribune, ESPN, and ProPublica. The training is designed to provide ongoing support and mentorship to editors who are shaping investigative reporting standards.
