Hi, I’m Vignesh.
I focus on building audiences for media and tech.
I also edit and report on race, culture and politics, as co-founder of Red, White and Brown Media, chronicling South Asian American stories.
Say my name, say my name...
(“vig-naysh”) (“raw-mah-chun-dren”)
I am co-founder and editor of Red, White and Brown Media (subscribe on Substack), focused on building media representation and sharing South Asian American stories.
I have worked for several media and tech companies, including Apple News, The Washington Post, PBS NewsHour, ProPublica, Peninsula Press, Stanford Computational Journalism Lab, Mashable and NBC News Digital.
Early in my career, I once worked for NBC’s TODAY show, where my morning-person tendencies helped, as well as for “Food Network Challenge,” where I (sadly) learned no one really ate the cakes after the desserts sat under studio lights all day.
I am currently based in San Francisco. I love dogs, including my pup Laddoo.
Media and technology experience at:
Resume
Work Examples
Race, Culture and Politics
“Indian Americans could prove critical in a tight election” (New Lines Magazine)
Twitter Spaces/Instagram Live interview series with Asian American newsmakers (Red, White and Brown)
“Millions depend on private messaging apps to keep in touch. They’re ripe with misinformation.” (PBS NewsHour)
“How to celebrate Diwali this year” (5280 Magazine)
“Denver’s Havana Street gains influx of new Asian-owned food businesses” (5280 Magazine)
“Post-9/11 surveillance has left a generation of Muslim Americans in a shadow of distrust and fear” (PBS NewsHour)
“How American Muslims have been represented in popular culture post-9/11” (PBS NewsHour)
“A meditation of longing and loss set in post-war Sri Lanka” (Electric Literature)
“Denver used to be home to the world’s largest community of Mongolian immigrants” (5280 Magazine)
“Love and critique: A conversation with Sanjena Sathian about ‘Gold Diggers’” (Los Angeles Review of Books)
“How the Sikh community’s experiences with hate crimes shows why data collection is so important” (PBS NewsHour)
“Indian Americans face a pandemic crisis raging on thousands of miles away” (Colorado Public Radio)
“Asian-owned businesses say they’re reeling from hate and violence” (PBS NewsHour)
“Asian Americans are the fastest growing group in the U.S.” (PBS NewsHour)
“Colorado’s Asian-American communities haven’t been immune to pandemic-related racism” (5280 Magazine)
“What you can do to fight violence and racism against Asian Americans” (PBS NewsHour)
“How to address the surge of anti-Asian hate crimes” (PBS NewsHour)
“‘Words matter’ as Asian American leaders urge action against hate crimes” (PBS NewsHour)
“Parvesh Cheena has starred in television shows that have defined an era” (Chicago Reader)
“The data behind 9 big challenges facing Biden” (PBS NewsHour)
“Tackling anti-Blackness in South Asian communities” (Reimagined)
“South Asian and Chinese New Yorkers among the hardest hit by COVID-19” (NBC News/NBC Asian America)
“Energized by Kamala Harris’ win, South Asians hope to increase political representation” (Colorado Public Radio)
“South Asian Americans face disproportionately higher risks of heart disease” (The Washington Post, KFF Health News)
“A Brown Tuesday: A look at all-things South Asian American during Election 2020” (Red, White and Brown)
“Dive into Denver’s South Indian food scene” (5280 Magazine)
“20 questions in 20 days” audience engagement campaign on Instagram (Red, White and Brown)
“Why Indian cuisine is having a fast-casual moment right Now” (Eater)
“Pronouncing my own name, correctly” (Red, White and Brown)
“When policing and race cross paths in Silicon Valley” (NPR Code Switch)
“Hasan Minhaj is the next big Brown king of comedy” (Movie Time Guru)
“Are traffic stops prone to racial bias?” (The Marshall Project)
“A large-scale analysis of racial disparities in police stops across the United States” (Stanford/academic journals)
Nationwide public records requests and traffic stops data collection (Stanford Open Policing Project)
Video Production and Editing
Local and National News
“Colorado moves to connect agricultural workers with mental health resources” (KFF Health News)
“How to report on banned books in prisons in your state” (The Marshall Project)
“During in-flight emergencies, sometimes airlines’ medical kits fall short” (Fortune, KFF Health News)
“For Colorado’s teacher of the year, music education goes beyond learning an instrument” (Colorado Public Radio)
“Colorado’s election system is the ‘gold standard’ nationally” (Colorado News Collaborative - COLab)
“Partisan beliefs influence views on election security in Colorado” (Colorado News Collaborative - COLab)
“As politics infects public health, private companies profit” (CNN, KFF Health News)
“The kindergarten exodus during the pandemic” (The New York Times)
“Denver art installation doubles as skate park and stormwater mitigation” (Next City)
“Why ransomware attacks are on the rise — and what can be done to stop them” (PBS NewsHour)
“How COVID-19 changed public transportation” (PBS NewsHour)
“Why there are gas shortages on the East Coast” (PBS NewsHour)
“Ranchers struggle with access to mental health services as COVID puts stress on rural communities” (People, KFF Health News)
“Colorado teachers worry about how they’ll get the COVID vaccine” (Colorado Public Radio)
“Big Tobacco stands down as Colorado and Oregon hike cigarette taxes” (Fortune Magazine, KFF Health News)
“New year, new patchwork of policies across Colorado school districts” (Colorado Public Radio)
“How a 41-year-old Greek diner is weathering the pandemic” (5280 Magazine)
“Teachers grapple with doing their jobs facing a patchwork of coronavirus policies” (Colorado Public Radio)
“Educators struggle with how to best support their students’ learning and mental health” (Colorado Public Radio)
“When it comes time to reopen classrooms, this working group hopes to help it go smoothly” (Colorado Public Radio)
“Denver Public Schools shifts to remote learning” (Denverite)
“Bicycle retailers are seeing unprecedented sales during pandemic” (The Colorado Sun)
“Getting to know Illinois — and you” (ProPublica)
“Every day, a child is held beyond medical necessity in Illinois” (ProPublica)
Journalism Ecosystem and News Industry
“How WyoFile accelerated growth with community buy-in and grant funding” (Institute for Nonprofit News)
“Eight practices lead to revenue sustainability for these statewide nonprofit news outlets” (Institute for Nonprofit News)
“How Mississippi Free Press’ pandemic launch reached a loyal donor base” (Institute for Nonprofit News)
“How funding local news ecosystems helps American communities thrive” (Democracy Fund)
“How New Jersey newsrooms banded together to sell ads” (The Lenfest Institute for Journalism)
“How nonprofit newsrooms translate stories to better reach audiences” (Institute for Nonprofit News)
“How three women journalist leaders channeled legacy newsroom experiences into creating healthier nonprofit organizations” (Institute for Nonprofit News)
“We asked journalism leaders: How does your newsroom serve communities of color?” (Institute for Nonprofit News)
“COVID-19 story recipe: Analyze school enrollment changes in the districts you cover” (Source/OpenNews)
“How to host an intern: Advice from nonprofit news leaders” (Institute for Nonprofit News)
“How nonprofit newsrooms track sources to ensure coverage reflects community” (Institute for Nonprofit News)
“How Bay City News raised major donor revenue in a time of hardship” (Institute for Nonprofit News)
“Service journalism during a year of crisis” (Institute for Nonprofit News)
“The Brown Institute’s Local News Lab is developing ‘smart paywalls’ for local newsrooms” (Nieman Lab)
“How California newsrooms teamed up to gather pandemic data” (Source/OpenNews)
“How do you identify fake news?” (ProPublica)
“You’re entitled to government transparency” (ProPublica)
“Student reporters can serve their communities when administrators aren’t in the way” (ProPublica)
Essays and Op-Eds
“My grandmother’s sambar powder” (Red, White and Brown, India Currents)
“How taking risks at the worst time was the best thing I did” (The Wall Street Journal)
“Ambulu Paati was not your typical South Indian grandma. And we loved her for that.” (Red, White and Brown)
“Op-ed: What Kamala Harris’ historic win means to Indian Americans” (San Francisco Chronicle)
“The coronavirus detoured my childhood dream of moving to New York” (The Colorado Sun)
“Pronouncing my own name — correctly” (Red, White and Brown)
In The News
Well, this is meta. Sometimes, I get interviewed about stuff by other journalists.
“In Conversation: The real people behind the news” (University of Colorado CMCI Now Magazine)
“15 successful journalists reveal their top 3 productivity tools” (Distill.io)
“Computer scientists think they have the answer to police misconduct” (ThinkProgress)
“Traffic stop data probed” (Stanford Magazine)
“Weddings without borders” (The Hindu)
“Fitbit’s challenge: Move from ‘nice-to-have’ to ‘need-to-have’” (The Wall Street Journal)
“Can virtual reality make you more empathetic?” (NPR “All Things Considered”)
“Meet web producer Vignesh Ramachandran” (ProPublica)
“Knight News Challenge winners focus on data and transparency” (Nieman Lab)
Speaking Gigs
Sometimes, I talk at events or on shows about stories, news industry trends and more.
“South Asian love across generations: A book talk with author Nina Sharma and Indian Matchmaking’s Vyasar Ganesan” (Books Inc, 2024 — Palo Alto)
“What’s in a Name: A candid community conversation about South Asian American names” (Red, White and Brown, 2024 — virtual)
“How COVID-19 coverage impacted discrimination towards Asian communities” (Colorado Media Project 2022 — Denver)
“Using Twitter to build and engage live audiences” (AAJA 2022 — Los Angeles)
“How can we make news nerd freelance work better for everyone?” (OpenNews’ SRCCON 2022 — virtual)
“Making remote work successful in a post-COVID world” (OpenNews’ SRCCON 2021 — virtual)
Interview on “Colorado Matters” live radio show with Ryan Warner (Colorado Public Radio — Denver)
“The Conversation” webinar discussion about anti-Asian American hate crimes (Communications professionals — virtual)
“Adventures of a Young Reporter” book event with author Peter Copeland and ProPublica’s Melissa Sanchez (Columbia College — Chicago)
ProPublica’s Diversity Mentorship Program co-hosting with Hannah Birch (ONA 2019 — New Orleans)
“Proud to be a Platypus: Finding your own innovative role in news” with Hannah Birch (OpenNews’ SRCCON 2019 — Minneapolis)
Online News Association MJ Bear Fellowship presentation on visual storytelling (ONA 2018 — Austin)
Awards & Recognitions
Sometimes, I get to put something on my refrigerator.
Third place award for business feature, Top of the Rockies contest, 2024 (SPJ - Society of Professional Journalists)
First place award for health feature, Top of the Rockies contest, 2021 (SPJ — Society of Professional Journalists)
MJ Bear Fellow, 2018 (ONA — Online News Association)
Contact
Call me, beep me, if you wanna reach me.
Email
Vignesh(at)VigneshR
(dot)(com)
Secure Message
On Signal at
773-599-3717
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