Center for Public Integrity Chief of Staff and Operations Jin Ding was named 2023 Member of the Year by the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA) at the organization’s annual convention on Saturday.
Ding’s contributions to AAJA and support of fellow journalists have had a far-reaching impact.
Ding first joined AAJA in 2017 while working at the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. A year later, they collaborated with Shirley Qiu, currently the news analytics & insights editor at The Washington Post, to establish AAJA’s “Women and Non-Binary Voices” affinity group, aiming to create a supportive and secure environment for women and nonbinary journalists. From 2020 to 2023, Ding co-chaired the organization’s convention programming committee, overseeing the organization of two virtual conventions and the in-person conventions held in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., the past two years.
“Jin’s role as VP of Finance for AAJA is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Paul Cheung, CEO of Public Integrity and former president of AAJA from 2013 to 2016. “Beyond her official title, Jin actively engages in convention programming to benefit our members, provides essential online security training for our leadership program fellows in Asia, and takes the lead in organizing gatherings for AAPI non-profit journalists and funders, aiming to advance equity in journalism for AAPIs.”
Ding was elected to AAJA’s national board of directors as the vice president of finance in 2021. In this position, they played a crucial role in introducing essential programs for AAJA, including a mental wellness program, a fiscal sponsor program, and the AAPI nonprofit executives’ roundtable.
“What I can provide for AAJA could never match what the organization has given me. Leaders from AAJA have taught me endurance, resilience, kindness, innovation and so much more. AAJA is my chosen family, which has consistently shown up for me throughout my career,” Ding said. “My mentors, teachers, friends, mentees and colleagues from AAJA were there for me no matter when I was laughing, crying, anxious or scared. They inspire me daily to improve and catch me when I feel the lowest of lows. I’m not here for returns, because I have gotten plenty. It’s truly an honor to contribute, donate, volunteer and share my perspectives with AAJA.”
Prior to joining Public Integrity, Ding co-managed The Associated Press’s philanthropic fundraising efforts, maintaining relationships with funders and between funders and various editorial departments at the AP. They raised more than $3 million at the AP for inclusive journalism, education, climate and investigative journalism.
Prior to AP, Ding managed a portfolio of journalism grants at The International Women’s Media Foundation, was the communications and inclusion manager at the Pulitzer Center and a research and marketing analyst for NBC Sports.
Founded in 1989, the Center for Public Integrity is one of the oldest nonprofit news organizations in the country and is dedicated to investigating systems and circumstances that contribute to inequality in the United States.