Emerald Media Group’s Board of Directors has selected Michael Tobin as the Daily Emerald’s 2019-2020 Editor in Chief.
Tobin began working at the Emerald as a news reporter in May 2017 after switching majors from chemistry to journalism.

“After a term of really trivial assignments I just decided I was done [with chemistry],” Tobin said. “I grew up on public radio. I always had a passion for learning about people and their stories.”

Tobin hopes to expand on the type of watchdog journalism he’s been known for contributing to the Emerald in the past. In January, Tobin wrote a feature story about the conditions of homes in East Campus Housing.
“There’s so much happening on campus that we should be keeping an eye on,” Tobin said. “Like the Hayward field renovation and the Knight campus. These construction projects affect the way students move around campus and construction is something that’s going to be happening for the next decade.”

Current Editor in Chief Zach Price has worked with Tobin since 2017.

“Michael is always in the newsroom,” Price said. “He cares about the Emerald’s audience and readership, but also about the community within the Emerald. It’s what makes him a fantastic leader and very fit for the job.”

Tobin plans on shadowing Price during spring term in order to learn all he can about the position. Price is excited for Tobin to have the opportunity to usher in a sea of new faces at the beginning of Fall term.

“With a lot of reporters, editors and managers leaving next year, I think he’s by far the strongest candidate to build off what we’ve started while bringing in fresh ideas with the new staff next year,” Price said.

Tobin will spend his summer on the east coast as an intern for the Wall Street Journal, working closely with reporters and editors to produce accurate and compelling stories for the publication, he said. He plans to continue demystifying the journalistic process by instilling transparency within the newsroom for the Emerald’s readers.

“I want to bring people into the newsroom,” Tobin said. “Journalism can seem really mysterious but it’s not.”

Associate Sports Editor, Shawn Medow, has worked with Tobin on numerous stories the past 2 years.

“His passion for journalism is close to unrivaled in the Emerald newsroom,” Medow said. “Whether it’s public records or breaking news, Michael is always there to make sure it gets covered.”