Julia Baum
Staff Writer
Staff Writer
From crime to cannabis, I've been lucky to cover a myriad of news stories since moving four years ago to the dynamic and ever-changing Bay Area. After receiving my Journalism degree from CSU Sacramento, I spent time in the capital city of California covering public utility and city council meetings before going to work for Bay Area News Group. I spent several years covering general news in San Jose, where I quickly earned a reputation as an honest and engaged reporter with a knack for making meaningful connections and hunting down untold stories. For the past year I have specialized in cannabis journalism and write a weekly editorial/blog called "Pot Shots", highlighting marijuana news, trends and culture while doing preliminary research on food insecurity and federal SNAP policy issues for what would ultimately become my Fellowship proposal. I was also just hired on as a full-time staff writer for the Pleasanton Weekly newspaper, where I cover city council and school board meetings plus other community news, as well as regular features and cover stories. Growing up in a college town has instilled within me a deep appreciation for the value of both learning and sharing knowledge with others. I believe that journalism provides endless opportunities to learn something new every day, as well as help people find a meaningful way to apply that information to their own lives.
My own morals and ethics frequently came into play, whether it was weighing the responsibility of protecting a source’s identity against the public’s need for transparency or deciding if a series like this warranted a more discerning look at certain systems and policies in place.
To many of its approximately 2 million residents, Santa Clara County’s nickname “Valley of the Heart’s Delight” might seem like less of a nod to its agricultural roots and more tragically ironic.
One in four county residents — including children, seniors and disabled individuals — will see their monthly government food assistance benefits wiped out early this year now that a new federal rule to alter work requirements for food stamp recipients goes into effect.
Earlier this month marked the end of a public comment period for what would be the third rule change for SNAP, a proposal that stands to cut the nutrition benefits for at least a few million people.
Why does one of the wealthiest countries in the world make its most vulnerable citizens choose between food or shelter?