Ryan “R.L.” Nave
Fractional Content Chief— Newsrooms, Media Companies, & Nonprofits
Journalist and newsroom executive,
now running a media consultancy for small newsrooms, media startups and nonprofits with a throughline of helping communities engaged in narrative change work
Things I Helped Build
Current & recent | Advisory engagements
The Mississippi Independent — Editorial Strategy & Audience Growth
Editorial strategy and audience growth tied to legislative and election coverage.
Black With No Chaser — Building BWNC News
Supporting BWNC build a standalone news channel: editorial and workflows for the team behind BWNC’s 1M+ audience.
Center for Just Journalism—Designing a Public Safety Reporting Cohort
Co-designed and co-led a program for early-career Southern journalists on public-safety reporting beyond the crime beat.
Disabled Journalists Association — Site launch and advising
Site launch, editorial strategy, program design, workflow, and founder support.
Projects with Impact
Award-winning investigations & reporting
Inside an alleged scheme to bilk vulnerable immigrant detainees out of thousands
A private prison company and federal immigration agency acted after this investigation by The Mississippi Independent.
Southeast Emmy Winner
A Reckon.news / AL.com collaboration, companion to AL.com’s Pulitzer-winning investigation into police fines and fees.
‘A Dog Can Be Trained to Be Anti-Black’
Companion to “Mauled,” part of the AL.com / Marshall Project / Invisible Institute series that won the 2021 Pulitzer Prize.
Debtors-Prisons Investigation Wins 2021 Goldsmith Prize
Reporting from the investigative team built under Nave’s editorial leadership at Mississippi Today.
Thought leadership & presentations
SXSW: Battle of Local News vs. Disinformation
Panelist alongside Vivian Schiller (Civil Foundation), Craig Newmark (Craig Newmark
Philanthropies), and Steven Waldman (Report for America).
Saving Local News in the U.S.
ISOJ: Panelist as Editor-in-Chief, Mississippi Today, alongside Knight Foundation’s
Jim Brady and the late Texas Tribune co-founder John Thornton.
Press We’ve Won
Ryan L. Nave 