Media Innovation Group Data Fellows
In Fall 2022, the Media Innovation Group started an initiative to connect students with data driven stories. Professor McDonald hired a group of Data Fellows to work on various projects that involve and utilize data from databases across the state. The Fellows' main focus has been building a searchable database of local campaign finances since 2020. Each fellow works in a different area of research from extracting and organizing data to presenting data in a podcast format. We are excited to see where the local campaign finances project takes our fellows, and we look forward to sharing our findings.
Emily DeMotte — Data Editor
- Journalism Senior with a minor in Law, Justice and Society
- Hometown: Plano, TX
Hi! My name is Emily DeMotte and I’m excited to continue exploring data journalism in my second year working with Media Innovation Group. Outside of MIG, I’m also a senior producer for The Drag Audio and a writing coach for the Moody Writing Support Program. In my free time, I enjoy rewatching my favorite shows, thrift shopping and finding new dessert spots.
Abby Breyfogle — Strategy Editor
- Journalism Senior with a certificate in Public Policy and Elements of Business
- Hometown: Austin, TX
Hello! My name is Abby Breyfogle, and I’m excited to be working with as MIG’s Strategy Editor. I handle all things communication for MIG. In addition to MIG, I also work as the Operations Manager at the Drag Audio Production House and President of Investigative Reporters and Editors at UT.
Outside of classes, I enjoy painting and trying new restaurants around Austin.
Jake Griffith — Data Fellow
- Journalism and History Senior
- Waxahachie, Texas
This will be my first semester working within the Media Innovation Group, and I am eager to deepen my understanding of meaningful data journalism while sharpening skills to analyze and apply datasets to reporting. Numbers tell stories, and I believe it is crucial for an informed society to be aware of what data and patterns are trying to tell them. In the past, I have spent my summers clerking alongside criminal defense attorneys and have written for the UT Cactus Yearbook. As a data fellow, I look forward to exploring new technological avenues to spark positive change in our communities. In my free time, you could probably catch me watching Dallas sports, a new TV show or outdoors fishing and golfing.
Ashlyn Poole — AI Fellow
Journalism Senior with a Statistics and Data Science minor
Hometown: Fort Worth, TX
My primary interest lies at the intersection of AI and journalism. I started with the Media Innovation Group as an AI Fellow last fall. This year, I’m continuing to develop my Sourcerer bot for Hearst Newspapers in collaboration with Ryan Serpico. The bot is a data extraction tool that utilizes AI and programming to create a source directory dataset.
Athena Tseng — Data Fellow
- Journalism Senior with a Statistics and Data Science minor and Design Strategies certificate
- Hometown: Frisco, TX
Hi! I’m Athena Tseng and I’m excited to be working with the Media Innovation Group this semester. I look forward to honing and strengthening my data journalism skills. I’m passionate about intersection of digital innovation and journalism. Outside of MIG, I have worked at The Daily Texan, Dallas Morning News, Texas Monthly and IBM.
In my free time, I enjoy trying new restaurants, walking around Town Lake and crafting.