Farai Chideya
Born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, Farai Chideya grew up with family from all walks of life and opinions — military, art school, educators, and civil servants. Every Thanksgiving after dinner, her family would hotly debate the issues of the day – from abortion, to transgender rights, to the Vietnam War – and then move on to dessert.That’s Farai's American side. Her paternal Zimbabwean side, which she first visited at age four and then in adulthood over the past two decades, gave her an increasingly rich perspective on race, culture, politics and economics from an African diasporic and trans-Atlantic perspective.Today, Farai works both behind the scenes and in public forums on questions of media equity — meaning, the ways in which media can serve rural and urban Americans; people of all races and national backgrounds, and gender — for the health of civil society. Her most recent book, The Episodic Career, is about how we must be psychologically self-employed (including being aware of dynamic shifts in our workplaces, industries and economy) in order to pivot, grow, earn and thrive. On camera and on the air, she talks on a variety of broadcast outlets about politics, demographics and cultural analysis. I also write my own data- and reporting-rich stories.Farai previously served as a Program Officer focusing on journalism with the Ford Foundation’s Creativity and Free Expression team before launching an independent radio show and podcast, Our Body Politic in 2020. The show centers how Black women and other women of color shape news and politics.