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Bridge Michigan expands again, hiring reporter and digital marketing associate

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Janelle D. James and Asha Lewis joined Bridge Michigan and The Center for Michigan this year, following rapid growth at the news source and its publisher nonprofit.

Bridge Michigan and its nonprofit publisher, The Center for Michigan, have expanded again, hiring a first-ever full-time breaking news reporter and digital marketing associate to join our award-winning team.

Janelle D. James has worked since January as Bridge Michigan’s general assignment and breaking news reporter, writing stories about everything from power outages, toxic waste and the Michigan State University mass shooting to taxes, school safety and electric vehicles.

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Asha Lewis started Monday as digital marketing associate, a job that will work to bring Bridge Michigan and BridgeDetroit content to new audiences and deepen loyalty among existing readers.

Both positions were created following a decade of growth at Bridge Michigan, which in recent years has expanded its political reporting team and hired reporters to cover state business, health and the environment.

Bridge Michigan now has 20 full-time employees, most of whom are journalists and includes four recipients of the Michigan Press Association’s Richard Milliman Journalist of the Year Award. Bridge Michigan is a four-time recipient of the MPA’s Newspaper of the Year award.

BridgeDetroit, meanwhile, has grown its audience each year since its launch in the spring of 2020 and continues to expand on its strategies to reach new audiences in Detroit.

“We’re incredibly proud of our growth and lucky to add two great journalists to our team,” said Katy Locker, the Center for Michigan’s chief executive officer. 

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“As the center and its publications continue to grow, we are very delighted to be part of the early careers of these journalists and to continue to build a team that can serve our mission of making Michigan better through high-quality, non-partisan journalism and engagement.”

James is a native of Detroit who has a bachelor degree in journalism and political science from Michigan State University. She previously worked as a Capitol News correspondent for MSU and interned at the Detroit Free Press.

Lewis is from Grand Rapids, worked for the USA Today Network and was an intern at Bridge Michigan in 2020. She has a degree in sociology from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where she spent four years working at The Michigan Daily in various roles, including managing editor of audience engagement.

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