Breaking News: Soledad O’Brien on Rewriting Who Gets to Tell the Story
How do you change the narrative when the system was never designed to include you?
In this episode of Breaking Precedent, Soledad O'Brien joins the show to discuss her illustrious career in journalism, covering critical events from wars to hurricanes, and sharing the humorous contrast between her on-screen cooking segments and her real-life kitchen skills. O'Brien delves into her upbringing as the daughter of an interracial couple in a time when such marriages were illegal, shaping her perspective on education and resilience. Her journey from a production assistant to starting the Starfish Media Group highlights her commitment to centering authentic stories and challenging traditional narratives in media. The conversation covers the impact of storytelling in crises like Hurricane Katrina, the shifts needed in journalistic practices, and the importance of representation in media.
Soledad O’Brien is an award-winning journalist, producer, and media entrepreneur known for centering truth, context, and underreported voices in American storytelling. A former CNN anchor and correspondent, she led groundbreaking documentary series including Black in America, Latino in America, and In America, reshaping how media covers race, policy, and power.
Listeners can learn more about Soledad O’Brien at SoledadProductions and on Instagram @soledadobrien and LinkedIn @Soledadproduction
Resources:
Matter of Fact with Soledad O’Brien
Show Notes:
00:00 Welcome to Breaking Precedent!
00:30 Soledad's unexpected cooking skills
02:30 Growing up in an interracial family
04:09 “Education is the one thing no one can ever take from you.”
04:30 Early life and sibling dynamics
05:30 Journalistic beginnings and work ethic
14:30 Breaking media norms and covering major events
18:30 Challenges in modern journalism
25:00 Navigating leadership and integrity in journalism
26:00 Navigating authority and career challenges
27:00 Experiences at MSNBC and A KON TV
27:30 Handling criticism and proving oneself
31:00 Starting Starfish Media and breaking new ground
32:30 Telling compelling stories and documentaries
34:00 Balancing career and family life
43:00 The future of media and journalism
49:00 Promoting new documentaries and storytelling
51:00 Representation and impact in journalism
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Leah Solivan is the host of Breaking Precedent, a podcast that explores the stories of innovators who are pushing societal boundaries and setting new precedents in their fields. Leah is General Partner at Fuel Capital, where she invests in early-stage companies across consumer technology, hardware, education, marketplaces, and retail. Leah has 15 years of experience building and creating technology products that have reached millions of people around the globe. She started her career at IBM as an engineer in the software group, working on Lotus Notes and Domino. In 2008, Leah founded TaskRabbit, the leading on-demand service marketplace in the world.
Connect with Leah:
Website: breakingprecedent.com/
Instagram: @leah_solivan