Talia Buford
I’m an assistant managing editor, and I help recruit, hire and support ProPublicans.
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What I Do
I’m the assistant managing editor responsible for recruitment, hiring and career development. I lead the talent department, the team that is responsible, in short, for ProPublicans. We find them, nurture relationships with them and guide them through our hiring process. Once they’re here, our team supports them with career development opportunities so they can do the best journalism of their lives.
My Background
For much of my career, I was an investigative journalist who wrote about energy and the environment with a focus on the disproportionate impacts borne by marginalized communities. I joined ProPublica in 2017, and was part of a team of reporters whose coverage of the coronavirus pandemic was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. In 2020, I became ProPublica’s first talent development director.
I previously worked at The Center for Public Integrity, Politico Pro and The Providence Journal in Rhode Island. I hold a master’s degree in the study of law from Georgetown University Law Center and a bachelor’s degree in print journalism from Hampton University.
A Hog Waste Agreement Lacked Teeth, and Some North Carolinians Say They’re Left to Suffer
Today, many farmers continue to store the waste in open pits despite the millions of dollars in private investment spent and years of research and political promises. The practice grows more hazardous with each hurricane that pounds the state.
Potential Insurance Bill From Hurricane Florence Could Take Toll on Wallets Far From North Carolina’s Coast
Insurance companies retreated from some communities amid stronger storms, leaving a “last-resort” plan to fill the growing gap.
Suppressed Study: The EPA Underestimated Dangers of Widespread Chemicals
The CDC has quietly published a controversial review of perfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, that indicates more people are at risk of drinking contaminated water than previously thought.
Climate Change and Vulnerable Communities — Let’s Talk About This Hot Mess.
In my first episode of this PBS Digital Studios show, I dissect why minorities and disadvantaged people will face bigger consequences in a warming world.
Canary in the Coal Pond
New reports provide an unprecedented look at contaminants leaking from coal ash ponds and landfills. But the chasm between information and environmental protection may deepen thanks to a proposed Trump administration rollback.
What It’s Like Inside the Trump Administration’s Regulatory Rollback at the EPA
The fate of a rule more than a decade in the making is a microcosm of larger changes afoot.
Has the Moment for Environmental Justice Been Lost?
Facing Trump’s proposals for cutting programs that help minorities and the poor, Democrats scramble to make up for missed opportunities to protect them.
In Flint Water Crisis, Could Involuntary Manslaughter Charges Actually Lead to Prison Time?
Prosecutors will try to prove five Michigan officials were responsible for a Legionnaires’ death because they knew about the problem, but failed to warn the public. Similar cases of environmental disasters have not resulted in convictions, but there are reasons Flint could break the mold.