Chips Quinn Reporter Spotlight: Minnah Arshad
Posting: Wednesday, January 22, 2025
Minnah Arshad, a National Correspondent for USA TODAY, is a storyteller driven by her passion for truth-seeking and a commitment to amplifying underrepresented voices. Hailing from Virginia with a background that bridges Pakistani and American cultures, Arshad’s work reflects her dedication to fostering understanding and justice through journalism.
Arshad’s journey into journalism began with her love for writing and learning about people. As a child, she wrote short stories and small novels, but her passion for uncovering the truth eventually led her to journalism. Inspired by its potential to create a more just society, she saw the field as a way to combine her storytelling skills with her belief in meaningful change.
Minnah Arshad
Chips Quinn Reporter
While studying at Wayne State University, Arshad was a peer mentor for the Journalism Institute for Media Diversity. This program prepared aspiring journalists from diverse backgrounds and provided her with mentorship and insights into the success stories of industry leaders. The discipline and exposure she gained during this time have been instrumental in shaping her career.
As a South Asian Muslim woman, Arshad is passionate about addressing global conflict and systemic corruption. She has experienced firsthand the consequences of journalism that fails to reflect diverse communities and is committed to ensuring that marginalized voices are heard.
One of Arshad’s most significant recent projects was an enterprise story for USA TODAY, which appeared on the front page. She interviewed refugees from Sudan and Congo who had fled largely overlooked conflicts, using her reporting to illuminate the causes of these hidden wars. This story underscores her ability to bring important, untold narratives to the forefront.
Why Apply for the Chips Quinn Program?
Arshad applied to the Chips Quinn Fellowship to connect with a community of diverse journalists and draw inspiration from their experiences. Entering the field during the pandemic was particularly challenging, and she values the fellowship for providing mentorship and opportunities for growth. Through the fellowship, Arshad aims to build the skills and confidence needed to take the next steps in her career. The 100-day plans have taught her how to set measurable goals, helping her stay focused on constant growth and learning.
Arshad’s advice to aspiring journalists is practical: “Keep a list of pitches.” Developing the ability to generate unique ideas and finding your voice in the competitive industry is a skill worth cultivating early on.
Message from her Mentor
"When I learned I was being paired with Minnah for this program, my first thought was that she should be mentoring me! Minnah has the ability to tackle any topic and translate her reporting into crisp, clear stories that resonate with a broad audience. But one of the things I appreciate most about Minnah is her drive to keep learning, enhance her skills and widen her journalism network. In short, Minnah is a rockstar journalist with an enormously bright future ahead.."
Katie Oyan
Deputy News Director for Local News Success, Associated Press
Started by Freedom Forum, the original Chips Quinn program helped put college interns into newsrooms across the country. Since its beginnings in 1991, the program has reached more than 1,400 people, many of whom are now in leadership positions for local and national newsrooms. Today, the program aims to offer support to early-career journalists already in their respective newsrooms through a 1:1 mentorship by leading members in the journalism field as well as alumni from the program. Thanks to continued support for the program from Freedom Forum, each Chips Quinn Reporter receives a $10,000 stipend..
About Freedom Forum: Established on July 4, 1991, by USA TODAY founder Al Neuharth, the Freedom Forum is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) foundation dedicated to fostering First Amendment freedoms for all. As the nation’s foremost advocate for First Amendment freedoms, the Freedom Forum engages thousands of Americans each year in classes, conversations and celebrations of these essential rights, including through the Power Shift Project, the annual Al Neuharth Free Spirit and Journalism Conference, the Chips Quinn Scholars Program for Diversity in Journalism, the Al Neuharth Award for Excellence in the Media, the Free Expression Awards, the annual “Where America Stands” survey, the Journalists Memorial and Today’s Front Pages.
About JFP: The mission of Journalism Funding Partners is to strengthen the depth, diversity and sustainability of local news by building and shepherding relationships between funders and local news organizations. JFP is a recognized nonprofit that acts as fiscal sponsor, allowing foundations and individual funders to contribute directly to local news, regardless of the news organization’s business model. JFP manages the funds feeding numerous news initiatives, including more than a dozen Climate reporters in the Southeast, an Equity Desk at The Sacramento Bee, an Education and Economic Mobility Desk in California’s Central Valley, the Investigative Fund of The Miami Herald and for Inclusivity and Investigative funds at the Associated Press.
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Media Contact: Rusty Coats, Executive Director | rusty@jfp-local.org | (813) 277-8959
