Our Mission
The Conversationalist is an independent nonprofit publication fostering hope, empathy, and community through global feminist journalism.
We want to change the way people feel after reading the news by prioritizing empathy in our storytelling, interrogating policy’s impact on marginalized communities, and uplifting underamplified voices through firsthand lived experiences. We prioritize stories across global contexts that are often overlooked in mainstream media, highlighting solutions rooted in justice, equity, and care.
The Conversationalist is pushing the boundaries of what’s possible for journalism, civic engagement, and democracy, one brave conversation at a time.
Our History
Founded in 2018, The Conversationalist was born out of watching rising global authoritarianism go largely unchecked by mainstream media and politics. We saw a lack of transparency, accountability, and integrity, and felt called to challenge the dominant narratives, showing how the rise of authoritarian regimes is directly connected to a backlash against civil and human rights.
We started identifying stories that were being missed or underestimated, or were in desperate need of context. From our start, we’ve amplified the voices of women and people of color, offering deep insights and creative solutions for our chaotic, interconnected world. We also chose to examine international affairs and culture through a global lens, because in the United States, American exceptionalism has stood in the way of people understanding how the country’s past informs its present, and how the rest of the world thinks.
Our Values
Community. The media should encourage curiosity, offer nuance, reinforce human dignity, and push our capacity for empathy and collective action. We’re fostering a community that seeks constructive dialogue and meaningful human connection.
Global. Our coverage isn’t complete without considering and connecting global context. When our news sources are exclusively domestic, it’s easy to miss global trends, and flatten the geopolitical and cultural contexts of people’s stories. In order to give our readers holistic context, we seek out and elevate voices from around the world, and have published stories from over 45 countries.
Feminist. We believe that feminism is for everybody, and that feminist stories are human stories. Most fundamentally, our approach to feminist journalism involves being considerate, inclusive, and intersectional.
Our Stories
Our writers and artists encompass a full spectrum of expert perspectives from around the globe, with an intentional focus on people with firsthand experience with the policies and systems they explore. Instead of chasing clicks, we aim to publish richer stories, solutions-oriented reporting, thoughtful essays, and long-form, investigative pieces. We believe that a slower and steadier publishing pace is better for the nervous system and creates more space for deeper insights and nuanced conversation.
We believe people are hungry for thoughtful, engaging journalism they can trust, a natural response to the proliferation of disinformation and propaganda. We believe that curiosity and empathy thrive when the rage clicks disappear.
