In its sixth year of sponsorship, Buick (a division of General Motors No. 42 on the Fair360, formerly DiversityInc Top 50 Companies list) continued its partnership with the Asian American Journalist Association (AAJA) at its 2017 national convention “Rise and Revolutionize.” Buick partnered with six journalists, loaning them the keys to 2017 Buick Encores and Envisions to embark on a road trip to attend the national convention in Philadelphia.
While meeting in New York City, the group had the opportunity to converse over dinner with Buick about their experiences as Asian Americans and furthermore as Asian American journalists. On the morning of the road trip and beside the monumental Brooklyn Bridge, journalists received the keys to their Buick Encore and Envision and traveled to Philadelphia, where they attended the convention on behalf of Buick.
In the case something came up back in the office and drivers needed to pull off and work remotely somewhere along the way, the Buick Encores and Envisions were prepared with 4G LTE Wi-Fi, Apple Carplay/Android Auto and Buick’s signature QuietTuning and Bose Active Noise Cancellation technology, creating a fully-functioning mobile office.
Journalists attended the AAJA convention, which is the national gathering of the organization that works to advance diversity in newsrooms to ensure fair and accurate coverage of communities of color.
“Attending AAJA was imperative for me as a journalist of color to feel that what I am doing is more than just a job. It’s about pushing culture forward. It’s about connecting,” said David Yi of Very Good Light. “I feel now is as important of a time than ever to be excellent at journalism and be empathetic to those who don’t look like you. I’m so extremely proud to have been a part of the week and Buick was instrumental in all of that.”
Also attending the convention was Sarah Rahal, an alumna of GM’s “Discover Your Drive” student journalism program, who attended with Buick as well. Sarah was accepted for the 2017 ‘Discover Your Drive’ program, hosted by General Motors each year in Detroit for the North American International Auto Show.
“This convention led me to the great opportunity that was ‘Discover Your Drive.’ I met my mentor, Walter Middlebrook of The Detroit News, who following the program, saw my potential and helped me land my current job as a breaking news reporter at The Detroit News,” said Rahal.
“I feel very confident as an established journalist and that is because of AAJA and GM’s Discover Your Drive. GM gave me an opportunity to report on the auto industry, which I never thought I would pursue prior to the experience. I wouldn’t be here without this amazing experience.”
