Sandy Close
Alexandra Close | |
|---|---|
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| Born | 1942 or 1943 (age 80–81) |
| Other names | Sandy |
| Alma mater | University of California, Berkeley (B.A.) |
| Occupation | Journalist |
| Organization | Ethnic Media Services |
| Partner | Franz Schurmann |
| Children | 2 |
Alexandra "Sandy" Close (born ca. 1943) is an American journalist and the founder of Ethnic Media Services.[1][2] She was the executive director of Pacific News Service from 1974 to 2017 and of New America Media from 1996 to 2017.[3][4]
Early life and education[edit]
Close received her B.A from the University of California, Berkeley in 1964.[5]
Career[edit]
Close worked as the China editor in Hong Kong for the Far Eastern Economic Review in the mid-1960s.[6] Upon her return to the U.S. she co-founded Oakland-based newspaper The Flatlands.[7] She was also a weekly commentator for Morning Edition from 1984 to 1985.
In 1991, she founded Yo! Youth Outlook, a monthly magazine of youth writing and art, and in 1996, she co-founded The Beat Within, a weekly journal written by incarcerated youth.
She served as the executive director of Pacific News Service from 1974 to the publication's closing in 2017.[8] In 1996, she founded New America Media, which involved up to 3,000 ethnic news organizations in California, and served as its executive director until its closure in 2017.[9]
In 2018, Close founded Ethnic Media Services, a non-profit agency focused on developing cross-cultural journalism and marketing projects to promote inclusive public discourse.[10]
Close was a co-producer for the film Breathing Lessons: The Life and Work of Mark O'Brien, which won the Academy Award for Best Documentary (Short Subject) in 1996.[11]
Personal life[edit]
Close was married to the historian and Asian affairs scholar Franz Schurmann from 1968 until his death in 2010.[12]
Awards[edit]
- 2011 George Polk Award for Career Achievement [13]
- 2008 Ashoka Fellowship [14]
- 2006 Purpose Prize Fellowship[15]
- 1995 MacArthur Fellows Program[16]
Works[edit]
- "Ben Hur" Vs. "Titanic" -- Nature Replaced God in Film That Speaks to Environmental Age, JINN, 03-26-98
- "Fear and uncertainty in the era of change", National Civic Review, Volume 98 Issue 3, Pages 46 – 47[17]
References[edit]
- ^ "Ethnic Media Services: Our Team".
- ^ "Sandy Close". www.macfound.org. Retrieved 2023-10-18.
- ^ "Voices from the Field | National Resource Center on Advancing Emergency Preparedness for Culturally Diverse Communities". Archived from the original on 2012-07-31. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
- ^ Hartlaub, Peter (2017-11-27). "Pacific News Service closes, but lessons continue". SF Chronicle. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
- ^ "New America Media: Who's Who at NAM".
- ^ "Sandy Close". Archived from the original on 2011-02-28. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
- ^ Waters, Rob (2018-05-03). "An Ethnic Media Beacon Goes Dark, but Its Creator Keeps Inspiring". SF Public Radio. Retrieved 2019-01-03.
- ^ Stewart, Jon (1995-07-16). "SUNDAY INTERVIEW -- Sandy Close / The executive director of Pacific News Service talks about her two decades on the radical edge of journalism". SFGate. Retrieved 2019-01-02.
- ^ Walsh, Joan (2017-11-03). "New America Media Is Closing—and That's Bad News for All American Media". The Nation. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
- ^ "Sandy Close". LinkedIn.
- ^ Klady, Leonard (1997-05-22). "Breathing Lessons: The Life and Work of Mark O'Brien". Variety. Retrieved 2019-01-03.
- ^ Weber, Bruce (2010-08-26). "Franz Schurmann, Cold War Expert on China, Dies at 84". NY Times. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
- ^ "New America Media's Sandy Close wins George Polk Career Award". 2011-02-25. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
- ^ "Sandy Close | Ashoka United States". Archived from the original on 2011-07-25. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
- ^ "Encore - Purpose Prize: Alexandra "Sandy" Close".
- ^ "MacArthur Fellows Program: Sandy Close".
- ^ Wiley Interscience
External links[edit]
- "SUNDAY INTERVIEW -- Sandy Close", The San Francisco Chronicle, July 16, 1995
- "SANDY CLOSE", NewsHour, PBS, October 2002
- "AN INTERVIEW WITH SANDY CLOSE", Chava Films, Martha Wallner