hi, I’m Sarah Day Owen Wiskirchen
I’m a local news futurist, a newsletter editor and community enthusiast.
My career mission statement is to help create a sustainable future for quality community information and authentic storytelling.
My past experiences include audience data analysis, events, social media, newsletters, storytelling coaching, reporting and editing.
My 17+ years in journalism includes work at local to national news organizations, from intrapreneurial to entrepreneurial.
I’m also passionate about my local community, volunteering my time and skills to causes that make the Triangle area a better, more equitable place for all.
My current work
I’m the product manager for newsletters and guides for Cary and the Triangle at large for The Assembly.
Sign up for the newsletter I write and edit, The Line, to get and stay connected on the stories shaping Cary, Apex, Morrisville and Western Wake County in North Carolina.
My past experience
I’ve worn many hats in my career. A few common throughlines include:
Developing emerging products that serve growing communities, such as newsletters and events.
Training and change management.
Data-driven content strategy.
Operational savvy for sustainable results.
Creative content that appeals to contemporary audiences.
My resume
Some recent highlights:
Minerva Media Co., I consulted with news organizations on audience development and engagement, newsletters, content strategy and journalism programming through my independent agency.
Projects included:
🔷 Coach, Tiny News Collective Tiny Vitals Metrics Lab: Help early-stage newsrooms meet measurable growth goals and use analytics as a tool.
🔷 Program lead, NC Report for America Corps Member training through NC Local News Workshop.
🔷 Program manager: NC Local News & Information Summit program support (2024 and 2025), coordinating with facilitators, creating effective session descriptions, social graphics and a social design template.
🔷 Newsletter publisher: My newsletter for Raleigh + Cary, Just Bring Yourself, was acquired by The Assembly Network: justbringyourself.substack.com
Other recent roles:
USA TODAY, senior editor for audience and operations, working with the national news, politics, investigations and storytelling teams on data-driven beat mapping, newsletters and organizational change.
Raleigh Convergence, founder and editor. Read my retrospective of the hyperlocal news org on the UNC Center for Innovation and Sustainability in Local Media site.
ethics
I believe that journalism is one tool to build better communities.
sarah day owen wiskirchen 