J Wortham Explained

J Wortham
Occupation:Journalist
Employer:The New York Times
Alma Mater:University of Virginia
Known For:Still Processing
Black Futures

J Wortham (formally known as Jenna Wortham) is an American journalist.[1] They[2] work as a culture writer for The New York Times Magazine[3] and co-host The New York Times podcast Still Processing with Wesley Morris. In 2020, with Kimberly Drew, Wortham published Black Futures, an anthology of Black art, writing and other creative work.

Wortham began their journalism career freelancing in San Francisco, then worked for Wired before joining the Times in 2008.

Early life

Wortham grew up in Alexandria, Virginia,[4] then studied medical anthropology at the University of Virginia. They graduated in 2004.[5]

Career

Journalism

After college, Wortham moved to San Francisco, where they interned for San Francisco Magazine and Girlfriend Magazine and wrote for SFist, eventually becoming a technology and culture reporter for Wired. They joined The New York Times in 2008, working as a technology and business reporter, then moved to the Times Magazine in 2014;[6] Politico said the hire "gives the magazine additional editorial firepower and cachet," citing Wortham's "huge following" including more than 530,000 Twitter followers as of December 2014.[7]

Wortham's work has also appeared in Matter, The Awl, Bust, The Hairpin, Vogue, The Morning News, and The Fader among other publications. Pi.co calls them "one of those rare writers who is able to explain the shapeshifting culture of the younger and newer internet."[8] In 2012, Wortham was included in the Root 100 list.[9] The Fader named Wortham's piece on The Shade Room "Instagram's TMZ" to its list of "The Best Culture Writing of 2015".[10]

In addition to praise for their technology reporting, Wortham has been recognized for their commentary on a range of cultural topics. At The Village Voice, Mallika Rao described Wortham as "skirt[ing] the edges of tech, culture, and identity in (their) writing — carving out (their) own corner of the internet wherein (they are) a rightful star. (A shimmering Lemonade essay prompted a thank-you note from the Queen herself, signed "Love, Beyoncé" and 'grammed by Wortham.)"[11] Other topics in Wortham's writing have included queer identity[12] and race and gender on television.[13] [14] At Rookie, Diamond Sharp praised Wortham's "incisive writing, and the generous way (they move) within the world. (They) is, with no hyperbole, one of the most important minds working in media."[15] Wortham's work appears in the anthologies Never Can Say Goodbye: Writers on Their Unshakable Love for New York (2014) and An Experience Definitely Worth Allegedly Having: Travel Stories from The Hairpin (2013).[16]

Books

See also: Black Futures. With Kimberly Drew, Wortham edited a collection entitled Black Futures,[17] published in December 2020[18] by Random House's One World imprint.[19]

Wortham is also writing the essay collection Work of Body, about their "formative experiences as a queer Black person, against the backdrop of technology and the larger history of Black bodies in America". Work of Body will be published by Penguin Press.[20]

Fellowships

In 2017, Wortham was the Zora Neale Hurston Fellow at the first Jack Jones Literary Arts retreat.[21] They was awarded a MacDowell Fellowship at the MacDowell Colony in 2018.[22] In 2020, Wortham and Morris were also named Kelly Writers House Fellows.[23]

Still Processing

See main article: Still Processing. In September 2016, Wortham and New York Times colleague Wesley Morris launched a culture podcast called Still Processing,[24] produced by the Times and podcasting startup Pineapple Street Media.[25] The show debuted to favorable reviews ("an incredible mix" and "refreshing")[26] [27] and made year-end "best of" lists at The Atlantic,[28] The Huffington Post,[29] and IndieWire.[30] In 2020, the podcast was nominated American Society of Magazine Editors Magazine Award.[31] [32]

Other projects

In 2011, Wortham created Girl Crush Zine with Thessaly La Force, a project After Ellen said aimed "to show women embracing their love for other women."[33] Other contributors included fiction writers Jennifer Egan and Emma Straub—with Straub writing about their girl crush on Egan.[34]

In November 2014, Wortham debuted an ongoing project called Everybody Sexts which "collect[s] anecdotes of people's sexting decisions, accompanied by nudes from said sexting incidents that are then recreated by an array of artists," including Melody Newcomb.[35] Vice Media's technology vertical Motherboard said Wortham's treatment of sexting was "one of the first to transcend hand-wringing or how-to guides, and present the sexual behavior as something worthy of inspiring art."[36]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Jenna Wortham - The New York Times . 2024-08-16 . www.nytimes.com . en.
  2. Web site: 2023-03-10 . JENNA WORTHAM . 2023-03-23 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230310063128/https://www.jennydeluxe.com/ . 2023-03-10 .
  3. News: Meet the New York Times' Jenna Wortham before she reinvents herself again. Johnson. Eric. April 28, 2016. Re/code Media with Peter Kafka. July 28, 2016.
  4. News: Jenna Wortham. Polsky. Sarah. March 1, 2016. Curbed. July 26, 2016. August 18, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160818200625/http://www.curbed.com/2016/3/1/11134586/jenna-wortham-home. dead.
  5. Web site: Notable Alumni . University of Virginia . 2016-06-18 .
  6. News: NYTimes tech writer Wortham joining NYTimes Magazine. Roush. Chris. December 8, 2014. Talking Biz News. July 26, 2016.
  7. News: Jenna Worth joining New York Times Magazine. Barr. Jeremy. December 8, 2014. Politico. July 26, 2016.
  8. News: Jenna Wortham. Verhoeve. Wesley. Pi.co. July 26, 2016.
  9. News: The Root 100 – 2012. 2012-01-01. The Root. 2017-11-21. en-US.
  10. News: Kameir. Rawiya. The Best Culture Writing Of 2015. 28 July 2016. The FADER. December 22, 2015.
  11. News: Rao. Mallika. Tune In to Pineapple Street's Podcasting Revolution. 25 February 2017. Village Voice. 15 February 2017.
  12. News: Why Everyone Can't Be Queer. Ryan. Hugh. July 14, 2016. Slate. July 26, 2016.
  13. News: White "Girls". Holmes. Anna. April 23, 2012. The New Yorker. July 26, 2012.
  14. News: Telling a Different Story About Africa. Rao. Mallika. April 16, 2016. The New Yorker. July 28, 2016.
  15. News: Sharp. Diamond. Why Can't I Be You: Jenna Wortham. 25 February 2017. Rookie Magazine. September 29, 2016.
  16. Web site: Jenna Wortham. 2020-11-08. www.goodreads.com.
  17. News: Simpson. Koa Beck, Lorna. March 8, 2017. These Women in the Arts Don't Take No for an Answer. en-US. Vogue. 2017-10-04.
  18. Web site: Black Futures by Kimberly Drew, Jenna Wortham: 9780399181139 PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books. 2020-06-04. PenguinRandomhouse.com. en-US.
  19. Book: Wortham. Jenna. The Black Futures Project. Drew. Kimberly. 2019-07-02. One World. 9780399181153. en.
  20. Web site: I'm making another book!. 2020-11-09. Twitter. en.
  21. Web site: 2018-09-15. The Retreat — Jack Jones Literary Arts. https://web.archive.org/web/20180915162319/http://www.jackjonesliteraryarts.com/the-retreat/. dead. 2018-09-15. 2020-06-25.
  22. Web site: 85 Artists Awarded MacDowell Fellowships for Summer Residencies - News. 2020-06-25. MacDowell Colony. en.
  23. Web site: 2020-03-20. Writers House Fellows. https://web.archive.org/web/20200320034110/http://writing.upenn.edu/wh/people/fellows/. dead. 2020-03-20. 2020-06-25.
  24. News: Bryant. Taylor. Jenna Wortham Is "Still Processing" Her New Podcast. 11 September 2016. Nylon. September 20, 2016.
  25. News: Doctor. Ken. The New York Times gets serious about podcasting. 11 September 2016. Politico. September 6, 2016.
  26. News: NYT's Still Processing feels like old media embracing the new. 12 September 2016. A.V. Club. Barnes. Tim. 8 October 2016.
  27. News: Why Can't I Be You: Jenna Wortham. September 29, 2016. Rookie. Sharp. Diamond. 8 October 2016.
  28. News: The 50 Best Podcasts of 2016. December 18, 2016. The Atlantic. Standley. Laura Jane. McQuade. Eric. 25 February 2017.
  29. News: 15 Notable Podcasts Brought To You By 2016. 21 December 2016. The Huffington Post. Capewell. Jillian. 25 February 2017.
  30. News: The 50 Best Podcast Episodes of 2016 IndieWire. December 27, 2016. IndieWire. Greene. Steve. 11 January 2017.
  31. Web site: THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MAGAZINE EDITORS ANNOUNCE FINALISTS FOR 2020 NATIONAL MAGAZINE AWARDS. 2020-06-25. www.asme.media.
  32. Web site: 2020-02-07. 12 Finalists for ASME National Magazine Awards. 2020-06-25. The New York Times Company. en-US.
  33. News: Gillette. Courtney. "Girl Crush Zine" wants to show women embracing their love for other women - AfterEllen. 27 July 2016. After Ellen. 26 July 2011.
  34. News: D'Addario. Daniel. The Ladies Who Crush: Girl Crush Lights Up Zine Scene. 27 July 2016. New York Observer. 27 July 2011.
  35. News: Jenna Wortham's "Everybody Sexts" Project. 27 July 2016. Artboiled. 13 November 2014.
  36. News: Alptraum. Lux. How Sexting Is Influencing Art. 27 July 2016. Motherboard (Vice). January 21, 2016. en-us.