Sacramento Bee names editor for community-funded team of journalists covering equity

Keiona Williamson has been named editor of The Sacramento Bee’s new community-funded journalism team focused on issues of equity.

Williamson is a Sacramento native. She went to Father Keith B. Kenny elementary school, Kit Carson middle school and eventually Howard University. Since 2018, she has been at The New York Times, as an assistant helping with research and strategy for the Times Sunday Magazine and the organization’s 1619 Project.

“It’s such an honor to join and contribute to the good and necessary work being done here at The Bee,” Williamson said.

Williamson will help lead The Bee as it builds the rest of the team, which will work collaboratively with others in the newsroom and will include a Black communities reporter, an equity reporter and a journalist covering economic mobility from the state Capitol.

Supporters have contributed to the Sacramento Region Community Foundation. Donors to the Media Impact Fund at the foundation include The James Irvine Foundation, The James B. McClatchy Foundation and the Sierra Health Foundation, as well as individual donors.

Funding partners to the lab will have no editorial oversight, approval or influence over the content produced by lab reporters or other members of the newsroom.

To learn more about the reporting lab, contact Bee President Lauren Gustus at lgustus@sacbee.com.

Williamson can be reached at kwilliamson@sacbee.com.