The Society of Professional Journalists’ Northern California chapter awarded The Citizen’s former Editor in Chief and current Multimedia Editor, Desmond Meagley, with the 2026 James Madison Freedom of Information award in the student journalist category.
The Society of Professional Journalists is a national journalism organization that advocates for free press and sets ethical standards for journalists. The James Madison Awards recognize those who have “defended public access to government meetings, public records, court proceedings, or otherwise promoted the public’s right to know, publish, and speak freely about issues of public concern.”
As a newsroom, The Citizen received the James Madison Freedom of Information award in 2022.
The Society of Professional Journalists recognized Meagley’s steadfast leadership on “transparency focused coverage” of the fatal shooting of former Laney College athletic director, John Beam, and guidance of editorials about low engagement during student elections and the harassment of student journalists.
Additionally, Meagley led the publication through adversities, including an incident where the “Oakland Police Department barred The Citizen staff from a press conference” and separate “intimidation attempts from school administrators.”
Throughout the Fall semester of 2025, Meagley guided The Citizen through coverage of regionally and nationally relevant stories, such as the district’s plan to merge Laney and Merritt Colleges and the surge of immigration enforcement at Coast Guard Island.
In October, Meagley and fellow senior editors of The Citizen co-paneled a public records workshop with the First Amendment Coalition at the Journalism Association of Community College’s Northern California regional conference. The workshop highlighted investigative stories from The Citizen, substantiated with evidence obtained through the California Public Records Act.
Meagley told The Citizen, “I couldn’t have done any of it without a strong team behind me. […] The last year of my life has been transformed by this work.”
Meagley began hir work in journalism in 2015, working for YR Media (formerly Youth Radio) in Oakland. Since then, Meagley has had hir coverage featured in the San Francisco Chronicle, Teen Vogue, NPR, CalMatters, and other publications. Hir writing has earned hir awards and scholarships from the Journalism Association of Community Colleges, the Society of Professional Journalists, Public Radio News Directors Inc., and The National LGBTQ+ Journalists Association (NLGJA).
Meagley has been a CalMatters fellow, a KALW intern, and is now a newscast intern at KQED and board member of the NLGJA’s Northern California chapter.
Meagley is recognized alongside other champions of transparency, listed below:
- Attorney Duffy Carolan, recognized with the Norwin S. Yoffie Award for Career Achievement Award
- Dave Waddell of ChicoSol, recognized with the Tim Crews Tenacity award
- Joe Rubin and Daniel Lempres of the Sacramento Bee, recognized with the Professional Journalist award
- The Oaklandside and the San Luis Obispo Tribune, recognized with the Newsroom award
- Mychal Threets, former Solano County librarian and current Reading Rainbow host
- ACLU of Northern California lawyers Avram Frey and Emi Young and paralegal Kassandra Dibble recognized with the Attorney award
- Eric Gustafson, journalism teacher and adviser at San Francisco’s Lowell High School, recognized with the Beverly Kees Educator of the Year award
- Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), recognized with the Nonprofit Organization Award
- Suchir Balaji, posthumously recognized with the Whistleblower award
- Ayyub Ibrahim, recognized with the Electronic Access award
- Mike Spencer, a former reporter turned private investigator recognized with the Citizen award
- California Assembly Judiciary Committee, chaired by Assembly Member Ash Kalra, was recognized with the Public Official award
The event will also memorialize attorney Joseph Terrence “Terry” Francke, the primary author of San Francisco’s Sunshine Ordinance, an open government law that states and local jurisdictions nationwide have used to improve access to public records and open meetings.
The James Madison Freedom of Information Award ceremony will take place at the Crystal Lounge & Ballroom at Marines’ Memorial Club & Hotel at 609 Sutter St., San Francisco on March 19, 2026 starting at 5 p.m. Tickets are available for purchase here.
