Left to right: Jason Allen, Andres Gutierrez, Nicole Valdes, Skyler Henry, Ian Lee, Kati Weis

Adrienne Roark, president of newsgathering and editorial for CBS News and Stations, shared the note below with staff to introduce the first group of journalists fueling our national movement of community journalism: 

Hi everyone,

As we continue to build our next-generation news organization and work as a united team, I am proud today to introduce the first group of journalists who will lead our national movement of community journalism from our news hubs across America.

These multiskilled journalists, some of whom are already a part of our CBS News and Stations team, will be based in cities across the South and the middle of the country with growing populations. They join our local-to-global team already delivering thoughtful, engaging, and timely reporting across our platforms. These news hubs will allow us to respond to breaking news quicker, unearth stories of national importance from their own communities and deliver deeper reporting on the 2024 Election from every corner of the country.

Here’s more on each journalist:

Jason Allen will be a correspondent based in Dallas/Fort Worth. He was previously a reporter with CBS News Texas. Jason has reported live during numerous severe weather events nationally for CBS News, including Hurricane Harvey in Texas and major storms in Florida, Louisiana and California. His original reporting on a dispute between an order of nuns and a Catholic Bishop led to international headlines. The Texas Medical Association recognized him for his work revealing the emerging fentanyl crisis in North Texas during the pandemic. He also followed the murder of Atatiana Jefferson in Fort Worth from the initial shooting to the end of the trial. Jason was also one of the first reporters at the scene of the West fertilizer plant explosion. Jason is a graduate of Trinity Christian College in Illinois.

Andres Gutierrez will be a reporter based in Las Vegas. Most recently a reporter with CBS News Detroit, Andres brings more than a decade of award-winning breaking news reporting and fill-in anchor experience across several markets including Kansas City, MO; and Dallas, TX. While covering Detroit, he reported on major national stories, including the mass shooting at Michigan State University, and the historic six-week strike by the United Auto Workers. Andres also played a major role in CBS News and Stations’ in-depth coverage across platforms of the trials of James and Jennifer Crumbley – the first parents in the U.S. to be held criminally responsible for a school shooting committed by their child. Andres graduated from New York University and is a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.

Skyler Henry will be a correspondent based in Atlanta. Skyler was most recently a correspondent for CBS Newspath in Washington. Since 2019, Skyler has contributed reporting across major news events, including the coronavirus pandemic, the unrest following George Floyd’s murder, and the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol. Skyler has won several awards for his work, recognizing his coverage of rap lyrics used in criminal court cases, as well contributions to a deep dive into the racial disparities with agricultural land ownership in the south. Prior to joining CBS News, he was an anchor and reporter for local stations in Baltimore, MD. and Macon, GA. Skyler graduated from Georgia Southern University. He is a member of the National Association of Black Journalists.

Ian Lee will be a correspondent based in Kansas City, MO. Ian joined CBS News in 2019 and was most recently a CBS News correspondent based in London. An Emmy and Peabody Award-winning journalist, Ian has reported extensively across the Middle East, Europe, and East Asia. Over the past year, Ian has been reporting from the frontlines of the conflicts between Russia and Ukraine and at Israel’s border with Gaza. Most recently, Ian embedded with Ukraine’s military and followed their troops just miles from the front lines to demonstrate the country’s drone offensive against Russia. Prior to CBS News, he was a correspondent for CNN based in Jerusalem and Cairo. Ian graduated from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.

Nicole Valdes will be a correspondent based in Nashville. Nicole was most recently a weather correspondent with FOX Weather. Since joining FOX Weather in 2021, Nicole covered breaking and developing weather-related news for the streaming service. Nicole reported from nearly 40 states, leading network coverage of Hurricane Ian’s impact on Florida, as well as countless tornadoes, flood and wildfires. As a proud bilingual journalist, Nicole put her skills forward to produce and report an in-depth piece on Hurricane Maria’s impact to Puerto Rico. Prior to this role, Nicole worked as a reporter and fill-in anchor in Phoenix, AZ, where she led the station’s coverage of the 2020 Presidential election, and as a multimedia journalist for the CBS-affiliate in Fort Myers, FL. Nicole graduated from the University of Florida in Gainesville.

Kati Weis will be a reporter based in New Orleans. Kati was most recently an investigative reporter for CBS News Colorado in Denver, where she focused on environmental and social justice concerns, consumer advocacy issues, and government watchdog investigations. Her reporting on neglect in assisted living centers led to a Colorado law change to better hold negligent facilities accountable. Kati's pollution investigations uncovered toxic PFAS "forever chemicals" in local drinking water supplies and consumer products, revealed elevated cancer risks due to industrial air pollution, and helped public housing residents receive testing and mitigation of harmful radon gas. Prior to this role, Kati was an investigative reporter in Mobile, AL. She holds a master’s degree in legal studies from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, and an undergraduate degree in communication and Spanish from Denison University.

It is worth noting that Kati, Andres, and Jason are moving into these roles from CBS News Colorado, CBS News Detroit, and CBS News Texas, respectively. Skyler Henry and Ian Lee are also starting new roles within the CBS News family. This is a testament to the investment we are making not only in enhancing our coverage across the country, but in recognizing the homegrown talent we have here. They also represent a wave of journalists who shoot, edit, report, and present their stories in creative ways across platforms. This entrepreneurial mindset is key to how we enable our journalism to reach and engage new audiences where they are.

We will announce more journalists who will join these news hubs as we expand community journalism on the national level over the coming months. We can’t wait to see the stories they will bring to our shows and platforms. Please join me in congratulating these journalists as they begin their roles within our news hubs to support community journalism across the nation later this fall.

Thank you,

Adrienne