Angela M. Hill, a multi award-winning investigative journalist and producer, has been named the new Ida B. Wells Professor in Journalism at Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
The post is created in honor of Wells, an African American investigative journalist, educator and early leader in the civil rights movement.
Hill will work at ASU’s location in Washington, D.C. Her assignments will include working with Cronkite News, News21 and the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism, as well as fostering collaborations with other journalism and communications schools, and assisting in graduate student recruitment. Professor Hill will also work with students and Cronkite’s external partners to formulate and deliver ongoing coverage of key national issues, in the spirit of the work of Ida B. Wells.
Hill most recently served as a senior video producer at The Washington Post, where she co-led a team of 10 video journalists who film, produce and edit enterprise and investigative stories, breaking news and multimedia projects. Angela’s expertise in investigative work was fundamental on such stories as “Built and Broken,” where she helped produce a twelve minute mini-documentary focusing on the exploitation of female athletes within the sport of bodybuilding and a mini-documentary looking at mental health emergencies calls that led to fatal police shootings.
Hill also contributed to the Post’s exploration into the AR-15’s unique role in American society, as well as a number of interactive projects including “Flight of the Condors,” “Facing the Surge,” “Dreams and Deadly Seas” and “Nature, Undammed.” She led the paper’s efforts to profile the legal developments of Crosley Green, a Floridian who was ordered released from prison after 32 years. She was able to secure exclusive coverage and video interviews of Green shortly before he was ordered back to prison after a two-year release amid the coronavirus pandemic. Hill was also the first to secure an interview with Kim Hallock Landers, the woman who accused Green of the crime, in some of her first public comments in years.
In addition, she has been an adjunct lecturer at Georgetown University’s School of Continuing Studies for the master’s degree in journalism.
“Angela Hill is a highly accomplished and respected journalist who also has a passion for teaching and developing up and coming leaders,” said Battinto L. Batts Jr., dean of the Cronkite School. “We enthusiastically welcome her into CronkiteNation.”
Prior to joining the Post in 2021, Hill served as a national investigative producer for the Scripps News Washington Bureau where she reported and produced a variety of national investigative stories including broken prescription drug monitoring systems that violated patient privacy and sexual assault in the military. She co-reported/produced a documentary on the breakdowns in federal and tribal criminal justice systems on Indian reservations that allowed sexual perpetrators to receive little or no punishment, as well as a documentary investigation into why mifepristone, also known as the abortion pill, has been one of the FDA’s most restricted drugs.
Earlier in her career, she worked for ABC News Network as an investigative producer for ABC News in New York, where she pitched and produced stories for “World News Tonight,” “Good Morning America,” “Nightline,” “20/20” and abcnews.com. She was part of the team that investigated the murder of an American Peace Corps volunteer that uncovered systemic failures of the organization to protect volunteers. The story netted Hill two Emmy Awards and led to the Peace Corps Volunteer Protection Act being signed into law. She also produced stories on immigration including the deportation of undocumented immigrants that resulted in separation from their children.
Hill started her journalism career as a freelance reporter and producer for a number of news outlets in Connecticut and New York City, including local NPR stations Connecticut Public Radio, WNYC and the Daily News.
Hill completed her master’s degree in journalism at The Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York The City University of New York School of Journalism and earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Georgetown University. An accomplished journalist, Hill has received numerous awards for her work, including multiple Emmys and Peabodys, a George Polk, an Edward R. Murrow and the Robert F. Kennedy Grand Prize.
Hill is interested in teaching a number of topics including challenges facing indigenous and Native American communities, the criminal justice system and health care. She hopes to shed some light on these issues during her time at Cronkite and gain attention on the disparities and shortcomings that exist.
“I am passionate about journalism, investigative journalism in particular, and its ability to bring about real change,” she said. “This will be a great opportunity to continue working with students to prepare them for the field of journalism as well as partner with news outlets to do important and meaningful journalism.”
Hill aspires to similarly bring light to the challenges that the nation is facing through investigative journalism. With her extensive skill set, knowledge and experience, Hill hopes to challenge systems and hold power accountable as Wells did, while teaching at Cronkite.
“I want to support the mission of the Cronkite School of Journalism by helping to train and prepare the next generation of journalists while also contributing to leadership and innovation in the field,” she said.