Rob Sheffield
An Era Like No Other — How Taylor Swift Reinvented Pop Music
Town Hall Seattle and Real Change present
Featuring Election Coverage from the International Examiner, South Seattle Emerald, The Needling, The Urbanist, and More
Note: A livestream of this event will also be available.
El Mammamia Italian American Fusion food truck will offer tasty dishes for sale in the Town Square, the outdoor plaza near our Forum entrance.
Anxious about the November election? Spend election night with Real Change, Town Hall, and Seattle’s independent journalists!
Reporters and writers from the International Examiner, South Seattle Emerald, The Needling, The Urbanist, and more will analyze results live and share their predictions for the future of local politics. Featuring live panels and Q&As.
Join us for a behind-the-scenes look at independent election coverage while hearing insights firsthand from local news outlets.
Hosted by Brett Hamil.
Brett Hamil is a cartoonist and comedian living in Seattle. He publishes a weekly political cartoon, Doom Loop, for the South Seattle Emerald, and produces a critically acclaimed live comedy show, Joketellers Union at the Clock-Out Lounge. He’s also the author of 3 graphic novels.
Chetanya Robinson has been a regular writer for the IE since 2015 and reports on all manner of neighborhood stories including housing, activism, history, culture and small businesses. Chetanya earned a double major in journalism and Middle Eastern Languages from the University of Washington. He has written for a variety of local publications and spent a summer as a journalist in Sierra Leone. He is passionate about local, community journalism and its unique potential. Chetanya previously served as President of the Society of Professional Journalists Western Washington Chapter.
Dominique Morales is the Editor in Chief of Real Change’s Newspaper. With extensive experience in reporting, writing, community organizing and policy analysis, Dominique supports the production and publication of the weekly newspaper. She received her B.S. in Journalism and Masters of Public Policy from California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo. Dominique is passionate about combining the powers of advocacy and journalism to ignite equity change in our community.
Guy Oron (he/they) is a Seattle-based writer and journalist. He currently serves as the staff reporter for Real Change, covering local news, politics and policy. They have also written for many local and national publications. You can find Guy on social media at @GuyOron (Twitter/X) and @guy.oron (Instagram and TikTok).
Lauryn Bray is a writer and reporter for the South Seattle Emerald. She has a degree in English with a concentration in creative writing from CUNY Hunter College. She is from Sacramento, California, and has been living in King County since June 2022.
Lex Vaughn is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of The Needling, Seattle’s Only Real Fake News. She’s also a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who’s reported for The Seattle Times, Los Angeles Times, and Entrepreneur Magazine.
As a multimedia journalist, Marian Mohamed uses her skills to aid underrepresented individuals and communities in telling their stories. She’s created stories about communities that’ve been affected by COVID-19, food insecurities, gentrification, and educational setbacks while also taking the time to highlight the brilliance and strengths of these communities within Washington.
Ryan Packer has been covering transportation and land use at The Urbanist since 2015. Their work has also appeared in the Seattle Bike Blog, BikePortland, and PubliCola. In January, they became The Urbanist’s first ever full time reporter.
Tobias Coughlin-Bogue is a Seattle journalist who has written a little bit about a lot of things, including cannabis, homelessness, city government, and French fries. Most recently, he’s been covering the 2024 elections for the South Seattle Emerald. He lives in South Park.
Established in 1974, the International Examiner (IE) is the oldest and largest nonprofit, pan-Asian Pacific American publication in the Northwest. Named after the historic and thriving multi-ethnic Chinatown International District (CID) of Seattle, the IE aspires to be a credible catalyst for building an inspiring, connected, well-respected, and socially conscious Asian Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander American (ANHPIA) community.
The Needling is Seattle’s Only Real Fake News aka the area’s premiere satirical news outlet. Its intrepid and completely unbiased reporters provide Native Seattle-area residents, newcomers, California carpetbaggers and people born here sometime in the last century earnestly inauthentic analysis of local news and culture.
The South Seattle Emerald exists to amplify and preserve the authentic narratives of South Seattle’s BIPOC and historically marginalized/misrepresented communities. The Emerald breaks news, provides vital information, and shares the arts and culture of the diverse people of the South End.
Founded in 2014, The Urbanist’s mission is to tell stories that inform and influence the public and their leaders — and win them to our vision: that the Puget Sound region’s built environment and social systems support thriving, healthy, sustainable, and just communities.
Real Change’s award-winning, weekly newspaper is written by professional reporters and sold on the streets of Seattle by self-employed vendors. For 30 years, our journalism has spotlighted the issues that impact our community. Learn more online at: realchangenews.org.
Presented by Town Hall Seattle and Real Change.
Looking for a different approach to election night? Join us for Reading Through It, held concurrently in the Mehdi Reading Room. Six powerful writers will share their works, reminding us that the commitment to positive change goes beyond any single political moment. Reading Through It is for those who wish to focus on the power of art, community, and action, regardless of the election’s outcome. Learn more.
An Era Like No Other — How Taylor Swift Reinvented Pop Music
Rental Partner: Bill Blumenreich presents
2024 Live Tour
Rental Partner: Puget Sound Symphony Orchestra presents