Tech media mentorship program Platform Agnostic launches today with a focus on diversity
October 28th, 2020 — The tech industry has been too white and male for far too long. But often the available jobs in tech media keep going to people from the same group because they simply outnumber and out-qualify minority applicants. Founded by Alex Cranz (Gizmodo), Cherlynn Low (Engadget) and Sherri L. Smith (Laptop Mag), Platform Agnostic is a mentorship program that’s launching today to help those from more diverse backgrounds find a way into the consumer tech media industry. It will connect people from underrepresented communities with established journalists from reputable publications in the industry.
For now, Platform Agnostic is focusing on the consumer tech industry because it’s the space the founders are most familiar with and feel responsible for, but also because it’s historically one of the least diverse areas in media. After we’re able to see what works with the program and find more experts in other fields, we may bring Platform Agnostic to those industries too.
Applications for the program open today, and the submissions deadline is December 9th, 2020. Successful applicants will be announced on January 7th, 2021, and the six-month program will kick off on February 1st, 2021. Candidates will be matched with a mentor most suited to their goals — a video expert with someone looking to specialize in onscreen reporting or a features editor with an applicant who’s interested in longform writing, for example. Mentors and mentees are expected to work together for about an hour a week.
Mentors will work with their matches on the writing and reporting skills needed to thrive in tech media, with the goal of getting the mentee published in a top-tier tech publication. Areas of mentorship could include editing and refining a pitch, honing news judgement or getting a breaking news story up in a timely manner.
Additionally, all mentees will be added to a Slack group to interact with other mentors and program directors, as well as learn from each other’s experiences. Mentors’ participation in the Platform Agnostic Slack is opt-in, and those who choose to join will be able to help out candidates other than their own matches.
As of today, Platform Agnostic’s mentors include Sherri L. Smith, Lisa Eadicicco (Business Insider), Dieter Bohn (The Verge), Jessica Conditt (Engadget), Alan Henry (Wired), Roger Cheng (CNET), Davey Alba (New York Times), Anthony Ha (Techcrunch), Daniel Howley (Yahoo Finance) and Riley MacLeod (Kotaku). Mentorship is currently on an invite-only basis as we tap into our networks for industry veterans we believe can be great and reliable mentors.
Cranz, Low and Smith hope that with a program focusing on diversity and connecting underrepresented voices with established and respected mentors, those hiring for tech media jobs will have a far more diverse pool of talent to consider. And ultimately, the goal is to foster better representation in the industry.