Community Renewal Society

Kimbriell Kelly, editor and publisher of the Chicago Reporter, is leaving nonprofit investigative news organization after eight years to join the Washington Post’s investigative team.

“I'm very sad to leave the Chicago Reporter, where I started at the ground floor as a [McCormick Tribune] fellow and worked my way all the way up to the top. So it's a little bittersweet. The Reporter will always be in my heart, and I know it has a very strong and successful future. I’m excited about joining the ranks of the former publishers who've made the magazine great.”

An interim publisher will be appointed next week while a search proceeds for Kelly’s successor. Now in its 40th year under the Community Renewal Society, the Reporter investigates race and poverty issues through its website, blog and bimonthly magazine.

With a focus on social, economic and political investigations, the Reporter’s stories have led to billions of dollars in residential fair-lending settlements against Countrywide, the nation's largest mortgage lender; among the magazine’s financial supporters have been President Obama and his senior advisor, David Axelrod. 

One of the nation's most successful investigative publications, The Chicago Reporter, made two announcements today: the launch of its year-long 40th anniversary celebration and the naming of its newest publisher, Kimbriell Kelly.Read more

Publisher Alden Loury is leaving The Chicago Reporter to take a senior investigator position with the Better Government Association. Loury says that his heart will remain with the publication where he spent 12 years as a reporter, editor and publisher. He vows to be a lifelong supporter and to seek collaborative projects with the Reporter in his new role. Kimbriell Kelly will take on the role of Interim Publisher, in addition to her duties as Editor. Managing Editor Rui Kaneya will also assume additional editorial duties to keep the Reporter’s many projects on track. 

Read the full announcement here

The Chicago Reporter's editor Kimbriell Kelly and reporter Angela Caputo has won a 2011 Salute to Excellence Award for investigative reporting in the magazine category from the National Association of Black Journalists. The award was given for an investigation into Illinois’ practice of prosecuting 17-year-olds as adults for felony crimes. Read more »