On Tuesday, the Society for News Design shared the sad news that its executive director, Tiffany Shackelford, had died. Tiffany was a long-time supporter of our podcast and she will be missed.

Megan Cloherty and I first interviewed Tiffany back in 2013, during the first year of our podcast. It was a fun conversation and was really the start of this podcast’s long friendship with her.

Every time I saw Tiffany at a conference or an event, it was always a blast. She was great storyteller and had a huge heart.

Tiffany helped set up our long-time relationship with AAN. After she left that organization to join the National Governors Association, she invited me to produce NGA’s first podcast series. She also hooked me up with members of SND for podcast interviews and arranged for me to cover the SND conference in Washington, D.C.

When I was out of work in 2019, I had lunch with Tiffany and she was so supportive and positive, which was something I really needed then.

To honor Tiffany’s memory, I’m reposting the conversation Tiffany had with Megan and me back in 2013. For those of you who knew her, I hope this reminds you of what a wonderful person Tiffany was. For those who didn’t know her, I hope this gives you a sense of the impact she could have on everyone around her.