Lesley Weidenbener

She is sharp, funny, outspoken and, maybe most important, an advocate for the things she cares about—notably the advancement of women and people of color.

The chamber set out to make a business case—along with a moral one—for reducing inequality in the community. That has played out in a number of ways, perhaps most important—at least initially—in educating community and business leaders about the data that supports the premise that Indianapolis is bifurcating along racial and economic lines.

Reading dozens and sometimes hundreds of nominations for an awards program provides insight into organizations, companies and even industries I had no idea existed. Often

I was startled when some extended family members recently expressed shock that I continue to come downtown every day—and that I worked in the IBJ office on Monument Circle regularly through the pandemic. They assumed it was too unsafe.

Anthony Schoettle, who is leaving IBJ after 23 years, reminded me that the idea that we’re all replaceable—an oft-repeated phrase in business—is not accurate and it denies people the humanity they deserve at work.

I am ridiculously eager to have everyone back. I miss the collaboration that comes with quick meetings to address a sudden problem or opportunity. I miss the moments when one reporter overhears a snippet of another reporter’s interview or conversation and makes a connection that is helpful to getting a story.

Just like most of us don’t really understand how a manufacturing process works or how molecules in a lab become medicine, readers generally don’t understand how journalists take in information and send it back out for public consumption.