About UPword

UPword Michigan is a digital news magazine focused on the dynamic communities, businesses, and residents of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. We cover what's next in entrepreneurship, creative culture, and development in and around the U.P., and are part of the Issue Media Group family.

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Meet the UPword Michigan team:

Greg Tasker, managing editor
Greg Tasker is a journalist based in Traverse City. He was formerly managing editor of Cadillac Magazine and served as an editor in the business and features departments at The Detroit News. Greg has been recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists and his work has been published in various media including BBC Travel, Michigan Blue, AAA Living, Budget Travel, Crain's Detroit, Parade, and Model D.

Brice Burge, contributor
Brice is an award-winning young professional, looking to serve his community through education, public service, and technology. Spending his entire adult life in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, he appreciates the importance of wearing many hats in rural communities.

Jennifer Donovan, writer
Jennifer is a reporter with more than 40 years of experience on daily newspapers, magazines and university writing and editing. She is retired as director of news and media relations at Michigan Technological University and lives in Houghton.

Jennifer Champagne, writer
Jennifer is an accomplished entertainment + visual effects writer with a passion for storytelling. When she’s not crafting articles on industry giants, you’ll find her enjoying life with her family and their three crazy golden retriever floofs at home in middle earth.

Ann Dallman, writer and photographer
Ann has lifelong roots in Michigan’s UP. She started out as a newspaper reporter/photographer and returned to journalism after retiring from teaching. Her first Middle Grade novel, Cady and the Bear Necklace, received a State History Award (Books/Youth) from the Historical Society of Michigan as well as a Midwest Book Award, New Mexico-Arizona Book Award, was a Next Generation Indie Book Award Finalist and a UP Notable Book. Her second book, Cady and the Birchbark Box, also received the Historical Society of Michigan State Award, is also a UP Notable Book and was a finalist in the New Mexico-Arizona 2023 Book Awards.

Rich Jenkins, writer
A former reporter at the Ironwood Daily Globe, Richard Jenkins moved to Ironwood in 2015. He was born and raised in Metro Detroit. He may not have been born in the Upper Peninsula but got here as soon as he could.

Rosemary Parker, writer
Rosemary has worked as a writer and editor for more than 40 years. She is a regular contributor to UPword and other Issue Media Group publications.

Joel Marotti, photographer
Joel is one of the photographers behind Borealis Media, where the focus is on creating vibrant visual stories for travel and tourism, highlighting the natural beauty and historical intrigue of destinations with an emphasis on astrophotography and landscapes. A frequent contributor to UPword, Marotti's work with Michigan State Parks showcases the serene allure of these natural havens, aiming to spark a profound appreciation for the outdoors in every viewer.

UPword Michigan is published by Issue Media Group (IMG). Incorporated in 2005 in Detroit, Michigan. IMG operates a national network of online media outlets leveraging the power of solutions-based journalism to report on community change. Our publications aim to connect readers to their communities' most visionary and innovative people, projects, businesses, and organizations — fostering civic capacity, improving understanding of key issues, amplifying underserved voices, and building community attachment during a time of local media decline.

We work with like-minded stakeholders across public, private, nonprofit, and grassroots organizations whose values and missions align with ours through an underwriting model of publishing. Our journalists connect with community stakeholders through regular listening sessions designed to build trust and shape authentic community stories.

IMG's work has been recognized and supported by leading journalism organizations nationally including INC Magazine, Knight Foundation, Columbia Journalism Review, Facebook, Lenfest Institute, Google, Solutions Journalism Network, Ground Source, and Society for Professional Journalists.

Michigan Assets
Issue Media Group’s Michigan footprint of 18 local online community news sites is grounded in cross-sector stakeholder coalitions comprised of leadership in foundations, nonprofits, government and municipalities, education, community and economic development, health, entrepreneurship, and workforce development. Through regular community listening sessions, these leadership coalitions help guide relevant community-informed coverage, increase local audience engagement and ensure influential readership networks.

How to pitch us freelance stories:

UPword receives valuable contributions from a network of talented freelance writers, photographers, and videographers. We encourage anyone interested in contributing articles, personal essays, photos, videos, social media projects, or any other creative method of storytelling on a topic related to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to email [email protected] with a pitch describing the story you want to tell, how you plan to tell it, and why you think our audience will be interested.