Event Coverage Highlight

By Cathy Manso 

President Scott Kraft (left) & Executive Director Patricia Kranz (right)

OPC governors and members came together on the evening of September 3 for the club’s 2025 Annual Meeting, held in a hybrid format at the Committee to Protect Journalists’ (CPJ) offices on 38th Street and on Zoom. The gathering of about 30 people covered club business, the results of the Board of Governors election, and the scheduled OPC programs coming up in the next few months. 

President Scott Kraft started the meeting by reviewing the successes of the past year and emphasized the importance of collaboration.   

“To all of you who are members at this club, we appreciate you. The work you do is necessary and it’s only going to be more important, as we try to navigate through the ever-changing challenges of our industry.” 

Executive Director Patricia Kranz reviewed the yearly financial report. Kranz found a way to reduce OPC Award Dinner costs by $36,000. However, the news that quickly followed was the announcement of Kranz’s retirement. OPC thanks Patricia Kranz for serving for 11 years. The search for OPC’s Executive Director will begin promptly.  

First Vice President Sandra Stevenson, speaking on Zoom, reviewed OPC’s YouTube content and emphasized the importance of views being received after an event has passed. The numbers reflect an interest in the programs that streamed in May and June, like the program ‘Alternative Media Options for Freelancers,’ an hour-long panel with journalists who are increasing their own audiences with alternative platforms to publish their work. 

Jane Reilly, the executive director of the OPC Foundation, reminded members that the deadline to apply for the Overseas Press Club Foundation Scholar Awards is Saturday, November 15, 2025; the program offers scholarships and fellowships to those with a demonstrated interest in international journalism, providing reporting experience with major news organizations such as the Associated Press, Reuters, and Bloomberg. She emphasized the importance of the grants for independent work and recalled successes of the past year, like OPC Foundation Edith Lederer Scholar Award Winner Inaara Gangji.  

The recently elected governors for the Active board are Juan Arredondo, a Colombian-American photographer and documentary filmmaker; Tom Goldstone, executive producer of CNN’s world-affairs program “Fareed Zakaria GPS”; Nikhil Kumar, executive editor of TIME; Greg Myre, NPR’s national security correspondent; Alexis Okeowo, an author and staff writer for The New Yorker who has reported on conflict, human rights and culture; Sebastian Rotella, senior reporter at ProPublica covering international security issues; Nilo Tabrizy, an author and investigative reporter on The Washington Post’s Visual Forensics team; Vivienne Walt, a freelance foreign correspondent for TIME and FORTUNE based in Paris; Marcus Yam, a roving foreign correspondent and staff photographer for the Los Angeles Times; and Laura Zelenko, global head of editorial standards and senior executive editor responsible for training and talent initiatives at Bloomberg News. 

The two reelected associate governors are Brian Byrd, an advisor to the Visual Storytellers Fund; and John Simons, a partner at The Brunswick Group. 

Governors continuing to serve are: Amran Abocar, Global General Manager at Reuters; Yinka Adegoke, founding editor of Semafor Africa; Singeli Agnew, an independent cinematographer, producer and director of documentary films; Josh Fine, an award-winning investigative reporter and producer; Azmat Khan, an investigative reporter with The New York Times Magazine and a professor at Columbia Journalism School, where she also leads the Li Center for Global Journalism; Stephen Kalin, a foreign correspondent for The Wall Street Journal, based in the Middle East; Catherine Kim, executive vice president of editorial for NBC News; Marc Lacey, managing editor of The New York Times; and Mary Rajkumar, global investigations editor for The Associated Press. 

Kraft thanked outgoing governors whose terms have expired: Fahim Abed, Raney Aronson-Rath, Nadja Drost, Anup Kaphle, Beth Knobel, Ginger Thompson and Daniella Zalcman. 

For a list of the full board, please click here.

Photos by: Cathy Manso

Executive Director Jane Reilly of the OPC Foundation.

President Scott Kraft (left) and Executive Director Patricia Kranz (right) using OWL and Zoom to host meeting.