Cheryl Welch

Cheryl Welch is an award-winning editor, strategic communications leader, adjunct lecturer, and the publications advisor for The Media Center at The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where she primarily mentors student journalists at The Daily Beacon. Backed by more than two decades of newsroom leadership, her career spans investigative reporting for the New York Times Company—where she earned the prestigious Chairman’s Award—to directing multi-million-dollar brand journalism strategies in the corporate world. In 2025, Cheryl pivoted to higher education and considers championing independent student media to be the most fulfilling chapter of her life. In addition to the daily mentorship and encouragement central to this role, she designs workshops that empower student journalists across The Media Center to pursue challenging accountability and solutions-based reporting.

As a PhD student, Cheryl explores a path forward for media in a challenging landscape. Her research interests focus on how traditional media lost its agenda-setting power to engagement-driven AI algorithms, why audiences avoid and distrust the news, and how the Fourth Estate can reclaim its credibility in a healthy democracy.

A global traveler and active member of the local professional photographers’ association, she lives in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains with her husband and their English shepherd. She uses her green thumb to create vibrant backyard pollinator habitats, bringing the same care to her gardens that she provides to the next generation of storytellers.