The Riverside Record Welcomes First Full-Time Reporter

The Riverside Record is excited to introduce the newsroom’s first full-time reporter, Daniel Eduardo Hernandez, as part of the California Local News Fellowship.

“Daniel has been such an incredible asset to The Record as a freelancer this year, and I’m thrilled that he’ll be able to join the team in a full-time capacity,” Publisher Alicia Ramirez said. “It will allow The Record to go even deeper into our coverage of the city of Riverside.”

Hernandez will be covering the city of Riverside, including the Riverside City Council and Riverside Unified School District, attending meetings and focusing on the issues most important to residents.

“It’s an honor to be reporting on these vital topics for my community,” Hernandez said. “My goal is to make these meetings accessible, while also holding our representatives accountable.”

A Riverside native, Hernandez grew up in the Arlanza neighborhood and first studied journalism at Riverside City College where he reported for the student-run newsroom. He then transferred to San Francisco State University where he received a bachelor’s degree in bilingual Spanish journalism.

Prior to joining The Record as a full-time reporter, Hernandez produced an investigative multimedia project on the Bay Area’s Salvadoran American voters as an intern at KQED, covered the Inland Empire’s Latino culture for the LA Times and reported on protests in downtown Riverside for The Record. 

“I believe that my background in multimedia journalism, combined with my experience on covering topics important for Latino communities, has uniquely prepared me for this role,” Hernandez said. “I look forward to bringing my passion for journalism back to my hometown.”

Outside of work, Hernandez enjoys driving across Southern California and learning new recipes.

The California Local News Fellowship currently has more than 70 early-career journalists working in 35 counties and covering more than 90% of the state’s population, according to the fellowship.

“Robust local journalism is essential for transparency, accountability and coverage of underrepresented communities,” said Christa Scharfenberg, who led the program since its inception and recently stepped down from the role, in a release announcing this year’s fellows. “We’ve proven that this state-funded model can and does work.”

Starting today, Hernandez can be reached at Daniel.Hernandez@RiversideRecord.org. Feel free to reach out to congratulate him and to share anything you think he should cover in the city of Riverside.