Ava DuVernay to deliver keynote address at IRE Conference

Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) is thrilled to announce that the keynote speaker at the 2024 IRE Conference in Anaheim will be Ava DuVernay.

The award-winning filmmaker will speak as part of a fireside chat with Kevin Merida, the former executive editor of the Los Angeles Times, on Saturday, June 22 from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. PDT.

DuVernay, an Academy Award nominee and winner of Emmy, BAFTA and Peabody Awards, among numerous other awards, often focuses her documentaries and other films on historical events and journalists bearing witness to history.

Her historical drama “Selma” — which chronicles the 1965 voting rights marches — was the first film directed by a Black woman to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture. “When They See Us,” a Netflix miniseries, received 16 Primetime Emmy nominations for its portrayal of the five teens falsely accused in the 1989 Central Park jogger case.

DuVernay’s most recent film, the critically-acclaimed “Origin,” chronicles the tragedy and triumph of Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Isabel Wilkerson, who investigates America’s class division and hierarchy as she writes her book “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents.” 

"For years, Ava DuVernay has championed the important work of investigative journalists and also pushed for improvements in the media industry and in Hollywood," IRE Board President Brian M. Rosenthal said. "She is an important voice, and we can't wait for our members to be motivated and inspired by her message."

Merida, who will speak with DuVernay in the fireside chat, has led award-winning coverage at the Los Angeles Times, ESPN, Andscape and The Washington Post. During his tenure, the Los Angeles Times won four Pulitzer Prizes and its first Oscar for the documentary short film, “The Last Repair Shop.”

"With IRE24 so close to Hollywood, even jaded journalists can be a little starstruck,” IRE executive director Diana Fuentes said. “We’re certain this keynote conversation will resonate with IRE members."

DuVernary’s other credits include “13th,” “Middle of Nowhere” and “Queen Sugar,” which became the longest running Black family drama in television history in its seven seasons. 

She also broke ground with “Origin,” becoming the first African American woman director to compete in the Venice Film Festival, the world’s oldest film festival, in its 90-year history. 

DuVernay spoke to TIME about the film’s significance today:

“This is a time when we need to be alert,” DuVernay told TIME. “We need to be aware of the stripping of freedoms and rights. The intention of certain people to distort history, to say it doesn't matter, to say it never happened. And books being taken off shelves, information being contorted. This is the time when we have to push through our fatigue and open our eyes and engage.”

Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) is the nation’s premier training organization for investigative journalism. We provide training, resources and a community of support to thousands of journalists around the world. 

Our annual conference will take place June 20-23 in Anaheim, California. Learn more about IRE24 here.