Karine Jean-Pierre To Be Honored With Outfest’s Inaugural Achievement Award for Press and Media

BreAnna Bell
·2 min read
344
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre will be honored with Outfest’s Inaugural Achievement Award for Press and Media, the nonprofit announced on Friday. The award presentation will take place on closing night of the 41st Outfest Los Angeles Summer Festival, which is presented by Genesis Motor America and Warner Bros. Discovery.

The Achievement Award is a high honor within the organization and acknowledges the LGBTQ+ community’s presence in the media.

More from Variety

“Outfest is thrilled to recognize the continued contributions of Karine Jean-Pierre for her barrier breaking and historic achievement in Press and Media,” Outfest board co-president Nii-Quartelai Quartey said in a statement. “Throughout her career, the Black and LGBTQ+ community has been reminded of what is possible. Our fellow Americans have been reminded of our humanity and inherent dignity. Our Outfest Press Fellows have been inspired.”

Jean-Pierre became the White House press secretary in May 2022, and she is the first openly LGBTQ+ person to serve in the position. She previously served as the deputy press secretary from 2020-2022 and before that as the chief of staff for the U.S. Vice Presidential candidate Kamala Harris during the 2020 presidential campaign.

Prior to the appointment, she was previously employed as the chief public affairs officer for MoveOn.org. Jean-Pierre served as regional political director for the White House Office of Political Affairs during the Obama-Biden administration and as deputy battleground states director for President Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign. She served as Southeast regional political director for President Obama’s 2008 campaign, deputy campaign manager for Martin O’Malley for president, campaign manager for the ACLU’s Reproductive Freedom Initiative, and deputy chief of staff and director of legislative and budget affairs for two members in the New York City Council.

The award comes as Outfest rolls out their Inclusive Press Initiative, a new investment in journalism for the organization. As part of the move, the program offers emerging film critics, broadcasters and other journalists unrestricted access to cover the Outfest Los Angeles LGBTQ+ Film Festival while receiving a stipend and mentorship from journalists at a list of media outlets including Reuters and The New York Times, among other names. This year’s class of fellows include Gisselle Palomera, Jireh Deng, Joey Harvey, Kayla Thompson, Kelsey Brown, Kristian Fanene Schmidt, Lindsay Lee Wallace, Marcus’Anthony II, Ose Ehianeta Arheghan, Eli Press-Reynolds and Shahamat Mohammed Uddin.

Best of Variety

Sign up for Variety’s Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Click here to read the full article.