MANSFIELD — Source Media Properties is excited to announce a series of newsroom leadership and staffing updates as the organization prepares for the launch of a fourth local newsroom, Delaware Source, in early 2026.
Our goal is to maintain strong local coverage across Richland, Ashland and Knox counties, which means we’re hiring.
We’re interviewing candidates for our Richland, Ashland, and Knox County markets who call these communities home today, or are willing to relocate.
A new, independent newsroom for Delaware
For more than a decade, Source Media Properties has delivered independent, community-focused journalism in north central Ohio. Our flagship publication, Richland Source, was founded in Mansfield in 2013 and has since expanded to serve Ashland and Knox counties.
Across its markets, the Source is recognized for excellence in reader-driven and solutions-oriented journalism, as well as community engagement events that bring residents, leaders and organizations together around shared challenges.
Our approach prioritizes listening to communities first — ensuring coverage reflects what matters most to the people who live there.
Delaware Source will be built using that same model. We’ve assembled a team who will have the best chance to make good on those promises.
Brittany Schock tapped as Regional Editor for Delaware Source
Brittany Schock has been appointed Regional Editor for Delaware Source and will lead the launch and development of the Delaware County newsroom. She will relocate to Delaware County to be embedded full-time in the community.
Schock is the longest-tenured employee at Source Media Properties, joining Richland Source in January 2014. She brings more than a decade of journalism experience to her new role and has been a practitioner of solutions journalism since 2016.
Her reporting series on infant mortality in Richland County was recognized as the top solutions journalism story in the nation by the Solutions Journalism Network in 2016, and led to a community baby shower that drew more than 500 residents. Her work has also been recognized by LION Publishers and the Knight Foundation.
Schock has been invited to speak nationally and internationally about solutions journalism and audience engagement. She earned her journalism degree from The Ohio State University.
Most recently, Schock served as Audience Engagement Editor, overseeing content distribution and community engagement initiatives across the Source’s publications.
“Delaware is getting a newsroom leader with deep experience, institutional knowledge and a strong track record of community-centered journalism,” said Jay Allred, CEO of Source Media Properties.
“Brittany understands how to build trust, listen to residents and deliver reporting that matters. She’s the right leader for this moment.”
Taylor Henninger, Jack Slemenda to Delaware Source
Joining Schock in the Delaware Source newsroom will be Taylor Henninger and Jack Slemenda, recent Ohio University graduates currently reporting in Ashland and Knox counties.
Both reporters started their tenure at Source Media Properties last summer.
Henninger will transition from Ashland Source, where she has covered education and local government. Slemenda will transition from Knox Pages, where his reporting has focused on education and general assignment coverage.
Together, they will help establish day-to-day reporting in Delaware County over the coming months.
The Delaware Source newsroom will launch gradually to ensure coverage gaps across Richland Source, Ashland Source and Knox Pages are minimized during the transition.
Dillon Carr to Gongwer News Service, Hayden Gray assumes leadership at Ashland Source
Dillon Carr, lead reporter for Ashland Source, departed the newsroom on Jan. 2 to pursue a new role as a statehouse reporter for Gongwer News Service. He will cover transportation policy and the Ohio Supreme Court.
We will miss him!
Carr first joined the Source newsroom in 2013 as a college intern. Over the past decade, he has played a key role in Richland and Ashland Source coverage, including leading Ashland Source since 2021.
His work has spanned local government, environmental reporting, breaking news and solutions-focused projects.
“Dillon’s career is a great example of what strong local journalism can do,” Allred said. “He grew here, challenged himself here, and is now taking that experience to one of the most respected statehouse reporting organizations in the country.”
Following Carr’s departure, Hayden Gray will assume the role of Lead Reporter for Ashland Source.
Gray joined Richland Source in 2023 after previously working as a reporter for The OH Report in Mansfield. He has a bachelor’s degree in integrated language arts from Kent State University and has focused his reporting on Shelby and northern Richland County communities.
In his new role, Gray will oversee Ashland Source’s daily coverage and work closely with editors to ensure continued in-depth reporting across Ashland County.
Hiring underway across Source markets
As part of this expansion and continued investment in local coverage, Source Media Properties is hiring general assignment reporters to serve Richland, Ashland and Knox counties.
The organization is seeking journalists who are committed to community-centered reporting and who either live in — or are eager to live in — the communities they cover.
These roles will play a key part in maintaining strong, consistent local coverage as Delaware Source launches and the newsroom continues to grow.