/ Leadership
Leadership Team
Saundra Weathers
President
Saundra Weathers is a senior reporter at Spectrum Bay News 9 where she has worked for the last 12 years.
Saundra reports on a wide range of topics. She has a series dedicated to social justice stories called, Justice for All. With her reporting she’s able to amplify the issues in underserved communities and help communities find solutions.
She’s an award-winning journalist and her reporting has also led to changes in legislation.
Saundra is a proud graduate of Florida A&M University. She’s been fortunate enough to give back to the university that gave her so much. She volunteers at the university’s journalism workshops and writing book camps.
Emerald Morrow
VP of Broadcast
Emerald Morrow is an investigative reporter and anchor at 10 Tampa Bay (WTSP-TV) where she has she has worked for ten years.
Her stories focus on solving problems and elevating voices in from communities and people who feel unheard.
Her work has earned eight regional Emmy awards and multiple honors from the Florida Associated Press Broadcasters, Florida Society of Professional Journalists and the Tampa Bay Association of Black Journalists.
Other professional highlights include covering the Oscars, GRAMMYs and Fashion Week. Also a trained magazine journalist, her work has been published by The Associated Press, Black Enterprise and Black MBA magazine.
She attended Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism where she earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees (Go ‘Cats).
In her free time, she loves to read, sew, play tennis and explore the beautiful beaches along the Gulf Coast.
Langston Taylor
VP of Print
Langston Taylor, the Vice President of Print for TBABJ, grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland. His father was a lifelong reporter, and his family always had a copy of the Washington Post on the dining room table.
He studied “interactive” journalism at the University of North Carolina and interned at the Charlotte Observer before joining the Tampa Bay Times in 2016. Now, he is the paper’s data editor. In that role, Langston leads the Data Hub, a collection of journalists who analyze and visualize data to support their reporting.
Langston has been part of multiple award-winning projects, including the “Rising Threat” series on flood risk and the “Deadly Dose” series on kratom. He is thrilled to be a part of TBABJ.
DeJanae Phillips
VP of Digital
DeJanae Phillips is the new Vice President of Digital for the Tampa Bay Association for Black Journalists.
A born and raised Tampa native, DeJanae graduated from the University of Central Florida’s Nicholson
School of Journalism with a Bachelor's degree in Journalism and a minor in Digital Media.
She worked several internships before starting her career as a freelance journalist, writing human interest pieces for publications such as the Tampa Bay Times and the Orlando Sentinel. In 2022, she
became a Digital Producer for Spectrum Bay News 9, where she maintains the station’s website, app, and social media accounts. With a passion for visual storytelling, her specialties include creating social media graphics, quote cards, and short videos to keep the community informed.
When she’s not covering the news, DeJanae can be found enjoying music festivals, traveling, trying out
new restaurants as a foodie, being a huge Spider-Man fan, or relaxing with her two cats, Aslan and Ezra.
Jenise Griffin
Treasurer
Jenise Griffin is a publisher and editor of two weekly newspapers – the Florida Courier, based in Tampa and the Daytona Times in Daytona Beach.
A graduate of Florida A&M University, Jenise has worked as a reporter and editor at publications in Florida and Georgia, including the Orlando Sentinel and the Naples Daily News, her hometown newspaper.
Jenise is a recipient of the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism and has written a series of stories for the Florida Courier on mental health and the Black community. She is a charter member of the Central Florida Association of Black Journalists and was inducted into its Hall of Fame in 2004.
Jenise has served in several positions with TBABJ, including VP of print, treasurer and president. She has been honored by the organization for her achievements in journalism. In 2021, she received the Journalist of Distinction Award from the National Association of Black Journalists.
Jenise is a charter member of the Collier County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and serves as its Information and Communications chair. She also is a member of Love First Christian
Center in Riverview.
Marilyn Parker
Secretary
Kathy Y. Times
Parliamentarian
Kathy Y. Times is a bold Emmy-winning storyteller and visionary communications strategist and has served as president of Yellow Brick Media Concepts public relations since 2011. She uses her experiences as a multimedia journalist, tv news anchor, university chief communications officer, past president and CEO of the National Association of Black Journalists, and college lecturer to assist organizations and aspiring professionals with developing strategic solutions for some of their most pressing communication challenges.
Kathy is passionate about using her journalistic background and executive leadership experiences to help accomplished leaders communicate effectively with their audience within moments of their first interaction.
She started Kathy Times WOW medi
Kathy is a Miami native and graduate of Florida A&M University, where she earned bachelor’s degrees in computer information system
