Rushing briefed National Press Foundation fellows in April 2024: Ty Rushing: Covering Politics in the Heartland. 

Ty Rushing is a Kansas City, Kansas, native who made a name for himself as an Iowa journalist. He broke barriers as the first Black reporter and/or editor at eight Iowa print publications across the state. Throughout this journey, Ty has done everything from writing about his experiences as a Black transplant adjusting to living in Iowa to penning heart-warming features. He’s profiled and interviewed prominent community leaders and politicians from all over the state and won a few awards along the way.

Ty has been featured as a guest and subject on CNN, MSNBC, Iowa Public Television, Iowa Public Radio, and other media outlets.

In 2022, Ty wrote, produced, and directed his first film “Telling Our Own Story: Ending Racism” in conjunction with Iowa PBS. The documentary was nominated for a 2023 Upper Midwest Emmy.

He resides in the Des Moines area. He is the co-founder and president of the Iowa Association of Black Journalists and serves as the chief political correspondent of Iowa Starting Line, a Des Moines-based online news outlet.