Anna Sterling always knew she wanted to be a teacher. When she heard about the opportunity to be an adjunct in the journalism department at Hunter, she didn’t hesitate.
Sterling is currently teaching News Literacy in a Digital Age and hopes that after taking her class, students will think critically when consuming content and become stronger writers, something she is passionate about.
Sterling studied political science and women’s studies at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where she obtained a BA. She received an MA in journalism from the University of Southern California (USC), where she was awarded the Annenberg Fellowship. Her interactive documentary on abortion access was nominated for an EPPY in the Best Innovation Category in 2016, and she was also nominated for a Webby in 2020.
Sterling has worked for media outlets such as HuffPost, AJ+, and Digital Trends. She has freelanced for many others, like The Los Angeles Times, Vice, and The Ringer, as a video producer, correspondent, reporter, producer, and guest host.
At UCLA, Sterling was a community organizer, a student activist, and active in the Filipino student organization on campus. “We fought around things like establishing Filipino-American studies at UCLA and justice for Filipino-American veterans,” said Sterling. She started paving her journey as a journalist at UCLA’s independent, student-run Daily Bruin as an op-ed writer. “I was always trying to convey something; there were issues I wanted to address,” said Sterling.
She received her MA when many news outlets began thinking that social media was how they would make money through likes and advertising. As companies started making more space for social media, Sterling was already involved with that work. ”I thought working in the media would highlight the issues I care about on a much wider platform,” said Sterling.
She became known for making viral videos, and even though the algorithm changes rapidly and so do the rules to make one, she does follow a rule of thumb: always open with your strongest video or photo and stick to a popular topic.
Sterling moved to New York in 2019. She recently left NY1 as a reporter for Spectrum News, a job where she earned two Emmy nominations. She recently started a job as the press secretary for a labor union.
Sterling believes it is about being present and trusting your journey, for her, things usually turn out even better than she could have imagined, like getting to be a teacher just as she wanted.