MaryJo Webster
Data Editor
Webster is most interested in telling stories that get behind the daily news, give readers a deeper understanding of what's happening around them and hold government agencies and officials accountable.
Previously, she worked at the St. Paul Pioneer Press, USA Today, the Center for Public Integrity, Investigative Reporters and Editors, the Oshkosh Northwestern and the New Ulm Journal.
She has journalism bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls and the University of Missouri-Columbia, respectively.
Webster is board member for the Minnesota Coalition on Government Information (MNCOGI), which is the state's all-volunteer freedom of information council. She is also a senior fellow for the Center for Health Journalism's Data Fellowship program, where she trains and mentors journalists on how to incorporate data into their reporting. She previously taught part-time at the University of Minnesota’s journalism school and is a regular panelist and teacher at national journalism conferences and workshops.
Latest from MaryJo Webster
Business
‘It just never gets better’: The gender wage gap still plagues Minnesota, U.S.
The gender pay gap exists at all income levels, but it widens as women earn more. Race exacerbates the disparity.
May 16, 2024
Business
No matter what they do, Minnesota millennials feel like they ‘can’t get ahead’
The specter of the 2008 recession continues to haunt many millennials, whose income started slow and might not catch up to their parents.
May 16, 2024
Business
Native income has grown the fastest in Minnesota, but maintaining that is precarious
For Native Americans in Minnesota, the economic story of the recent decades is one of tenuous and fragile growth. Native American income was the fastest growing between 2005 and 2019, according to new data, yet no other group remains as likely to fall down the economic ladder.
May 16, 2024
Business
Asian Americans have the most income mobility in Minnesota
Asian Minnesotans have higher income mobility rates than not only other racial groups in the state but also Asian Americans in other states.
May 16, 2024
Business
Black Minnesotans have made income gains, but wide disparities persist
The 2008 Great Recession hit Black Minnesotans the hardest, and it took them the longest to recover. Such income disproportion concerns Black leaders, state officials and economists who noted half of Black wage earners in the state still don’t make enough to live comfortably.
May 16, 2024
Business
Income mobility is the American Dream. Most Minnesotans never achieve it.
New data shows income stagnation is widespread in America, and Minnesotans are among those least likely to move out of their current bracket. Those who start at the bottom tend to stay at the bottom, and those who start at the top tend to stay at the top.
May 16, 2024
Gophers
Gophers NIL deals: Social media, female athletes and football lead the way
A review of 272 NIL deals signed by Gophers athletes revealed a few surprises and some findings you could have guessed.
March 29, 2024
Local
Reporting errors, missed graduates mar Minnesota graduation rate calculations
The Minneapolis and St. Paul school districts clarified reporting errors, but the episode points to ongoing needs to better collect and organize student data.
March 28, 2024
Business
Black Minnesotans have made income gains, but wide disparities persist
The 2008 Great Recession hit Black Minnesotans the hardest, and it took them the longest to recover. Such income disproportion concerns Black leaders, state officials and economists who noted half of Black wage earners in the state still don’t make enough to live comfortably.
May 16, 2024
Business
Income mobility is the American Dream. Most Minnesotans never achieve it.
New data shows income stagnation is widespread in America, and Minnesotans are among those least likely to move out of their current bracket. Those who start at the bottom tend to stay at the bottom, and those who start at the top tend to stay at the top.
May 16, 2024
Gophers
Gophers NIL deals: Social media, female athletes and football lead the way
A review of 272 NIL deals signed by Gophers athletes revealed a few surprises and some findings you could have guessed.
March 29, 2024
Local
Reporting errors, missed graduates mar Minnesota graduation rate calculations
The Minneapolis and St. Paul school districts clarified reporting errors, but the episode points to ongoing needs to better collect and organize student data.
March 28, 2024