by Marissa Campo

News reports can sometimes be disheartening and hard to take in, especially during such tense times as we have experienced during 2020. It takes a strong, determined reporter to tackle the tough, and often controversial, subjects.

Tresa Baldas has been a reporter for the past three decades, working for newspapers big and small across the United States including New Hampshire’s Concord Monitor and the Chicago Tribune. Baldas has called the Detroit Free Press home for 10 years where she covers the federal court system.

While corruption, federal crimes, and court rulings keep her busy, Baldas also dedicates her time to report on critical social justice issues. She has written extensively about workplace discrimination, female genital mutilation, violent crime, immigration, and sexual assault. Most notably, Baldas investigated years of hidden sexual assault cases at Jamaican resorts.

This piece detailed how resort staff and police officials tried to cover up key statistics on sexual assault occurrences, and ultimately prompted Jamaican officials to launch a security audit of major tourist attractions and resorts. Baldas’ investigative journalism did not go unnoticed – she was named the 2019 Richard Millman Journalist of the Year by the Michigan Press Association.

“Tresa truly represents everything the Association for Women in Communications and Media Room Spotlight campaign stand for,” said Carol Gillis, AWC Detroit vice president of marketing. “Our goal is to support the advancement of women across all communications disciples, and she has gone above and beyond to shine a light on the inequalities and issues facing women today.”

Baldas is a proud Michigan State University graduate, earning a bachelor’s degree from the School of Journalism in 1990. Green seems to run in the family since her husband and two children are Spartans, too!

Congratulations to Tresa on her Media Room Spotlight recognition!