Mallary Tarpley

Assistant Professor of Practice, School of Journalism and Media @ The University of Texas at Austin

About

Mallary Tenore Tarpley is an award-winning author of the memoir “SLIP” and an assistant professor of practice at the University of Texas at Austin’s Moody College of Communication and the McCombs School of Business, where she teaches journalism and writing. Mallary specializes in a variety of topics, including longform feature writing, narrative nonfiction, personal essay writing, solutions journalism and nonprofit journalism. “SLIP: Life in the Middle of Eating Disorder Recovery” blends memoir, reporting, and research to explore the under-discussed complexities of eating disorders and recovery from them. While working on the book, Mallary received a generous grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation to support her science-related reporting. An internationally recognized book, SLIP won the Association of American Publishers’ 2026 PROSE Excellence Award for Biological and Life Sciences. It also won first place in the Clinical Medicine category and was a finalist for Outstanding Work by a Trade Publisher. The book is available in Canada, the UK and Australia, and a Spanish version (titled Desliz) will be published in June 2026 for distribution in the U.S., Latin America, and Spain. Mallary has traveled the country giving talks about eating disorder prevention and recovery, and what she calls “the middle place” between acute sickness and full recovery. She also frequently delivers memoir-writing trainings for organizations such as The Poynter Institute and the Writers’ League of Texas. Mallary started her time at UT Austin as associate director of the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas, an international training and outreach center for journalists. Previously, she was executive director the nonprofit Images & Voices of Hope, where she developed a storytelling genre called restorative narrative. Mallary began her journalism career at The Poynter Institute, a world-renowned journalism think tank, where she served as managing editor of Poynter.org and taught professional journalists how to ethically use social media. Mallary’s articles and personal essays have been published in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, TIME Magazine and Teen Vogue, among other publications. She maintains a weekly newsletter, Write at the Edge, featuring writing tips and best practices. Mallary holds a bachelor’s degrees in English and Spanish from Providence College and a master’s of fine arts in nonfiction writing from Goucher College. She lives in the Austin area with her husband and two children.

Country

United States

City

Austin

Industry

Higher Education

Skill

Journalism, Editing, Creative Writing, Publishing, Online Journalism, News Writing, Copy Editing, Social Media, AP Style, Feature Articles, Newspapers, Media Relations, Newsletters, Press Releases, Proofreading, Copywriting, Web Content, Public Relations, Digital Media, Publications

Experience

Assistant Professor of Practice, School of Journalism and Media

The University of Texas at Austin

2023-9 - Present · 3 yrs 1 mo

Teach graduate and undergraduate courses in the Moody College of Communication's School of Journalism and Media.

Assistant Professor of Practice, McCombs School of Business

The University of Texas at Austin

2022-9 - Present · 4 yrs 1 mo

Teach a graduate-level writing course for accounting students in McCombs' masters in public accounting program.

Associate Director, Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas

The University of Texas at Austin

2017-7 - 2023-9 · 6 yrs 3 mos

Austin, Texas Area

Managed the Knight Center and its various programs, including its International Symposium on Online Journalism (ISOJ) and its world-renown distance learning program, which has offered journalism courses to more than 300,000 people from 200 countries and territories.

Adjunct Faculty, School of Journalism and Media & McCombs School of Business

The University of Texas at Austin

2019-9 - 2023-8 · 4 yrs

Taught journalism courses in the Moody College of Communication’s School of Journalism and Media.

Executive Director

Images & Voices of Hope

2013-12 - 2017-7 · 3 yrs 8 mos

Austin, Texas Area

Was responsible for the overall growth and success of ivoh, a media nonprofit. Oversaw fundraising, partnership development, event management, community engagement, and the organization's website and social media presence. Also developed an internationally recognized storytelling genre called Restorative Narrative. These narratives show how people and communities are making a meaningful progression from despair to resilience.

Project Researcher (Freelance)

AIR (Association of Independents in Radio)

2016-8 - 2017-1 · 6 mos

Conducted research for the Association’s "Localore: Finding America" project, which paired independent producers with public radio and TV stations to tell innovative stories in 15 under-covered communities nationwide. Penned a research report -- published on The American Press Institute's website -- identifying case studies, lessons learned, and best practices from the project.

Managing Editor

Poynter Institute

2012-9 - 2013-12 · 1 yr 4 mos

Tampa/St. Petersburg, Florida Area

Oversaw publishing for Poynter.org, one of the world’s leading media news sites. Assigned, produced, line/copy edited, and wrote stories for the site while managing its social media accounts. Managed two full-time writers and more than two dozen freelance journalists. Interacted on a daily basis with journalists and heads of news organizations. Helped oversee Poynter.org’s budget and advertising revenue. As part of this role, also taught social media sessions to journalists who enrolled in Poynter's in-person seminars and training workshops. The sessions focused on how journalists can use social media to enhance their reporting and storytelling.

Associate Editor

The Poynter Institute for Media Studies

2010-9 - 2012-9 · 2 yrs 1 mo

Tampa/St. Petersburg, Florida Area

Wrote media news stories and created the website’s How To section, which featured best practices in social media, data-driven storytelling, and responsive design.

Copy Editor & Reporter

The Poynter Institute for Media Studies

2008-7 - 2010-8 · 2 yrs 2 mos

Tampa/St. Petersburg, Florida Area

Copy edited stories for Poynter.org, Poynter’s News University, and Poynter’s marketing department. Also wrote stories about the journalism industry.

Naughton Fellow

Poynter Institute

2007-7 - 2008-7 · 1 yr 1 mo

Wrote, edited and produced content for Poynter Online. Wrote about trends in the journalism industry and the benefits of social networking for journalists. Also edited various columns, including Al's Morning Meeting, Ask the Recruiter and Poynter en Espanol, Poynter Online's Spanish language column. Also created Poynter Online's diversity blog, Diversity at Work.

Reporter/Intern

The Dallas Morning News

2008-8 - 2008-10 · 3 mos

Reported and wrote stories for the arts and lifestyles section of The Dallas Morning News. Wrote features, concert reviews and various other stories on deadline.