Eden Dinneen is the Innovation in Focus Editor on RJI’s Innovation Team. She produces the monthly web series and newsletter Innovation in Focus, which experiments with new ideas, tech and methods of storytelling for local and community-centered journalism. She also helps manage RJI’s Student Innovation Fellowship, which places Missouri School of Journalism Students in newsrooms to lead innovative projects during the summer.

Prior to joining RJI, Dinneen was an Audience Development Strategist at The Kansas City Star, where she led newsletter, social media, and community engagement initiatives designed to grow audiences and deepen the impact of local journalism. Previously, she served as the Audio and Visual Producer for the award-winning podcast Common Ground Berlin with Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson, which sought to strengthen public debate on issues affecting both sides of the Atlantic. She was also a Congress Bundestag Youth Exchange Young Professionals Fellow in Germany during the 2023-2024 program year. Her work has also appeared in Life in Düsseldorf and the Johnson County Post.

Dinneen earned a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Mass Communications from Kansas State University.  Outside of work, she enjoys practicing yoga, creating art, hiking, traveling, and volunteering in her community.