Location: United States, New Orleans
Date: August 16, 2019

The Coalition For Women In Journalism is deeply saddened by the loss of American broadcast journalist Nancy Parker.

Nancy died in a fatal plane crash that took place during a reporting trip on August 16. The crash also claimed the life of the pilot, Franklin Augustus, whose work was the subject of Nancy’s news report; the pilot was actively engaged with at-risk youth. The two were the only people aboard the small stunt plane.

According to Mayor LaToya Cantrell, the ill-fated plane crashed in a field near the city’s Lakefront Airport. As per reports, the pilot had reported unspecified problems with the plane shortly after take-off.Witnesses near the site reported that the plane appeared to have engine issues soon after takeoff, and most of the wreckage was destroyed after it caught fire.

Nancy was a five-time Emmy Award-winning reporter. She also won four Edward Murrow Awards and numerous Associated Press and press club awards and anchored primetime newscasts for FOX8 and earned a reputation as a journalist who covered hard news.

The broadcast journalist graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the University of Alabama in 1988. In 2015, her alma mater honoured her with a college-wide Bert Bank Distinguished Service Award and Nancy was also named to the Board of Visitors for the School of Communications and Information Sciences.

It was during her high school days that Nancy fell in love with journalism in Opelika, Alabama. Her first job gave her the opportunity to anchor at a local AM radio station for an evening drive news show. Her professional career began as a TV journalist at the WTVM in Columbus, Georgia as Alabama bureau chief.Most of her time was dedicated towards working as a fixture on local TV and radio newscasts for over two decades.

Nancy later moved on to WSFA News 12 in Montgomery, WAFB-TV in Baton Rouge and eventually New Orleans as an anchor at WVUE. According to FOX8’s biography about Nancy, she also worked with John Snell as an anchor for the 10 p.m broadcast in 1999 and gave weekday evening broadcasts with him for over two decades.

Nancy also authored two children’s books, was active within the community as a speaker, and supported numerous non-profits and community groups.She is survived by her husband, Glen Boyd, and three children.

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The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world, and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.

Follow us on Instagram @womeninjournalism and Twitter @CFWIJ.

Our website is WomenInJournalism.org and we can be reached at press@womeninjournalism.org

The CFWIJ strongly condemns the police brutality against journalists. We demand the immediate return of the press cards seized from the security forces. Policies to intimidate journalists should be abandoned, and journalism should be practiced under the criteria of freedom of the press.

If you have been harassed or abused in any way, and please report the incident by using the following form.