What is Pickup Communications?
Pickup Communications tells important stories, better.
How? By changing the system by which trauma survivors interact with and are impacted by the media, to the benefit of all stakeholders. By training journalists, survivor support workers, and justice sector partners how to tell and facilitate stories that heal, instead of harm. And by providing the support trauma survivors need to make their interactions (or lack thereof) with the media as beneficial for them as possible.
For public- and private-sector clients looking to solve problems through effective communication, our best-in-class strategies, executed through a trauma-informed lens, means your very important stories will be told with the insight, integrity, and innovation needed to effect positive change, both within your team and across your community.
A full list of services can be found here.
Tamara Cherry
Photo credit: Bolo Program
Founder
Tamara Cherry is an award-winning journalist, trauma researcher and communications consultant who spent nearly 15 years of her career as a crime reporter for the Toronto Star, Toronto Sun, and CTV News Toronto.
Tamara’s latest book, The Trauma Beat: A Case for Re-Thinking the Business of Bad News, was described in a Quill & Quire starred review as “a stunning work that should be required reading for journalism students, news reporters, true crime junkies, and anyone who wants to write narratives that heal, instead of harm.” HuffPost compared The Trauma Beat to Prince Harry’s Spare, calling it a “brilliant and honest debut” that shows “the messy blurry lines of entertainment, public personas, sense of privacy and autonomy, and ravenous way the public thrives on public anguish.” Publishers Weekly wrote that The Trauma Beat “makes a convincing case for centering the feelings of victims and survivors in stories of violence and tragedy,” and that it is “a revealing take for journalists and true crime junkies alike.” Tamara is also the author of All the Bumpy Pebbles, a novel about the domestic sex trafficking of women and girls, which was inspired by her award-winning work reporting on human trafficking in Canada.
Highly regarded in the survivor support community, Tamara assisted in the development of the Victimology program at Durham College, east of Toronto, where she created and taught for several years the Victims and the Impact of the Media course. She has routinely aided in the media training of police officers across Ontario and has been called upon as an expert presenter on the topic of human trafficking for police officers, Crown attorneys and front-line service providers. Members of the media frequently turn to Tamara to comment on stories involving trauma, and she is a regular commentator and host across the iHeartRadio Talk Network.
In May 2020, Tamara launched a research project examining the impact of the media on trauma survivors, and the impact of trauma on members of the media. This project gathered the experiences of more than 100 trauma survivors and journalists across Canada and the United States, with the goal of producing trauma-informed educational materials for journalists, victim service providers, and justice-sector partners.
Integrity, compassion and professionalism have earned Tamara respect across the police, victim services and criminal justice sectors, as well as among her journalism peers. She proudly serves clients across North America.
Achievements
2019 Canadian Screen Awards - Best Local Reporter nominee
2019 and 2017 RTDNA Awards - Dave Rogers Award nominee
2013 Peel Regional Police Chief's Certificate - First civilian recipient
2011 and 2010 York Regional Police Media Award recipient
2010 Stop Human Trafficking National Awards Ceremony - Educating Freedom Award recipient
2008 Peel Regional Police Media Award recipient
