AltDaily: Hyper-local, Ultra Independent

AltDaily strives to be the independent alternative for news, arts, and culture in the Hampton Roads area. Every article and blog is locally focused (hyper-local if you will). Why? Because there’s enough going on in this area to fill a web magazine, and the 757 deserves it.

We are also ultra-independent, which means AltDaily is not corporately affiliated. There is no parent company that also sells dog food. There is no publisher with a fake tan and a Porsche who makes us kill stories because he’s friends with the fat cat we burn in the headline. We believe deep in our souls that democracy can only function properly in a society with a strong free press. While being a counter-balance to industry and government is a lofty goal, we nakedly aspire toward it.

When you meet the editors of AltDaily, you are also meeting the publishers. We hope that gives us a bit of an old-newspaper, small-town feel in an industry where companies are getting bigger and bigger and more out of touch with the average citizen/reader.

Hannah Serrano was born in the Philippines and raised in Virginia Beach. She grew up in a Navy family and graduated from Ocean Lakes High School. Following a year at Old Dominion University, Serrano achieved her BA in art history from the University of Wisconsin. After pursuing her graduate studies in contemporary Asian art history at University of Hawaii, she moved back to the area and began her journalistic career as an arts writer for Port Folio Weekly. As the eventual Arts & Culture Editor, Serrano published dozens of arts reviews; exclusive interviews with the likes of Pharrell Williams and Danny Glover; and numerous features, the first of which explored light rail and transit-oriented development in the region, and which later achieved Virginia Press Association’s Second Place for Feature Writing.

Jesse Scaccia’s journalism has been published in various periodicals, including The New York Times, The Virginian-Pilot, and The San Diego Union-Tribune. As part of his production company, DaftFilms, he produced a documentary series for BET about post-Katrina life for the band and football team at a historically black college in Louisiana. Jesse has appeared on 20/20 and Fox News speaking about education. He has taught in Cape Town, South Africa, Brooklyn, Connecticut, and San Diego. He currently teaches university level writing as part of a fellowship at Old Dominion University. He holds a Master’s Degree in magazine journalism from New York University, and a Master’s Degree in education from the University of Connecticut.

Making This Place A Home

Our mission is to celebrate and create culture in Hampton Roads. Our vision is to bring together all the relevant and beautiful things that make visiting and living in this region so exciting.

In other words, we’re trying to make this place a home, just like you are.

For more information, if you want to write for us, to place an ad, or just to talk, contact the editors: hannah@altdaily.com or jesse@altdaily.com.