Performing & Visual Arts
Media Matters: Engaging Strategies for Museums
Join San Diego Emerging Museum Professionals for an interactive media workshop featuring Michael James Rocha, from the San Diego Union-Tribune. This hands-on session pulls back the curtain on how museum stories make it into the media and how you can shape that process. Through real-world case studies such as In the Curator’s Words, Fall Arts Preview, and audience engagement features, Michael will share how curatorial voices, visual assets, and clear storytelling drive coverage.
Attendees will learn the essentials of an effective media pitch, why press releases still matter, and how social media is used to showcase visual art. The workshop concludes with a guided activity where participants develop a media strategy for a hypothetical exhibition, considering assets, collaborators, and coverage goals. Participants will leave with practical tools, fresh insight into newsroom decision-making, and new skills they can immediately apply to their museum work.
Michael James Rocha is the digital creative director at The San Diego Union-Tribune. He oversees the presentation of Union-Tribune stories online and has oversight of the photo and graphics teams. He also writes a regular feature on visual art called "In the Curator's Words." He previously was the arts and entertainment editor. During his tenure, the Union-Tribune’s Sunday arts section was named the best in the nation two years in a row (2021 and 2022). Rocha started his career at the Union-Tribune in December 1997 as a features page designer. He eventually became the features design editor. Through the years, he has done stints as the front page designer, audience development editor and home decor editor. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in communications (with an emphasis in print journalism) from California State University-Fullerton. He is a founding member of the Asian American Journalists Association’s San Diego chapter, and he has taught magazine design at Point Loma Nazarene University and the University of Connecticut.
9:45 AM - 10 AM Check-in
10 AM - 10:15 AM Mingling and Introductions
10:15 AM - 11 AM Interactive Presentation by Michael James Rocha
11 AM - 11: 45 AM Hands-on Exercises + Learning
11:45 AM - 12 PM Wrap up + Final Q&A
12 PM Stick around and explore the Bontia Museum!
A special thank you to the Bonita Museum for hosting this SD EMP event!
The Bonita Historical Society is dedicated to preserving, for public education and enjoyment, the culture, history, arts, crafts, and aesthetic facets of the region, specifically El Rancho de la Nacion in South San Diego County.
The Bonita Museum is located in South Bay San Diego County in the heart of Bonita, immediately adjacent to the Bonita-Sunnyside Library.
The entrance is ADA-accessible. All levels of the building are accessible including exhibition spaces, research archives, and administrative offices. All restrooms are wheelchair accessible.
There are accessible and free parking spaces in the lot in front of the museum.
Service dogs are welcome. Service dogs must be on a non-retractable physical leash that is less than six feet in length. Each visitor may only have one service dog. The U.S. Department of Justice requires that service dogs be trained to provide assistance to a person with a disability. Visitors are not allowed to bring emotional support animals into the museum.
The museum is donation-based. You can pay as much, or as little, as you choose. Many guests “give forward” admission, because if you choose to make a donation, it helps pay for someone else’s visit in the future.
Audi Lawson
Exhibition dates: January 14-February 28, 2026
Exhibition dates: February 1 - 28, 2026
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