Diego Torrealba

Student Journalist at the University of Texas at Austin

About me

Main portrait of me smiling.
Frequently Asked Questions

I am a student journalist pursuing my Bachelor of Journalism and an Elements of Computing certificate at the University of Texas at Austin. With my technical knowledge and love for writing, I seek to serve my community by telling impactful multimedia stories that adhere to the truth and allow people to receive the information they need.

Right now I am particularly interested in exploring the intersection between journalism and evolving technologies while using computational techniques to analyze data and share information effectively.

Raised by Venezuelan parents, I am a first-generation American from Texas. I spend the majority of my time in Austin, but I also am frequently in Dallas and Houston.

When applying for college, I struggled to choose a major to consistently apply with because various degrees interested me in one way or another. Every choice made me feel as though I had to either sacrifice my love for reading and writing or my love for technology and science. So, when I had the option to apply for both a primary and backup major, I decided to apply for both computer science and journalism, and I was acceepted subsequently into Moody College of Communication's journalism program.

For some reason, I thought that this meant I would never look at code again or be able to combine my interests in any meaningful way. It was not until I began to study journalism further, however, that I realized an entire data journalism community existed of people like me who loved both storytelling and programming. Since then, I have sought to learn as much as I can about how I can use data analysis and computational techniques to augment different forms of news content to feel more engaging and authentic for audiences.

Education
The University of Texas at Austin

2022-Present

  • Bachelor of Journalism, Moody College of Communication
  • Elements of Computing Certificate, College of Natural Sciences
Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas

2018-2022

  • High school diploma
Experience
Student Technician, UT Journalism Media Innovation Group

Part-time, March 2025 - Present

Videographer and Newsletter Writer, The Daily Texan

Extracurricular, January 2024 - Present

Script Editor/Fact-Checker, The Drag Audio Production House

Part-time, September 2024 - May 2025

Administrative Assistant, LWE Leasing

Part-time, December 2022 - July 2024

Cashier, University Housing and Dining

Part-time, September 2022 - October 2023

Skills
Journalism

AP Style, Newsletters, Interviewing, Features, Copy-Editing, Scripts, Summaries, Profiles, Biographies

Software

Microsoft Office, Adobe Premiere Pro, Adobe Audition, Canva, Trello, MailChimp, Google Suite, DataWrapper, DB Browser, Google Console Platform, Mongo Atlas

Code

Python, Jupyter Notebooks, R, HTML, CSS, SCSS, JavaScript, Basic Data Structures, Git, SQL, MySQL, MongoDB

Language

Proficient Spanish

Projects

Austin Crime: In Perspective

Apr. 24, 2025 | Github

Using Austin crime data from 2003 to February 2025, two of my classmates and I were able to explore patterns in crime types, locations, frequency over time and machine learning for my data visualizations class. This project allowed me to think critically about how to frame a story around the different data insights that my peers and I were finding, particularly about theft in Austin, and to use various Python data visualization packages.

What's the Buzz? An inside look at UT Austin's Beekeeping Society

Feb. 19, 2025 | Video

UT Austin student beekeeping society Beevo Beekeeping works to protect local pollinators while educating the public about various environmental topics. With five beehives on campus, members get hands-on experience with handling bees and inspecting hives for various issues that could threaten a hive's survival.

SustainaBUILD at the Dougherty Arts Center

Sept. 19, 2024 | PDF

The Dougherty Arts Center, one of the city’s arts centers located south of downtown Austin, however, dedicates a night for visitors to build sustainable 3D art pieces by providing repurposed materials that would otherwise be thrown away. As part of its monthly DAC Nights series, the arts center’s SustainaBUILD event exemplifies its initiative to support sustainability throughout its events and programming.

"The Daily Digest" Newsletter 2

Aug. 6, 2024 | PDF

This was the second and final newsletter I wrote for The Daily Texan's "The Daily Digest" summer edition. I had an incredible time learning about newsletters, interacting with the newsletter team and writing for them. I definitely would like to continue writing newsletters in the future!

"The Daily Digest" Newsletter 2

July 2, 2024 | PDF

This was the first newsletter I wrote for The Daily Texan's "The Daily Digest" summer edition. I was very excited to try out this medium and look forward to writing more newsletters in the future!

UT student artist makes waves with performance

April 25, 2024 | DOCX

For this assignment, I was tasked with creating a feature story, which I decided to do on a local student artist named Luis Hernandez (a.k.a. "Martin Leon"), who is signed to UTalent Records, an independent student label located at UT. For this feature, I conducted extensive interviews with Leon, his band, the UTalent team, and audience members at one of his performances. It was an honor to learn more about independent student artists at UT and be able to tell an artist's story.

Project Princess 2024

April 19, 2024 | Video

I co-edited and co-filmed this video with Texan videographers Chandler Tompkins and Amaya Austin on Boutique Day by Project Princess, a nonprofit organization in Austin that provides prom supplies for girls from low-income families. I contributed to this video by filming interviews and B-roll and editing the footage in Adobe Premiere Pro and After Effects

The Project 2024

April 15, 2024 | Video

Working with fellow Texan videographers Jane Goldberg and Miranda Liguez, we filmed The Project 2024, UT Austin's biggest day of service. To cover more ground during the hours the event lasted, I helped Goldberg and Liguez with filming the opening ceremony and the service work done at Widen Elementary School. This was so fun to contribute to, and I had a blast while doing it.

Ramadan at UT

April 1, 2024 | Video

I shot and co-edited this for the paper's YouTube and Instagram accounts reporting on Nueces Mosque's 2024 celebration of Ramadan. This video was made as a supplement to senior Life & Arts reporter Tyler Pullum's article about celebrating Ramadan at UT. Accompanying Pullum during one of the mosque's Iftar dinners and evening prayers, I recorded interviews, shot B-roll, and edited the footage with Adobe Premiere Pro and After Effects.

UT org produces Hindu celebration for students

March 28, 2024 | DOCX

For this assignment, I was tasked to write a story about an underrepresented community at UT or in Austin, which I chose to do on UT's Hindu community. Specifically, I covered the Hindu Students Association's annual Holi event, hosted at the LBJ Presidential Library lawn. For this story, I interviewed members of the HSA, its two Holi co-chairs and several attendees at the event.

While concert series returns, Austin musicians still struggle

March 7, 2024 | DOCX

For this assignment, I was tasked with writing a story about how government bodies and public policy affect real people. I wrote about the Austin City Council's decision to co-sponsor beloved concert series Blues on the Green, initially canceled by ACL Radio due to a lack of funding, and what the concert's return meant for local musicians and citizens. I found an overwhelming demand by artists for the city further to support its music scene amidst rising living costs. For this story, I attended an Austin City Council meeting in person, communicated with the team of councilmember Natasha Harper-Madison and spoke with musicians to hear their opinions about the subject.

Early Voting Concert at UT's Turtle Creek

March 3, 2024 | Reel

I filmed and edited a reel for a timely early voting concert hosted by TX Votes at UT's Turtle Creek for The Daily Texan's Instagram page. The footage was edited in Adobe Premiere Pro and After Effects.

The hidden creek that sustains UT

Nov. 12, 2023 | Audio

Waller Creek and the Waller Creek watershed are essential features for UT and Austin, but not enough students seem to know about them. I set out to learn why UT students ignore their water infrastructure and what can be done to bring awareness to it. I interviewed students and staff for this story to get a full picture of the situation. For this story, I used Adobe Audition and Audacity to record, edit and arrange the audio.

UT students unite against attack on DEI

Oct. 8, 2023 | Video

I was tasked with creating a two-minute video for my journalism class, which I chose to do on a student protest against Texas Senate Bill 17 hosted by the Austin chapter of Students for a Democratic Society. For this video, I interviewed leading student organization members, walked and videotaped protestors, and stayed for the group's sit-in at UT President Jay Hartzell's annual State of the University Address. For this video, I used Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe After Effects.