5 RJ reporters self-quarantined after possible exposure to virus

Five Las Vegas Review-Journal employees have self-quarantined after learning they may have been exposed to COVID-19 last week at a journalism conference in New Orleans.

Investigative Reporters and Editors, a nonprofit organization that provides training for journalists, announced Tuesday night that a person who attended the 2020 National Institute for Computer Assisted Reporting conference tested presumptively positive for the virus.

The conference ran from March 5-8 in New Orleans, and the infected attendee tested positive for the virus on Tuesday.

Review-Journal Publisher and Editor Keith Moyer told staff in an email that three of the RJ employees attended a full-day workshop with the infected attendee, but as of Tuesday none of the five employees who attended were experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.

IRE said in its statement that the attendee traveled to the conference from within the United States. Based on the person’s symptoms, it’s unclear whether they contracted the virus before, during or after the conference.

The attendee suffered only mild symptoms, is self-quarantined at home and is expected to make a full recovery, according to IRE.

Four of the five Review-Journal attendees returned to the newsroom between Monday and Tuesday, Moyer said, and their workspaces and areas they visited have been disinfected.

“Please know that the company is working with all five employees, who returned to Las Vegas this past weekend, to make sure they get the support and resources they need to protect their health and the health of others,” Moyer said in the staff announcement.

Contact Max Michor at mmichor@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0365. Follow @MaxMichor on Twitter.