Katie Hawkins-Gaar is the senior producer for CNN iReport, the network's global participatory news community. Based in Atlanta, Katie is responsible for leading the editorial team of producers that manages user-generated content for CNN. Katie joined the company in 2007 as an associate producer of interactives for CNN Digital. Before joining the iReport team as a producer in 2010, she also worked as an associate producer for the team. She was named senior producer for user participation in 2011. Throughout her career, she has produced several standout projects, including Katrina: Then and Now, Connected by 9/11, Meet the 99%, and Everyday Racism. Katie has also coordinated iReport’s on-the-ground presence at South by Southwest. Prior to CNN, she split her time as a research assistant at Georgia State University and a program assistant at The Carter Center. Katie obtained her undergraduate degree from Georgia State University in Journalism.
