Kelly Tidwell is a citizen of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. His ancestors belonged to the Thewathle Tribal Town. Kelly is also of Cherokee lineage. Through VNN, he hopes to lift up more Indigenous voices in Oklahoma’s news ecosystem.

Kelly has been a noteworthy leader in the energy sector for more than a decade. He took the plunge into news entrepreneurship after meeting his future wife Brittany Harlow and learning about her passion for community service through news and information.

In addition to news entrepreneurship, Kelly also works as a consultant and data scientist in the Exploration and Production sector of the energy industry.

Brittany Harlow was born in New Mexico and grew up in Massachusetts, with a couple of years on a military base in South Korea in between. Brittany proudly identifies as Irish American. She is also of Scottish, French Acadian, Mi’kmaq and English descent.

After dabbling in acting in Boston and community college in Lowell, Brittany moved to Oklahoma in 2009. She graduated from Tulsa Community College with a degree in Journalism and Broadcasting, and then Northeastern State University with a degree in Media Studies. Brittany was hired as a content producer for KRMG’s Evening News with Dick Loftin on NEWS102.3 and AM740 KRMG in Tulsa right out of NSU. She was promoted to full-time reporter in December 2014.

​Brittany began her TV career with News12 KXII as an Ada bureau reporter in July 2015 and made her way down to the main station in Sherman, Texas, in June 2016. She was promoted to Weekend Anchor in January 2017.

​​Brittany left KXII in June 2018 to work for VNN. She had her first child in March 2019 and became a foster parent in 2021. Brittany knows finding a healthy balance between work and home life is important and enjoys helping others do the same. She also enjoys playing soccer and traveling in her spare time!

Trista Vaughn is United Keetoowah Band, Hualapai, and Chickasaw. Trista graduated from Northeastern State University in 2018 with a Bachelor of Arts in Media Studies with an emphasis in Public Relations and in 2020 with a Master of Arts in Communication.

Trista volunteers for Mvscokee Mentor and Tahlequah Area Coalition for the Homeless.

She is a member of the Alpha Sigma Alpha Sorority Alumna, ONABEN Girl Talk, and Oklahoma Council for Indian Education, and she served as Miss Keetoowah 2013.

Trista currently resides in Tulsa, OK with her dog Luna. She enjoys hiking, kayaking, running, and yoga.

Born and raised in the suburbs of Detroit, Rachael has spent her whole life living in the mitten. She is descended from the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin and proud to be part of a Native-owned social news media company.

Rachael graduated from Central Michigan University with both her undergraduate and graduate degree.

She started her journalism career at WILX-TV in Lansing, Michigan, as a producer and reporter followed by two years as a reporter at Upnorthlive In Traverse City. The stories she’s covered range from the opioid crisis, erosion along the great lakes, local government politics and COVID-19.

Rachael has a passion for meeting new people and sharing their stories. If you have a great story idea, she would love to hear from you.

In her spare time Rachael enjoys hiking, going to the beach, traveling, reading, and cooking.

Russell Sun Eagle is from the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma. Russell attended the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, NM for Cinematic Arts. He is known for hosting Okie Podcast, Spirit Talkers Podcast, and owner of Sun Eagle Media.

In 2024 Russell won best documentary short at the Will Rogers Motion Picture Festival for Pâriki Boxing.

Russell has also worked for The Pawnee Nation Language Program as their audio visual specialist.

In the fall, you can catch Russell commentating the Pawnee Black Bear football games every Friday night with Lone Tipi Productions.

Russell currently resides in Broken Arrow, OK. He enjoys photography, videography, working out, gaming, and watching movies in his free time.

Mackenzie Oestreich (pronounced A-Strike) is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma. She graduated from Owasso High School in 2017 as a SkillsUSA National Officer. Mackenzie pursued a degree in Media Studies with a minor in Communication at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, OK, where she developed a passion for writing and media. During her time at NSU, Mackenzie contributed as a writer for the campus newspaper and honed her skills in content creation, which eventually led to an internship with Verified News Network in 2021.

After graduating in May of 2021, she worked at the Stilwell Democrat Journal, writing community news for Adair County and photographing the surrounding areas. Along the way, Mackenzie also gained experience in social media marketing, using platforms to drive engagement and promote content.

In a career twist, Mackenzie moved into the legal field, balancing work at a local agency with her passion for media. Now, she’s back at Verified News Network as a Multimedia Specialist, where she not only creates content but also manages social media strategies, helping clients enhance their online presence and engage with their audience in meaningful ways. As an experienced storyteller, you can expect some news stories from Mackenzie, too!

Nico Berlin is a citizen of the Choctaw Nation. She currently attends the University of Missouri, Columbia. As a freshman, Nico reported for The Maneater, the university’s student publication, covering city council politics, student healthcare, housing, union bargaining, and local culture, engaging in data investigation and collaborating with other student journalists. Within Columbia’s Native community, Nico served as vice president of Four Directions, the only student organization on campus dedicated to representing Native students. She utilizes her journalistic skills to advocate for better institutional and financial support for those students and designed a zine to educate the campus on issues in Native communities.