KUNC today announces their selection to participate in Guns & America, a two-year, national reporting collaborative of 10 public media stations, funded by a $5.3 million grant from The Kendeda Fund.
The collaboration includes the launch of the first-of-its-kind Audion Fellowship, a program that will train and empower a diverse corps of innovative, cross-platform journalists to cover difficult and divisive topics and lead the public media system.
"Colorado is a fascinating place where urban, rural, and Western mountain ideas collide," said WAMU General Manager JJ Yore. "As a premier public media outlet in Colorado, KUNC will bring unique voices to our reporting on the ways guns impact our lives."
KUNC President and CEO Neil Best added "It's an honor for KUNC to participate in this project, and to be able to participate in examining this difficult topic in the public radio tradition of fairness. We're thrilled to participate with so many esteemed colleagues under the leadership of JJ and the team at WAMU, and to help to provide an opportunity for journalists to enrich their ability to cover challenging issues."
The Guns & America national reporting collaborative will be headquartered and supported by a five-person production team at WAMU in Washington, D.C. and 10 Audion Fellowship reporters to be placed in the following public newsrooms across the country: KUNC in Greeley, Colorado; Boise State Public Radio in Boise, Idaho; KCUR in Kansas City, Missouri; KERA in Dallas, Texas; OPB in Portland, Oregon; WABE in Atlanta, Georgia; WAMU in Washington, D.C.; WCPN ideastream in Cleveland, Ohio; WNPR in Hartford, Connecticut; and WUNC in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
The national collaborative will report for two years on the many ways that firearms are intertwined in American life, from the cultural significance of hunting and sport shooting, to the role guns play in suicide, homicides, mass shootings and beyond. The inaugural cohort of Audion Fellows will increase the capacity for in-depth reporting and infuse public media newsrooms across the country with digital and multimedia skills. Reporters at the ten stations will begin filing their first stories in June 2018.
In each market, one fellow will be devoted to providing regional coverage, contributing a local perspective into a national network of reporting that is making a significant investment in this timely topic. In addition, participation in the Guns & America national reporting collaborative allows newsroom expansion through the addition of a new reporting position that will develop significant expertise in collaboration with a diverse cohort of public media leaders.
Beyond the announced two-year Guns & America reporting collaborative, the Audion Fellowship is expected to be an ongoing program, poised to tackle future endeavors on topics of national interest and critical importance.
For more information on Guns & America, including information about how journalists can apply for the Audion Fellowship, visit www.wamu.org/guns. To follow our reporting, please visit www.gunsandamerica.org beginning in June.
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About KUNC
KUNC, 91.5 FM, is Northern Colorado's NPR affiliate, bringing "Stories That Matter and Voices You Trust" to a network of 19 stations and translators around the state--including 102.7 FM in Boulder, and 91.7 FM in Golden and the west metro area. KUNC carries news, information and storytelling 24-hours a day. KUNC serves the Front Range and other areas around the state including Breckenridge, Buena Vista, Estes Park, Grand County, Haxtun/Holyoke, Julesburg/Ovid, Leadville, Morgan County, North Park, Salida, Steamboat Springs, Sterling, Vail/Minturn & Eagle Valley, Wray, and Yuma
About The Kendeda Fund
Based in Atlanta, Georgia, The Kendeda Fund is a private grantmaking foundation that invests in transformative leaders and ideas, empowering communities across the U.S. and around the globe to enhance equity, vibrancy, resourcefulness, and resilience. The Kendeda Fund helps underrepresented but trusted voices build social and community capital by supporting experienced, and emerging, leaders who have the vision to see problems differently and the courage to challenge conventional thinking. Learn more at www.kendedafund.org.
Press Contact:
Neil Best-President & CEO
Neil.best@kunc.org
970-350-0806
