By Catherine Komp, Engagement Director In the wake of hurricanes and floods, devastation often paves the way for remarkable acts of resilience and innovation within communities. That was the case following Hurricane Florence in 2018, when Shoresides was developed to…
By Catherine Komp, Engagement Director For decades, Bill Adair’s days and nights have been filled with a quest to promote truth and squash lies. The longtime journalist founded PolitiFact in 2007 as a solution to a news and information gap:…
By Catherine Komp, Engagement Director In the acknowledgements of “Anatomy of a Purple State: a North Carolina Politics Primer,” Political Scientist and WCU Professor Christopher Cooper writes “answers are easy to come by, the thought is in the question.” “I…
By Catherine Komp, Engagement Director Moving to a new city and state is always a whirlwind, and for journalists, there are unique challenges. Where do you begin with getting to know your new community? What history and context do you…
By Catherine Komp, Engagement Director A few years ago, Maryland Public Television wanted to expand a local initiative that created special programming and events around HBCU Week, a national effort to raise awareness about Historically Black Colleges and Universities. With…
By Catherine Komp Newsletter Editor Philanthropy is playing a growing role in funding local news, but what do we know about the relationships between funders and newsrooms? What kinds of editorial agreements should be put in place? And what do…
By Catherine Komp, Newsletter Editor Zeba Hussaini’s first year of high school was during the pandemic. And like a lot of us, she found the experience challenging. “I didn’t go out. I couldn’t really do the stuff I really wanted…
By Catherine Komp, NC Local Newsletter Editor Forty-two years ago, residents of Warren County, NC stood up to the state’s plan to dump 10,000 truckloads of toxic PCBs in their community. Black women like Dollie Burwell mobilized neighbors to defend…
By Catherine Komp, NC Local Newsletter Editor Local news and information organizations face a number of challenges in reaching the public during this critical election year. There’s news fatigue and avoidance, dis- and misinformation, mistrust and of course, polarization. A…
By Catherine Komp, Newsletter Editor In a new three part series, Out of Sight, WUNC’s Jason deBruyn examines North Carolina’s psychiatric residential treatment facilities or PRTFs. More than 1100 children were enrolled in these facilities in 2023. Kids in the…
