The Talent Shows in KALW Audio Academy Stories on Public Safety

By Ben Trefny, News Director, KALW Public Radio

This week we launched our public safety series featuring stories from the Audio Academy.

Eli Wirtschafter was up first with a great interactive piece about earthquake preparedness. I really appreciated his scene-setting, the way he clearly made the subjects comfortable, the choice of very fun quotes and language, and the sense that I was receiving insight into some useful and practical information. Eli has a serious talent for radio, and he’s excelled at every task we’ve put before him.

Next, Truc Nguyen reported a very timely piece exploring the homeless issue through the lens of tiny houses. I liked the scene at the top connecting listeners to the homeless couple, and it really popped when they noted that their stuff had been stolen only a few days before. I really felt the public safety connection in recognizing the value of sturdier shelters for people living in tents. Truc has been the hardest working member of the Academy, dropping into the station every day last week, and her diligence is really showing in the professionalism of her work.

We’ve got more in the series coming up next week, and I’m so proud of the Academy members and KALW’s managing editor Jen Chien for seeing the project through. It’s a real accomplishment, and it’s great content to share with the Bay Area!

We featured some other terrific content from the Academy last week, too. Eli arranged an impassioned interview with Representative Barbara Lee. Geraldine Ah-Sue facilitated and later edited and produced this beautiful multi-generational Storycorps piece on mortality. And Ian Lewis produced this dynamic interview with Caroline Paul about her book Gutsy Girl. Nice, nice work!

One more thing I’d like to mention: we’ve got one week left until the application deadline for the next Audio Academy class. We’ve received 18 applications so far, including several from around the world! We’re looking to bring in the most diverse class of go-getters that we can, so check out this link and spread the word!