NextGenRadio

Native American Journalists Association

Finding, coaching and training public media’s next generation.

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“In the Time of COVID-19”

is a set of audio and digital stories highlighting the experiences of people whose lives have changed dramatically during the pandemic.

This project was produced in November 2021 in partnership with the Native American Journalists Association and conducted virtually.

Project Reporters

Storm Tso

Storm Tso is the Marketing Coordinator for KUYI, Hopi Radio in Arizona. She is Patkiwungwa (Water Clan) from the village of Sipaulovi. Storm’s radio career began at Hopi High School where she helped produce and direct the Hopi High Teen Radio Show. She is currently a part-time student pursuing degrees in Mass Communications and Wildlife Conservation where she hopes to use her education to help Hopi Ranchers. 

Storm became a grandmother at 13 years old and now has four grandchildren.

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An amazing learning experience

Working with NPR and NAJA was an amazing learning experience. We’re constantly working and pushing ourselves during the program. There were multiple times it got overwhelming during the program, but there wasn’t ever a moment that I felt like I was alone or a goal was...

Robert Haukaas

Robert Haukaas is a creative writer who attends the Institute of American Indian Arts. He is in his third year. Robert currently works as a crew member at McDonald’s. He loves to play with his new kitty, skate, read, cook, and write nonfiction, poetry, and fiction. Robert is most passionate about being as helpful as he can in this life, or at least he tries to be. He was in a prayer run from his home in Fort Washakie, Wyoming to Crow, Montana. He is an enrolled member of the Eastern Shoshone but is also Northern Arapaho, and Sioux tribes.

A welcoming space where I could excel

My experience with the NAJA program widened my sight to realize there are a lot more opportunities out there for Native Americans who want to use their voice for something. I appreciate the people it has gotten me to know. My mentor, Seth, and other staff like Selena,...

Miacel Spotted Elk

Miacel Spotted Elk is a Navajo/Northern Cheyenne freelance journalist who is finishing her studies at the University of Utah. Interested in pursuing investigative journalism, she hopes to focus on covering how national politics affects Indigenous issues and vice-versa. Miacel enjoys cooking East/South-East Asian food and reading about history.

A humbling experience

Arriving with my approved pitch on Monday, I entered with little but assumed expectations. This was going to incur a demanding schedule with a tight turnaround, and I can rely on my experience as an NPR intern. I was familiar with the fundamentals of audio and worked...

Lyndsey Brolliini

Lyndsey Brollini is Haida from Anchorage, Alaska. She has a journalism degree from the University of Washington. She worked in the media field after college for a few years, doing photography, filming, video editing and graphic design at the Alaska Native nonprofit Sealaska Heritage Institute in Juneau, Alaska. In the last year, she decided that she wanted to return to journalism after seeing the lack of Alaska Native journalists in Alaska. She now works at a public radio station in Juneau, KTOO. She loves photography and photojournalism the most, but also loves writing digital stories and producing audio and video stories. She reports with empathy and brings in voices that usually aren’t heard.

Wanting independence, overcoming self-doubt

During the NexGenRadio intensive program this week, I found myself in an environment I haven’t really been in before. I have been used to being left on my own to do my work at my current and previous job. This more independent environment is how I prefer to work...

Heather C. Gomez

Heather C. Gomez is half Jicarilla Apache and half Spanish (Northern New Mexican). She lives in Dulce, New Mexico and is currently the editor of the Jicarilla Chieftain. Heather is very humbled and honored to be a part of Next Generation Radio: Indigenous.

A busy, wonderful week

This week has been super busy for me since I was juggling my eight-to-five editor job as well. It just so happened that it fell on my print week. I did clear my schedule for the week, but I did have a few things to take care of in this office. It was a wonderful...

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

The Next Generation Radio Project is a week-long digital journalism training project designed to give competitively selected participants, who are interested in radio and journalism, the skills and opportunity to report and produce their own multimedia story. Those chosen for the project are paired with a professional journalist who serves as their mentor.

This edition of the #NPRNextGenRadio project was produced in collaboration with:

  • Managing Editors – Jourdan Bennett-Begaye (Diné) - Managing Editor, Indian Country Today; Traci Tong - Freelance Editor, Public Media Journalists Association;  Adreanna Rodriguez - (Standing Rock Sioux) Producer/Editor, VICE News. 
  • Digital Editors – Lita Beck - (Navajo) Equity Issues Editor, The Arizona Republic/Gannett; Joanne Griffith - Chief Content Officer, APM Studios
  • Audio Tech – Selena Seay-Reynolds - Freelance Audio Engineer; Patrice Mondragon - Audio Engineer, Colorado Public Radio; Eric Abercrombie - Freelance Sound Designer
  • Editorial Illustrators – Emily Whang - Freelance Illustrator; Ard Su - Freelance Illustrator; Eejoon Choi - Freelance Illustrator 
  • Visuals – Erica Lee - Freelance Visual Journalist; Kevin Beaty - Visual Journalist, The Denverite & Colorado Public Radio
  • Web Developer – Robert Boos, Metropolitan State University, Minneapolis

Our journalist/mentors for this project were:

  • Christine Trudeau (Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation) - Contributing Editor, High Country News Indigenous Affairs Desk

  • Cristela Guerra - Arts and Culture Reporter, WBUR

  • Sam Yellowhorse Kesler (Navajo) - Codeswitch Fellow, NPR

  • Taylar Stagner (Shoshone and Arapaho) - Tribal Affairs Reporter, Yellowstone Public Radio

  • Seth Bodine - Agriculture and Rural Issues Reporter, KOSU

NPR’s Next Generation Radio program is directed by its founder, Doug Mitchell.