WNIN-FM, Evansville Metro Division
Outstanding News Operation
From a train derailment and explosion, to our bilingual podcast, to production in France, 2018 was a great year for news at WNIN.
Our community has been hit especially hard with cutbacks at our local newspaper and ownership consolidations at commercial broadcast news organizations. WNIN is determined to fill the gaps in local news created by these moves.
In 2018, we continued our push outward to the community with even more coverage. That has prompted extensive community support for our move to the heart of downtown Evansville in order that we can become the center of public media and news for the community.
Please enjoy the audio file that accompanies this entry. We selected the segments that showcase the skills of our staff in all aspects of a local journalism organization. We believe you will hear innovation as well as solid journalism. Our bilingual podcast, ¿Qué Pasa Midwest? is featured, as well as a clip from a historical documentary for which we committed the resources to travel to France in order to tell an important local story. For a story on the sustainability of downtown growth, we turned our youngest team member loose to create an unusual business feature.
There is so much we accomplished in 2018 that cannot be included because of time constraints. For example, full coverage of the opening of a new medical school and the grand opening of the new bluegrass music hall of fame and museum. Or, two full days of coverage of the visit of President Donald Trump in August. Or, because of a year-long investigation, being the only outlet able to make a critical connection following a police shooting. Or, numerous local health reports filed for our Side Effects regional health reporting collaboration. The list goes on.
With just five full-time staff to operate the radio station and produce local news, every day is a challenge. It is heartening to know that we provide a vital service and the future is bright with strong community support for our efforts. We ask for your support of our entry for the high honor of an Associated Press news award.
Entry rundown:
:00-1:04- Breaking News. Train derailment and explosion at Princeton, Indiana that forced an evacuation.
1:05-6:24- Series and Documentary. This is one part of the series we produced on a previously unreported story of great historical significance for our community. We also produced audio and video documentaries of the trip of a local woman to France in 2018 to learn more about her family’s participation in World War One. We were there when a soldier’s sacrifice was recognized a century later.
6:26-9:38- Continuing Coverage. WNIN first broke the story about a federal lawsuit filed over alleged sexual and racial harassment in the theater department of the University of Evansville. We have followed this story closely. Here are four segments of our coverage over several months.
9:41-17:58- Podcast. ¿Qué Pasa Midwest? is our bilingual podcast and broadcast telling stories of Latinos in the Midwest. In this episode, contributor Amy Gastelum learns why her Mexican heritage was downplayed in her family, as well as what was hiding behind her grandfather’s workbench.
18:02-24:11- Community News of the Day. Coverage of the local March for Our Lives in 2018. In a driving rain, hundreds marched in Evansville to show support for young people wanting to stop gun violence.
24:15-28:05- Community Engagement. For day long coverage on the opening of a new medical school in downtown Evansville, we asked reporter Emily Miles to check on Evansville’s progress toward sustainable growth.
28:08-29:55- Newscast. On a day of severe weather, a local judge resigns amid allegations of misconduct.