Ink and Airwaves

In this reflection episode, the team steps back from reporting and compares notes on what changed in their own news habits after analyzing Spectrum News 1 Milwaukee. They talk through where local news fits into their day-to-day lives, what pulls them toward national headlines or social feeds instead, and how emotions like stress, avoidance, and "doomscrolling" shape what they choose to watch or ig...

This episode traces how Spectrum News 1 Milwaukee moves audiences from platform to platform, and what that design implies for access to local information. Using only what is publicly visible, we follow one story's "audience journey" from social discovery to a click-through on the site, then zoom out to the site's structure: a dominant top module, recirculation widgets that steer readers to additio...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , the team compares how the same national policy pressure becomes two different stories depending on scale and audience. We break down Spectrum News 1 Milwaukee's reporting on FoodShare funding concerns and Gov. Tony Evers' letter urging the USDA to act, then compare it with USA Today's national coverage focused on whether SNAP benefits will be sent in November. U...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host Zoey Calvin takes listeners inside the day-to-day work of Aly Prouty, a Digital Media Producer at Spectrum News 1 serving Milwaukee and the wider Wisconsin audience. Through a process-focused interview, the episode traces how digital news gets made, from deciding what to cover to verifying information, choosing sources, and shaping a story for publication....

This episode of Ink & Airwaves maps the conditions shaping how Spectrum News operates in Milwaukee and what those conditions make possible, difficult, or unlikely. We introduce Spectrum News as a local outlet serving Milwaukee-area audiences, then break down the forces that shape its day-to-day journalism: who it serves, how the organization is structured, and how its business model influences pri...

In this reflection episode of Ink & Airwaves , the team talks about how their relationship with local news has shifted after analyzing the Lexington Herald-Leader all season. They talk candidly about what it feels like to "meet" local journalism again, including new respect for the labor behind community coverage, the pull of national headlines and doomscrolling, and the emotional weight that news...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host Milana Satanovsky examines how the Lexington Herald-Leader circulates its journalism through the channels the public can see: the website, social media, and newsletters. The group walks through what a reader encounters first, including how the homepage is organized, how sections and navigation shape discovery, and how visual design and placement affect what...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host McKenna Kirchman and an analyst panel compare local and national coverage of the No Kings protests in October 2025. Using one Lexington Herald-Leader story published October 18 and an NPR national report published October 19, the team breaks down how each outlet constructs the event through structure, framing, sourcing, and tone. They show how the local sto...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host Bella Gruber talks with Kendall Staton about what it takes to do city and county reporting that actually serves people. Staton reflects on covering the Lexington metro area's mix of long-rooted communities, rapid growth pressures, and deep inequalities, and how those realities shaped the angles she chose and the voices she centered. She walks through how st...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host McKenna Kirchman maps the conditions that shape reporting at the Lexington Herald-Leader across Central and Eastern Kentucky. The team explains how ownership under McClatchy influences funding through ads and subscriptions, and how legal realities in Kentucky, including open records rules and the absence of a strong shield law, affect what journalists can s...

In this reflection episode of Ink & Airwaves , the team looks back on what they learned while reporting on KXAN Austin and what it revealed about how local journalism actually reaches people. They discuss how studying conditions, creation choices, and circulation changed the way they personally consume news, including what they now notice about speed, platform incentives, and the difference betwee...

n this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host Owen Parker and field reporters Ethan Roy and Jack Flaherty track how KXAN Austin reaches audiences across platforms, and where people may fall off along the way. Using only publicly visible signals, the team reviews KXAN's website, social accounts, livestreams, newsletters, and app pathways to understand how distribution choices shape what gets seen, clicke...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , Owen Parker and an analyst panel (Ethan Roy and Jack Flaherty) compare two stories about air traffic control disruptions during a government shutdown: a KXAN local report focused on missed paychecks and Austin-area travel delays, and a CNN national piece that frames the issue as a broader airspace and staffing risk. Using a framing–sourcing–tone lens, the group...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , hosts Owen Parker and Jack Flaherty go inside the work of Kate Winkle, Digital Director at KXAN Austin, to understand how digital journalism gets built and prioritized. The conversation focuses on process and judgment rather than biography, walking through what a digital director does day to day, how projects move from idea to execution, and how success is defin...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , hosts Owen Parker and Jack Flaherty map the conditions that shape KXAN's journalism in Austin, Texas. The team introduces the community KXAN serves, then breaks down how ownership under Nexstar Media Group and ad-driven revenue influence newsroom capacity, priorities, and resources. They also explain the legal environment in Texas, including public records acces...

In this reflection episode of Ink & Airwaves , the team looka back on what they learned while analyzing KXLY Spokane and how local news reaches people through platforms like Facebook, websites, newsletters, and video. They talk candidly about how producing the series changed their own news habits, including what they now notice about visibility, credibility, and the role algorithms play in shaping...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host Anna examines how KXLY Spokane finds its audience, and where it may be losing viewers, by comparing what's most visible on Facebook with what the station leads with on KXLY.com. Using only publicly accessible information from November 2025, the team traces an audience journey through a breaking news story, then analyzes KXLY's homepage design, newsletters,...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves, we uncover how a major issue, the domestic violence crisis, changes depending on whether it is covered on a local or national level. Host Lily Wooten walks listeners through a KXLY Spokane report highlighting funding cuts and issues that local organizations such as the YWCA and the Spokane Regional Domestic Violence Coalition are facing in the Spokane community....

This episode will focus on the day-to-day work of a local journalist at Spokane, Washington's 4 News Now. In a one-on-one conversation with News Director Melissa Luck, listeners will hear about her origins in journalism, starting at Marquette University, which led up to the work she is currently doing at 4 News Now. Luck offers personal insight into the newsroom's team dynamic, including the varie...

In this episode, we begin our series highlighting KXLY newsroom 4 News Now, located in Spokane, Washington. We give context to how this local source started out and how it continues it work of producing quality journalism to this day. We'll look at the economic impact of the newsroom, such as the station's ownership and funding, and the legal setting under which they operate, such as the state law...

In this final episode, Daria, Rachael, Allison and Rylie do a quick review and recap of the previous four episodes and then discuss the themes of the episodes, what they've learned, and what they can do moving forward. At the end of the episode, they reflect on the project and all the work they've done, and how they perceive the news differently than when they started. 

In this episode, host Rylie looks at accessibility and The Seattle Times. We look at the website, their social media, different accessibility features, and more. We delve deeply into different aspects of their social media and what can be done to improve accessibility. We finish off the episode by brainstorming some ways the Seattle Times can increase their accessibility and interactions from read...

In this episode, host Rachael talks about news coverage on homelessness examining the differences between two articles, one by The Seattle Times and the other by Associated Press News. She, Rylie, and Allison discuss the structure, sources used, and tone of each story, and analyze how each was written in a different way for the audience it was seeking. The Seattle Times article was written on home...

In this episode, host Allison interviews Brier Dudley, the Free Press Editor at The Seattle Times to learn about how his work in The Seattle Times helps civic engagement. Brier discusses his writing process, how feedback shapes his work, and why people and outside factors can make a story stronger. The Free Press Initiative is a special project that Brier is working on, and he explains how his wor...

In this first episode, host Daria explains the importance of news literacy, how journalism works, and why the news matters. Daria leads the group in exploring different aspects of The Seattle Times, including their funding, laws, and challenges and opportunities for the newsroom. They also discuss various philanthropic work The Seattle Times does to help benefit their community, like the Mental He...