Ink and Airwaves

Why is local news important and how do people really experience it? In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , the team discusses their experience producing the podcast and the lessons they learned about local journalism. They go over each episode from this season again, talking about how the Jacksonville Journal-Courier serves its community, how Jacksonville residents are impacted by their local coverag...

How does a local newspaper actually reach its audience and where does it fall short? In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , we examine how the Jacksonville Journal-Courier finds, builds, and sometimes loses its audience across Central Illinois. Through the idea of circulation we discuss how stories move from the newsroom to readers through the Journal-Courier's website, social media, newsletters, and...

How a news story is written and framed can shape how the audience understands it and whether they feel represented by it. In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , we compare how a local newsroom, the Jacksonville Journal-Courier, and a national outlet, CBS News, covered the same issue: delays and cuts to SNAP benefits. We looked at the reporting from both publications to see the differences in framing,...

What all goes into the reporting of a local news story and how do journalists balance ethics and accuracy? On this episode of Ink & Airwaves , we go inside the daily work of Bridgette Fox, a staff reporter covering local politics for the Jacksonville Journal-Courier. Throughout the episode, Fox tells us her complete reporting process starting with deciding what to cover to then working with editor...

What does it take for a local newspaper to survive and why does it matter? In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , we take listeners inside the Jacksonville Journal-Courier, the oldest continuously published newspaper in Illinois. We explore how the paper operates as both a community institution and a business that has to balance its public service with financial pressures from subscriptions and the p...

In this episode of  Ink & Airwaves , the team builds on its reporting about Albany's Times Union to examine what local journalism looks like in practice and what it means for the public. Through concrete examples and on-mic analysis, they trace how newsroom constraints, platform realities, and audience expectations shape which stories reach people, how those stories are framed, and what gets left...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host Lily Kuypers and the Maroon Goblins examine circulation at the Times Union : where audiences encounter its journalism, what pathways pull readers deeper, and what barriers push them away. Using a short observation window (November 18–21), the team traces an "audience journey" from a breaking news story on the homepage through site navigation, category struc...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host Molly Weasler and guests Kate Maher and Katie Mancini compare how two outlets tell a viral sports story: the Buffalo Bills' table-breaking tradition. Using a January 2025 piece from the Albany Times Union and a January 2025 story from Sports Illustrated , the team analyzes how framing, sourcing, and tone change depending on audience and purpose. The convers...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host Katie Mancini takes listeners inside the work of Erica Smith, an editor at the Times Union , to understand how local journalism gets made day to day. The conversation focuses on process and judgment rather than biography: how story ideas take shape, how sourcing decisions are made, and where ethics, harm, and public interest create real tradeoffs before pub...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host Kate Maher and reporter Lily Kuypers introduce the Times Union of Albany, New York, and the conditions that shape what local journalism can produce. The team frames the newsroom's work as inseparable from its environment: demographic change, shifting cultural norms, and the legal and political landscape that affects reporting priorities and resources. Acros...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host Eli Prado and the Maroon Goblins examine circulation: how The Alexandria Times finds its audience, and where visibility breaks down. Using only public signals, the team tracks an "audience journey" from a story on the homepage to social posts and newsletter touchpoints, then analyzes what the site design, posting cadence, and platform packaging suggest abou...

In this episode, we compare a local story with a national one. The stories that are talked about are about the recent government shutdown and its effects. We go over how those with federal jobs are being affected, as well as how the daily people that use social security checks may no longer get them. Also, give a brief description of the government shutdown and how significant it is at the moment....

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host Cole Isaacson and producers Eli Prado, Mary Lindstorm, and Natali Calderon take listeners inside the work of Caitlyn Meisner, an editor at The Alexandria Times . Rather than profiling her, the conversation focuses on process and judgment: how Caitlyn identifies community needs, decides what is newsworthy, reports and edits stories, and navigates ethical tra...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , we profile The Alexandria Times and the real-world conditions that shape what a local newsroom can do. The team introduces the Alexandria, Virginia community the paper serves, explains its nonprofit ownership and funding model, and maps the legal, economic, and political pressures that influence speed, scope, and accountability reporting. Along the way, the epis...

In this special reflection episode of Ink & Airwaves , Ava, Amelia, Olivia, and Zylia look back on how producing the series changed the way they consume and think about local journalism. They discuss the emotional and civic effects of news, including when journalism informs and empowers, and when it can feel overwhelming or shaped by algorithms and social media. Grounded in the Consumption domain...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host Amelia and reporters Ava, Olivia, and Zylia examine how Madison365 distributes its journalism and builds audience engagement across platforms. Using a 30-day review of Madison365's public-facing website and social accounts, the team maps the "audience journey" from social post to story page, then analyzes how design choices, notifications, newsletters, and...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , Zylia, Ava, Olivia, and Amelia compare how two newsrooms tell the same UW-Madison football story. Using a Madison365 article and a CBS Sports article about head coach Luke Fickell, they analyze how framing, sourcing, and tone shift based on audience and newsroom goals. The episode shows how local reporting can prioritize institutional context and community relev...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , Ava and reporters Olivia, Zylia, and Amelia sit down with Omar Waheed, a full-time reporter at Madison365, to unpack what community-centered reporting looks like from the inside. Omar shares how he found journalism, how Madison365 builds trust and story ideas through deep relationships and cultural competency, and what it takes to report quickly and accurately i...

In this episode of Ink & Airwaves , host Olivia and reporters Amelia, Ava, and Zylia break down how Madison365 operates and what conditions enable that work. The team introduces Madison365's mission as a nonprofit newsroom serving communities of color in Madison, Wisconsin, then walks listeners through the practical realities that shape its reporting: the community it serves, its ownership and fun...

This episode consists of host student-reporter, Alex Rubin, leading the conversation on how Pittsburgh's Public Source circulates news to its local community. As they have explained thus far, in previous episodes, it is extremely vital to understand local news and to know what is happening around you. To retain said local information, you need to know how to receive it. In this episode, they delve...

Host student-reporter Joe Mussoline takes the lead on this episode as the Red Rhinos compare a local news article published by Pittsburgh's Public Source to a national article published by The News Republic on the same topic: The Government Shutdown and the pausing of SNAP benefits. Regardless of who writes the article, the Government Shutdown was extremely pressing and timely. The episode conside...

  This episode consists of host student-reporter Ryan Counihan's interview with Public Source's Stephanie Strasburg, who covers community journalism and trauma-informed reporting for Public Source, serving the Pittsburgh Pennsylvania community. Stephanie covers all beats; however, she has an emphasis on housing instability and politics. This episode's interview is not an individual profile on Step...

This episode, hosted by student reporter Lukas Schulze, covers Pittsburgh's Public Source newsroom and their goals, missions, and achievements. The conditions of Pittsburgh's Public Source newsroom are introduced and covered within the episode, consisting of background of the newsroom and the Pittsburgh community, the type of organization Public Source is, legal, political, and social boundaries,...

In this episode of  Ink & Airwaves , we look at how our own news habits changed throughout the semester, and what that says about how people our age consume information. We talk honestly about where we used to get our news (TikTok...), how paying attention to real local reporting changed things, and why the way we feel while reading the news actually affects what we pay attention to. We also explo...