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Nonprofits Navigate a Drop in Volunteers
Mountain Xpress – 16 Nov. 2023
For many nonprofits, COVID restrictions severely reduced their volunteer force. Years later, numbers remain low. Organizations across Western North Carolina have noted that less volunteers are working more hours to meet the growing needs of the community, especially in areas such as health care and food insecurity.
Fears Grow for Ukrainian Journalist Missing Almost Three Months
Voice of America – 26 Oct. 2023
Ukrainian journalist Victoria Roshchyna disappeared after passing a checkpoint in early August. Roshchyna previously won an IWMF Courage award for her reporting on the war in Ukraine. Colleagues and family members believe she may be in Russian custody. Her whereabouts remain unknown.
Recent and Well-Established Roller-Skating Groups Discuss WNC’s Coasting Community
Mountain Xpress – 22 Sept. 2023
Roller-skating groups are thriving in Western North Carolina after many rekindled their love for the sport during the pandemic. Skaters say diversity is what draws them to join local groups and keeps them connecting. From in-line to quad, jam skating to roller derby, there’s a style for everyone.
Though Marginalized and Exiled, Iranian Journalists Still Report
Voice of America – 16 Sept. 2023
For journalists living in Iran, the threat of arrest and harassment by authorities is a constant fear. Members of minority groups are particularly vulnerable to attack and intimidation. Two journalists in exile– Asal Abasian and Afra Amid– share how their experiences in Iran ultimately led them to flee to safety.
Even Outside Jail, Iran Feels Like a Prison, Say Female Journalists
Voice of America – 14 Sept. 2023
Last September, after the death of Mahsa Jina Amini in police custody, protests erupted across Iran. An unprecedented number of journalists were arrested for covering the protests. One year later, the crackdown continues with dozens behind bars and reports of abuse from within the prisons surfacing. Despite the conditions, Iranian journalists in exile say women remain united around the movement and continue to press for change.
In Turkey, Silence a Bigger Fear than Arrest, Says Journalist
Voice of America – 22 Aug. 2023
Turkey ranks number one worldwide for violence against women and nonbinary journalists, according to the Coalition For Women in Journalism. Kurdish journalists are particularly under threat and are often accused of being members of the PKK terrorist organization. Safiye Alagas, managing editor of JIN News, accused and arrested, shares her experience.
‘Epitome of Courage’: Iranian Photojournalist Recognized for Covering Women’s Rights
Voice of America – 27 July 2023
Iranian photojournalist Yalda Moaiery was recently awarded the International Women’s Media Foundation’s Wallis Annenberg Justice for Women Journalists award for her courage and fearlessness. Moaiery, who has had a 23-year career reporting conflict and disaster around the world, was arrested last September while covering the protests in her home country of Iran. She has been charged with a six-year prison sentence and three year ban from practicing journalism.
Creatives in the Crowd: Crislyn V’Soske Baugham Creates Adornments One Link at a Time
Mountain Xpress – 13 July 2023
From her home studio in North Asheville, Crislyn V’Soske Baughman bends over a work table, winding wire around needles, clipping each piece into small rounds, and forming earrings, necklaces, hair clips, and mobiles using intuition as a guide. The self-taught artist came to jewelry making by chance. After taking a necklace to a shop to be repaired, she found joy and excitement as she held the instruments for the first time.
No Mow May: Bees will Thank You if You Leave the Mower in the Shed
Mountain Xpress – 4 May 2023
A 2016 study commissioned by the United Nations found that 40% of the world’s invertebrate pollinators, including bees and butterflies, and 16% of vertebrate pollinators such as birds and bats are at risk of extinction. Residents of Asheville, NC and other “bee cities” across the US have adopted “No Mow May,” a program that began in the UK, to encourage wildflower growth and provide early-spring food sources to pollinators.
Readers Write: Tattoos
The Sun – May 2023
For The Sun magazine’s May Readers Write theme “tattoos,” I share the motivation, inspiration, and meaning behind my first tattoo. More than just an adornment, the mark is a reminder of survival.
Film Documents Muscogee (Creek) Nation Newsroom’s Fight for Press Freedom
Voice of America – 20 Apr. 2023
When an emergency session repealed press freedom for Mvskoke Media, a news source covering the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, reporter Angel Ellis set to work advocating for change. A new documentary “Bad Press” documents her years-long fight for press freedom and highlights an issue that is common in tribal communities– lack of media freedom.
How Recognition of Trauma is Shaping the Way Newsrooms Operate
Voice of America – 30 Mar. 2023
PTSD has been an official medical diagnosis in America since 1980, but it’s taken much longer for newsrooms to acknowledge the impact of trauma. Journalists are affected not only through first-hand experience, but also by bearing witness–hearing testimony, reviewing images, and reading documents. Bruce Shapiro and Hannah Storm, two leaders in the field, discuss trauma’s impact on journalists and survivors and the importance of trauma-informed training and mental health support for newsrooms.