Sept. 4, 2007 issue
I came to WEMU a little over four years ago, which was my first time
in public radio. I had previous experience in commercial radio at WWJ,
an all-news station in Detroit. I've been in radio 22 years.
I like it here. It's a completely different atmosphere. It's not all
about chasing ambulances and covering murders. I do six local newscasts,
which come on after NPR. Generally, I report what's happening in state
and local news for the day. I also provide weather, traffic and sports
updates. My beat is covering the Ypsilanti City Council and the Ypsilanti
School Board.
It's more laid back here. Being a public radio station, I get more of
a chance to do long-form reporting. At other stations, you may have 45
seconds to tell the story. Here, if you need seven or eight minutes to
tell the story, you're given that time. We have time to tell the story
and get it right. We have a chance to paint a story in sound.
Many of the people here have been here for decades. There's
a reason for that. They love it, too. It's just a great
group of people I work with. Fundraising here is just
incredible. For people to tell you not only that they love
what you do, but to write you a check, well, it's just
a great feeling. Listeners have always supported us. It's
nice folks continue to support us in this economy. I believe
what we do makes a difference.
