Retired Correspondent, NPR Investigations. Chair, Governing Board, Public Health Watch. Consultant. Mentor. Trainer. 38 years at NPR. 40+ journalism awards. 8 Olympic Games. Nieman Journalism Fellow at Harvard '97-'98.
From @davidcondos.bsky.social @kuer.org - Trump again shrinks the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments in Utah. Reporting from a reporter based in southern Utah.
NPRFlanked by Utah’s delegation, Gov. Spencer Cox and Utah Speaker Mike Schultz, President Trump again reduced the boundaries and protections of the two monuments. Conservationists and tribal leaders worry it could undo years of work to protect these lands.
32 yrs ago today, 14 wildland firefighters were overrun by a windblown wildfire near Glenwood Springs, Colorado. At the time, the Storm King/South Canyon blaze was the deadliest in 50 years. Here's my @npr.org story about a firefighter who managed to survive: on.soundcloud.com/xxJ2qhPET5DE...
Attending @ire.org IRE26 this week? Sign up for Audio 1:1 coaching with some of the best reporters, editors and producers in audio investigative storytelling: www.signupgenius.com/go/10C084CA8...
Audio 1:1 coaching sessionsSign up for 30 minutes with an audio pro to use however you like: Bring tape for a critique, a pitch for workshopping or your questions about surviving and thriving in the audio journalism space. Part...www.signupgenius.comThe investigative non-profit newsroom I helped establish &serve now as board chair has an EDITOR POSITION OPEN in central Texas. @publichealthwatch.bsky.social has a great award-winning team of print/audio storytellers/editors, and partnerships with other newsrooms. www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/44...
Public Health Watch hiring Central Texas Editor (contract) in Austin, TX | LinkedInPosted 6:26:19 PM. Central Texas Editor (Contract)🚨 JOURNALISM JOB ALERT:We are seeking an editor to join Public…See this and similar jobs on LinkedIn.www.linkedin.com@ire.org 2026 June 18-21 in National Harbor MD features an Audio/Radio track for audio investigative journalists & the audio curious: 10 panels; 1 Master Class (making podcasts); 20+ investigative audio pros; an audio meetup; plus 1:1 coaching. 2026-ire-conference.sessionize.com/schedule/127...
2026 IRE CONFERENCESchedule2026-ire-conference.sessionize.comFrom Aaliyah Callaway and @publichealthwatch.bsky.social. Texas vaccination rates drop. Kids are at risk: “We highly rely on other people for her safety. When other people are not focusing on public health, normal life becomes dangerous for her.” publichealthwatch.org/2026/05/28/a...
As Texas Vaccination Rates Fall, Vulnerable Children Face Growing Risk - Public Health WatchFrom a West Texas measles outbreak to rising vaccine exemptions statewide, families of immunocompromised children depend on herd immunity, which is slowly eroding.publichealthwatch.org@publichealthwatch.bsky.social @laist.com & Univision broke this story in 2022. Now, CA regulators say it’s time to work toward a ban on manufactured countertops in the state. 100’s of workers who manufactured the countertops are sick and dying from silicosis publichealthwatch.org/2026/05/21/c...
California Moves Closer to Banning Fabrication of Popular Countertops - Public Health WatchWorkers who cut, grind and polish artificial-stone slabs are at extreme risk of developing the deadly lung disease silicosis.publichealthwatch.orgNewsroom job cuts at NPR www.npr.org/2026/05/18/n...
NPR trims jobs in newsroom overhaul as it confronts era without public fundingNPR is offering buyouts to journalists as it overhauls its newsroom, with the threat of layoffs to follow. Two recent gifts totaling $113 million are primarily dedicated to NPR's tech infrastructure.www.npr.orgBig newsroom job cuts at NPR www.npr.org/2026/05/18/n...
NPR trims jobs in newsroom overhaul as it confronts era without public fundingNPR is offering buyouts to journalists as it overhauls its newsroom, with the threat of layoffs to follow. Two recent gifts totaling $113 million are primarily dedicated to NPR's tech infrastructure.www.npr.org46 years ago today. My last NPR lookback at the catastrophic 1980 Mount St Helens eruption for the 40th anniversary. www.npr.org/2020/05/18/8...
'It Seemed Apocalyptic' 40 Years Ago When Mount St. Helens EruptedHoward Berkes covered the 1980 eruptions of Mount St. Helens for NPR and has returned to the volcano for multiple stories over the years. He recalls the massive blast and its aftermath.www.npr.orgAmazing storytelling here among the winners and finalists of the 2025 IRE Awards for investigative journalism. Read, listen and watch to each one, as I did as a judge, and you'll be impressed by the investigative reporting STILL getting done. www.ire.org/2026/05/05/a...
Announcing the 2025 IRE AwardsAnnouncing the 2025 IRE Awards (May 5, 2026) – Congratulations to winners and finalists in the 2025 IRE Awards. The annual contest showcases exemplary work by members of Investigative Reporters and Ed...www.ire.orgOne of the highlights of my career was working with a brilliant team @propublica.org on a major investigative project. But now, ProPublica management is behaving like the corporate overlords PP has investigated and exposed. I stand with the @propublicaguild.org guild as it seeks a fair contract.
ProPublica GuildWe’re on strike today! Support our fight for a fair contract by NOT visiting the @propublica.org website or engaging with ProPublica stories today. Tell ProPublica’s management you won’t cross the picket line: actionnetwork.org/petitions/te...
16 yrs ago today. 29 coal miners killed. A massive explosion at Massey Energy’s Upper Big Branch mine in WV. I spent a year investigating. One finding: the rescue effort was delayed and hampered by Massey’s own response: www.npr.org/2011/04/01/1...
Reports Detail Slow Mine Blast ResponseNearly one year after the nation's worst mine disaster in four decades, records reveal a slow and tepid initial response to the dire emergency at Massey Energy's Upper Big Branch coal mine.www.npr.org