FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Calle Andrus, Communications Specialist
216.916.6434 | calle.andrus@ideastream.org
ideastream Collaborates With Local Journalists to Expand Reporting on Local Impacts of COVID-19
Community Newspapers and Websites Across Northeast Ohio to Co-Publish Coverage
CLEVELAND, Ohio (August 12, 2020) — ideastream, Northeast Ohio’s largest member-supported public media organization, is collaborating with veteran local journalists Rachel Dissell, Melodie Smith and Brie Zeltner, all formerly of The Plain Dealer in Cleveland, to produce a new reporting series, Coping With COVID-19. The months long reporting project expands coverage of the local impacts of COVID-19 and investigates how the coronavirus pandemic has highlighted and laid bare the existing inequities that stem from decades of disinvestment in public health, the social safety net, preventive medicine and communities of color. Third Federal Foundation and University Settlement awarded ideastream a generous gift totaling $45,119 to benefit Northeast Ohio with this important community service.
Coping With COVID-19, which began on June 22, 2020, emanates from the lived experiences of Northeast Ohioans who, before the coronavirus pandemic, were struggling to meet their basic needs. For them, a “return to normal” may not be any more welcome than the disruptions caused by the pandemic for most of the country. The project involves people-centered stories, reporting on rapidly changing policies and the resulting impacts within local communities. In addition, Dissell, Smith and Zeltner are exploring emerging solutions related to the pandemic and how Northeast Ohioans are responding to those initiatives.
“All of us at ideastream are ecstatic to have the chance to work with Rachel, Melodie and Brie. They are incredible local talents whose investigative reporting continues to spark meaningful change and elevate voices within underserved communities,” said Mike McIntyre, ideastream Executive Editor. “Through this collaboration, we are pairing the expertise of local journalists with a wide network of community media outlets in order to expand our service to Northeast Ohioans.”
Stories from Coping With COVID-19 are first made available through ideastream’s multimedia platforms. Digital stories are published on ideastream.org and social media, while audio rich versions air on 90.3 WCPN ideastream, Northeast Ohio’s NPR news and public affairs radio station. The stories are then co-published by community newspapers and websites to combat information distribution gaps. ideastream’s local media partners include: Ward 7 Observer, The Cleveland Street Chronicle, The Neighborhood News, The Collinwood Observer, East Side Daily News, Euclid Observer, Heights Observer, The Tremonster, West Park Times, Plain Press, Erie Chinese Journal, Profile News and The Buckeye Flame. ideastream is also sharing stories with WOVU, 95.9 FM, a community radio station that is an enterprise of Burten, Bell, Carr Development Inc., the nonprofit community development corporation serving Cleveland’s Central and Kinsman neighborhoods. In addition, ideastream is exploring non-traditional ways of sharing the reporting across the region, though direct service providers and other community hubs, some virtual and some in-person, when possible.
By building this network of local media partners, ideastream continues to implement its 2019-2021 Strategic Plan to address the changing media landscape while continuing to serve the people of Northeast Ohio. At a time when traditional media models are threatened by technological and economic shifts, ideastream is taking steps to ensure that it continues to address community needs and meet user expectations while maintaining financial strength and long-term sustainability. Individuals, corporations and foundations can help support ideastream’s programs and services through membership, sponsorship or corporate support. Find information at ideastream.org/donate.
About ideastream
ideastream serves the people of Northeast Ohio as a trusted and dynamic multimedia source for illuminating the world around us. Publicly supported and locally owned, ideastream is indispensable and highly valued for its unique ability to strengthen our community. ideastream is the consolidation of WVIZ/PBS, with five channels of public television service (WVIZ/PBS-HD, WVIZ/PBS OHIO, WVIZ/PBS WORLD, WVIZ/PBS CREATE and WVIZ/PBS KIDS); 90.3 WCPN, Northeast Ohio’s NPR news and public affairs radio station; WCLV 104.9, Northeast Ohio’s classical music radio station; ideastream Education, with educational resources, services and the award-winning children’s series NewsDepth; and management of The Ohio Channel and the Ohio Public Radio and Television Statehouse News Bureau on behalf of all Ohio’s public broadcasting stations. For more information about ideastream’s rich legacy of innovation and credible content, visit ideastream.org.
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