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Anna Huntsman
Reporter/ProducerExpertise: Government, Akron politics, health care, audio editing, podcasting
Education: Kent State University - Bachelor of Science, journalism
Favorite spot in Northeast Ohio: Franklin Mills Riveredge Park in Downtown Kent
Experience:
Anna Huntsman covers Akron, Canton and surrounding communities for Ideastream Public Media. She reported on health news during the COVID-19 pandemic. Before that, Anna was a Carnegie-Knight News21 Fellow at Arizona State’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism, where she traveled the country reporting on natural disaster recovery. Her work has appeared nationally on NPR, and in the Washington Post, the New York Times and the Associated Press. She began her career in public radio as an intern at WKSU.
Highlights:
- 2023 Ohio Associated Press Media Editors, Best Reporter
- 2023 Cleveland Press Club, First Place In-Depth Coverage - “Is Akron following the rules in homeless encampment sweeps? Advocates raise concerns”
- Akron Press Club board member
- Kent State University adjunct professor
- Panelist and moderator for debates and forums, including 2023 Akron Mayoral Debate & Canton Mayoral Debate
Why trust Ideastream Public Media?
The mission of Ideastream Public Media is to be a trustworthy and dynamic multimedia source for illuminating the world around us. Our highest priority is providing news and information that is reliable and accurate, that is gathered with integrity and professional care and that is presented with precision and respect for the intelligence of our audiences. We are transparent about how we discover and verify the facts we present and strive to make our decision-making process clear to the public. We disclose relationships, such as with partners or funders, that might appear, but will never, influence our coverage.
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Activist group Akron Bail Fund sued the city after officers used tear gas to break up a protest in April 2023.
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Ward 8 covers the Fairlawn Heights, Merriman Valley, Wallhaven and Northwest Akron neighborhoods. The seat has been vacant since James Hardy unexpectedly resigned in early July.
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Will Akron council let voters decide on expanding police, fire chief pool? Some members are hesitantSome Akron City Council members have expressed hesitation about a proposed charter amendment that would allow the city to consider external candidates for chief and deputy chief in the police and fire departments.
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The Supreme Court ruling in Grants Pass v. Johnson clears the way for municipalities to issue bans and fines against people who are sleeping or camping outside.
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Akron Fire Chief Leon Henderson said calls for service have nearly doubled since the 1990s. He laid out his priorities during a town hall meeting Wednesday evening.
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Akron Mayor Shammas Malik previously said he could only consider internal candidates for police chief due to a state statute he believes only permits hiring through promotions. This decision was criticized due to the lack of diverse internal candidates.
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Henderson has been with the department for 34 years, according to a press release.
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City officials narrowed down the list from 10 sites that were being considered back in April.
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Hardy, who previously served as a Deputy Mayor in the Mayor Dan Horrigan administration, had only served six months on council prior to resigning July 1.
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Residents have been calling for Summit County to sell its bonds for about a month in order to put economic pressure on Israel.