With the gutting of the Post’s local newsroom, shuttering of DCist, and majority of quality substantive stories behind paywalls, crime feels like it’s just about the only beat left for the public en masse to consume. It’s awful not just for individual readers but for society.

So extremely glad to hear Héctor Alejandro Arzate back on the radio 💜

“With a reduced local press….stories like this rarely see the light of day.”

We see this across the nation. Studies have shown that each dollar spent on local journalism saves more in better-functioning government than is spent.

DCist was shut down by WAMU 88.5 in February, an NPR-affiliate station owned by American University. My newest opinion piece looks at how the shutdown of vital, local journalism puts DC at risk of becoming a news desert & ends with a tweet from WeMakeWAMU is a union. theeagleonline.com/article/2024/0…

“It’s a problem if you believe that DC needs to play fair. It’s a problem if you believe that the lowest possible cost doesn’t necessarily mean the best possible thing for DC.'

Credit to Jacob Fenston who flagged the issue. WAMU is worse without him.
wamu.org/story/24/04/05…

Another way to look at this is: D.C. is being cited as an example before SCOTUS of how not to treat people experiencing homelessness. Too bad DCist doesn't exist anymore and WAMU won't hire another housing reporter!

Sometimes your former employer lays off the entire social issues desk, claiming its work was minimally impactful. Then, sometimes, the work you did for it is cited in a brief submitted to the Supreme Court in a case that could criminalize homelessness lawyerscommittee.org/wp-content/upl…

WeMakeWAMU is a union AMEN to this! Audio engineers are the often-unsung heroes of broadcasting. (I'm married to one!)

Our sound engineers are the coolest heads under pressure I know 👏🏻

Our audio engineers are the very definition of 'audio excellence.' Their eyes, and especially their ears, are one of the most valuable resources we have at WAMU. Without them, WAMU would sound ... different.

DCist had some pretty solid stories about the arena, if I do say so myself! Here are a few:

Matt Blitz on the neighborhood around CapitalOne: dcist.com/story/23/11/30…

and on the announcement itself: dcist.com/person/matt-bl…

Anyone else still really bummed about DCist?

“As residents of the District, the Georgetown community should be concerned... If you want to know about something going on around you, your options are becoming more and more limited.” Read more: georgetownvoice.com/2024/03/24/the…

We'd planned a downtown series before the WAMU 88.5 layoffs and DCist shutdown.

This story - what if DC supported the creation of a *real* Chinatown - was part of that series.
wamu.org/story/24/03/20…

.Andi McDaniel didn't mince words regarding how short-sighted public radio station's decision-making can be, “Digital media, and innovation, SHOULD be subsidized by legacy platforms…. It’s a necessary, if costly, hedge against inevitable changes in how audiences consume media.”