The ArchCity Defenders, a non-profit law firm focused on civil rights, will soon announce their Excellence in Poverty Journalism Awards to recognize journalists who cover race, class and poverty in depth.
The St. Louis region continues to be held back by its inability to address in a serious and comprehensive way the stark disparities that exist across race and class. I don’t think there’s anything more important than telling the truth about these disparities and how they impact actual human beings living in this community every day. That is what the Poverty Journalism Awards are all about. -- Blake Strode, Executive Director of ArchCity Defenders
Four St. Louis Public Radio journalists are among the nominees.
Sharing America Editor Holly Edgell and Reporter Ashley Lisenby both received nominations. Edgell was nominated for St. Louis Conference ‘Celebrates’ 50 Years of Fair Housing Act and Lisenby for Inside the Workhouse: Conditions, Treatment and Time Served Remain Under Scrutiny.
Edgell and Lisenby are part of the Sharing America project, a radio and digital reporting collaboration among four public media stations. Funded by a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Edgell and her team cover issues at the intersection of race, identity and culture.
Tim Lloyd and Kameel Stanley, co-hosts and co-producers of the popular podcast We Live Here, were nominated for two episodes from the podcast’s third season: White Flight and Reclaimed Memories and Out of the Ville Pt. 1 and 2.
Previously honored with multiple awards, We Live Here received a Kaleidoscope Award last year from the Radio Television Digital News Association for outstanding coverage of diverse communities and issues, the same year they produced the nominated episodes, and the same year the podcast surpassed 600,000 downloads. Lloyd and Stanley focused the fourth season of We Live Here on matters related to race, class, and housing in historically segregated St. Louis.
A panel of three judges are now reviewing the nominations. Award winners will be announced July 12 at a ceremony at Anew Rooftop.