Episode #9: Karen Zolka

The December broadcast of Reform Radio features an interview with Karen Zolka, a graduating E.W. Scripps of Journalism senior. Zolka, who earned an foreign correspondent internship with the Associated Press, goes to Israel in January 2009. Her interest in the news and journalism, she says, began as a child in elementary school and continued through her high school education, during which she studied television journalism and had several internships. Zolka also was the president of the Society of Professional Journalists at Scripps for two years. She talks about her journalism education and her vision of how journalism should serve the public.

CounterPost (replay of Episode #7)

The November broadcast of Reform Radio is a rebroadcast of Episode #7, "CounterPost," (see below) featuring retired E.W. Scripps School of Journalism professor Thomas Hodges and Velma Lopez and Brittany Benton of the Latino Student Union. This episode of Reform Radio was originally broadcast Sept. 21, 2008.

Episode #8: mephisto radio (Leipzig University)

The October broadcast of Reform Radio features guests from mephisto radio, a student radio station at Leipzig University (Germany). Christoph Peters and Miriam Behrendt were part of a group of faculty and students who traveled to the United States in September to cover the 2008 election, as well as to visit student media operations and take part in classes at Ohio University. Peters and Behrendt also discuss the changes that have taken place in Germany since the Berlin Wall came down in 1989.

Episode 8 podcast

Episode #7: CounterPost

The September broadcast of Reform Radio features a lively conversation about a controversial column, “Broad Stripes and Bright Stars: America’s party being crashed since the first settlers left England,” published in Ohio University’s student newspaper, The Post, in 2007. The column, by Chris Yonker, generated vigorous, critical protests and responses from OU’s Latino Student Union, students and faculty, as well as defenses of Yonker’s column. To its credit, a considerable number of these were published in The Post. Reform Radio invited persons from both sides of the controversy to join in on a conversation about the column. Although Reform Radio invited Yonker, Post editors, and members of The Post’s editorial board, all declined. Joining the show were Velma Lopez and Brittany Benton of the Latino Student Union and retired E.W. Scripps School of Journalism professor Thomas Hodges.

The Post’s editorial position on the column can be read here.

Episode 7 podcast

Episode #6: Education and Democracy

The August broadcast of Reform Radio, featured Ohio University Emeritus Professor of Philosophy Algis Mickunas, who discussed the importance of education, which he considers the "fifth estate," to democracy. Mickunas has written several books and articles about democracy, tracing its roots back to Athens, Greece. A truly educated populace, say democratic theorists as Mickunas, is crucial for the maintenance of an effectively functioning democracy. In addition, throughout the show, several questions are posed from a quiz on freedom of speech. You can download the brief quiz and answers.

Episode 6 podcast

Episode #5: John Felton

The July broadcast of Reform Radio featured John Felton, a 1975 OU graduate and freelance writer and editor. Felton has practiced journalism for almost 40 years, beginning in 1970 covering Dayton city hall for the Journal Herald, reporting on foreign affairs for the Congressional Quarterly in Washington, D.C., through the 1980s, and was a foreign desk editor and assignment editor for National Public Radio in the early 1990s. He also published a 730-page history of the Middle East in 2007. Since 2003 he has conducted quarterly reviews of its news coverage for NPR.

Reform Radio talked with Felton about his journalism career, particularly his roots in Ohio and his evaluations of NPR’s coverage of sensitive news and issues, such as the invasion and occupation of Iraq, the failure of American journalism in the lead-up to the Iraq war, and the Pentagon's military analyst program.

Episode 5 podcast

Episode #4: National Conference for Media Reform 2008

The June episode of Reform Radio features a conversation with graduating Ohio University senior Alex Thompson and Athens Messenger reporter Elizabeth Goussetis about their experiences at the National Conference for Media Reform 2008, which was held in Minneapolis, June 6 to 8. Thompson majored in video production and Goussetis is a 2006 graduate of OU’s E.W. Scripps School of Journalism. NCMR2008, which featured more than 200 presenters and attracted almost 4,500 attendees over the weekend, focused on the media reform movement, envisioning the future of our media system, harnessing new technology for change, and achieving concrete policy victories through sustainable organizing. Among the presenters and speakers were Amy Goodman of Democracy Now!, Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post, Bill Moyers, U.S. Sen. Byron Dorgan, Dan Rather, Phil Donahue, Federal Communication Commission Commissioners Michael Coop and Jonathan Adelstein, and Robert McChesney of the Free Press, which organizes the conference. There are highlights from the conference on the Athens Free Press website. The episode first aired Sunday, June 15, at 12:30 p.m. and will air again Thursday, June 19, at 9 a.m., on 1340 AM WOUB in Athens. Episodes are simulcast on the WOUB Web site, woub.org. This program will be available as a podcast shortly. Thanks for supporting Reform Radio, your voice for alternative media in Southeastern Ohio.

Episode 4 podcast, National Conference for Media Reform 2008

Episode #3: Marshall Thompson

The third episode of Reform Radio features an interview with Marshall Thompson, an Iraq War veteran and Army journalist. This former Army reservist and E.W. Scripps graduate student undertook a 27-day walk through Utah, his home state, shown in his award-winning documentary, “A Soldier’s Peace.” Thompson was in Athens for the “We Want Better Media Conference 2008,” sponsored by Campus Progress and Athens Free Press, during which his movie was shown. In the 30-minute interview, second-year Ohio University journalism student Amy Nordrum and Reform Radio executive producer Kevin Sanders talk with Thompson about his experiences in the military, Iraq, and making the film. The episode first aired Sunday, May 18, at 12:30 p.m. and aired again Thursday, May 22, at 9 a.m., on 1340 AM WOUB in Athens. Episodes are simulcast on the WOUB Web site, woub.org. Thanks for supporting Reform Radio, your voice for alternative media in Southeastern Ohio.

Episode 3 podcast, Marshall Thompson

Episode #2: Media Reform Conference

Hello all, Athens Free Press will be hosting another episode of Reform Radio as part of Conversations from Studio B on WOUB 1340 AM in Athens. This month we will be talking to three students from Ohio University's Scripps School of Journalism who are planning a media reform conference for Athens in May. These students are putting a lot of dedicated and hard work into this process, and I'll be talking to them about what may be in store for the conference. The episode will air originally on Sunday, April 20 at 12:30 p.m. on 1340 AM WOUB in Athens, and then again on Thursday the 24th at 9 a.m. The episode should also be simulcast on the WOUB website, woub.org. So, take a listen, and as always, see you on the radio!

Episode 2 podcast

Episode #1: Who is Athens Free Press?

The first episode of Reform Radio is now available online (mp3). Many thanks to Bryan Gibson and the WOUB staff for giving us this opportunity to converse with the Athens, Ohio listeners about media reform issues germane to our community.

Episode 1 podcast

Reform Radio airtime correction

I need to correct myself. Athens Free Press' radio show, taped as part of WOUB's Conversations from Studio B, will actually air this Sunday, February 17 at 1:30 PM, instead of 12:30 as I had previously said. The show will also air next Thursday, Feb. 21 at 9 AM. Both of these airings will be on WOUB 1340 AM in Athens. The live stream of the show can also be heard at the time of broadcast on WOUB's website (woub.org) through the internet stream. We hope you can catch it!

See you on the radio!

I'm excited to announce that the taping of Athens Free Press' first show for WOUB's Conversations from Studio B is right around the corner! While the show will be identified as part of Conversations from Studio B, we have our own show title that matches this blog, Reform Radio. I want to remind everyone that our show will air, taped, this Sunday February 17th at 12:30 in the afternoon on 1340 AM in Athens. The show will also re-air later next week, Thursday morning I believe, and it is supposed to be posted on woub.org under the Studio B link of the Radio section of the site. As the host, I want to urge everyone to take a listen to us at least once out of these myriad times (of course, I would be flattered if you wanted to catch the show many many times) and feel free to spread the word about our show, too. Finally, I would love to hear any feedback afterward about the show or any ideas for future shows from anyone with two cents to put in. I certainly hope the show is informative, but I am also definitely open to suggestions to make it better.