WHYY’s N.I.C.E. partnership amplifies community voices

One of the things that I think is common is this idea of a storyteller, people who share the stories of their community, of their culture, of their neighborhood. That’s one of the things that I really love about N.I.C.E. The idea behind N.I.C.E. is that we’re looking for and connecting with people who are the storytellers of their communities. And it really provides a richness and a depth to the storytelling from both the audience perspective and also the folks who are the subject of the story.

Well, you and I have talked about the expression “parachuting in,” where a journalist, maybe me, I have a story idea and I approach a certain community, a certain person. And I’m in, I’m out, I’m done. But with the community journalism that we’re talking about here with this collaboration, that parachuting isn’t happening, there is much more connection, right?

It’s much more connection. And it’s a greater sense of respect for the community. It’s not to say that there isn’t a level of respect that exists for reporters that come from outside of the community. But there’s a different level of understanding, a different depth of connection and relationship. And so community members and neighbors, when you’re talking to them and being interviewed, they know that you have their best interests at heart because you come from that community or there’s a preexisting relationship.

Eric, one of my favorite N.I.C.E. projects is radio- and web-based and supported by PlanPhilly, which is known for its in-depth original reporting on Philadelphia neighborhoods. And it’s called the 47 Bus.

We have listened to this PlanPhilly series in the last year. It’s a wonderful series. It takes us up a bus route, the 47 bus SEPTA route into communities. A lot of them are Latino communities.

I love the idea of using the Route 47 because it literally connects communities together in a range of socioeconomic conditions. I think it’s brilliant, and that’s just one of the examples of what N.I.C.E. partners bring, this ability to see the everyday common thing in a different way.