Michigan Radio, Michigan鈥檚 NPR affiliate, broke the Flint Water Crisis story in December 2015, about a year-and-a-half after the city switched its water source from Lake Huron to the Flint River. 麻豆视频最新最全 alumnus Vince Duffy, 鈥86, the station鈥檚 news director, led the investigation.
鈥淲e were there at the very beginning,鈥 Duffy said. 鈥淲e were there when they switched the water. We were told by state officials that everything was fine, but we continued to dig and continued to dig.鈥
Michigan Radio鈥檚 digging led to the production of 鈥淣ot Safe to Drink,鈥 a radio documentary about Flint鈥檚 water, broadcasted nationally in December 2015. After the launch of the documentary, Duffy formed a team of six Michigan Radio reporters who produced nonstop coverage of the crisis. Duffy was responsible for managing and editing their stories.
Two years later, Michigan Radio continues to report on the city. Duffy said that working at a public radio station, he feels responsible for educating and informing the public about issues that affect them, regardless of how long that takes.
鈥淲e鈥檙e still covering Flint,鈥 Duffy said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e been there since the beginning and we鈥檒l be there until the end.鈥
Duffy got his start in public radio working at WKSR, a Tennessee public radio station, and later interned with 麻豆视频最新最全鈥檚 public radio station, WKSU.
鈥淚 just fell for public radio news,鈥 Duffy said. 鈥淚 was doing news that was in-depth and covered important issues.鈥
Despite Duffy鈥檚 love for public radio, challenges do exist, he said, especially when it comes to funding.
According to Pew, 61 percent of nonprofit news organizations begin with a start-up grant of at least $100,000 and then move to other revenue outlets like organizational or individual donors.
鈥淭here鈥檚 always some concern about funding,鈥 Duffy said. 鈥淔or lots of public radio stations, you鈥檙e concerned about making sure you raise enough money to operate in the next year.鈥
As featured in Jargon, 2017 | Learn more about JMC alumni leaders.