Based at the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University, Scene on Radio is an award-winning podcast series, hosted by veteran reporter and producer John Biewen. The show has tackled some big issues: patriarchy, white supremacy, capitalism, and a deep dive on the 1898 Wilmington Coup and massacre that we highlighted here on The Newsroom two years ago.
For its latest series, Scene on Radio is tackling a topic that’s served as a throughline in many of their past investigations — the news.
Biewen and co-host Chenjerai Kumanyika take a long, hard look at why people are upset with the news, exploring the economic, historical, political, and social aspects of the problem. The series is rooted in Biewen’s boots-on-ground reporting in the border belt of North Carolina, and features some familiar places and names, including our friends at The Border Belt Independent, who are fighting to keep accountability journalism in the face of financial challenges and growing news deserts.
Kumanyika, an NYU journalism professor and podcaster, returns to the podcast. As with past series on whiteness and democracy, he joins Biewen to bring his own perspective — and some provocative moments.
Another name that comes up a lot in the series, and on today’s show, is Penny Abernathy, who has a half-century of experience in journalism — starting at the Fayetteville Times and leading to senior executive roles at The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal. Abernathy has also spent years as a researcher and author, studying the problems faced by modern media, especially local news outlets.
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