This is an excellent piece of radio produced for the Alaska Public Radio Network by Ashley Gross. It's a great example of local in depth news feature reporting at its best. Alaska's suicide rate is twice that of the US as a whole, and in the Bering Sea community of Hooper Bay it is even higher. Through interviews with local townspeople the piece explores the reasons for this phenomenon. One theory is that the people have become disconnected from their Yup'ik heritage, and perhaps one answer is to reclaim their culture. Although the piece is long by magazine standards, it flows very well and is parsimoniously written. The piece is very nicely edited, and the voices flow well from one to another. This is an example of local feature production that is as good as or better than the national radio newsmagazines.
Review of Suicide's legacy in one Alaska village
Phil Corriveau
Posted on August 20, 2006 at 01:20 PM
This is an excellent piece of radio produced for the Alaska Public Radio Network by Ashley Gross. It's a great example of local in depth news feature reporting at its best. Alaska's suicide rate is twice that of the US as a whole, and in the Bering Sea community of Hooper Bay it is even higher. Through interviews with local townspeople the piece explores the reasons for this phenomenon. One theory is that the people have become disconnected from their Yup'ik heritage, and perhaps one answer is to reclaim their culture. Although the piece is long by magazine standards, it flows very well and is parsimoniously written. The piece is very nicely edited, and the voices flow well from one to another. This is an example of local feature production that is as good as or better than the national radio newsmagazines.