Our Reporters

Fabiana Chaparro

Fabiana Chaparro is a senior broadcast journalism and political science student at the University of Houston. She is currently the network booking intern at CNN, where she remotely collaborates with CNN’s New York headquarters to pitch stories, research guests and book them for television programs. She is also a news reporter and anchor for her university’s student-run television station. In the past, she has held positions as the assignment desk intern at ABC 13 (KTRK-TV), a social media and writing intern at the Jack J. Valenti School of Communication, and journalism extern with the Osgood Center for International Studies. Chaparro is a Venezuelan native who enjoys traveling, reading and keeping up with the latest in pop culture and fashion.

This was a week I will take with me for years to come

Where do I begin? This week was not entirely conventional for me, and despite it, I learned so much and enjoyed the process of it all. My week with Next Generation Radio stretched into an additional week, meaning my total project time frame fell to the Friday after...

Jackie Ibarra

Jackie Ibarra is a third-year journalism major at the University of Texas at Austin. She’s been an audio producer for The Daily Texan, where she led the podcast “From the Archives,” as well as an audio intern for The Drag, an audio production house at UT. She’s also worked as an editorial intern for Latinitas Magazine, helping girls of color gain writing and podcasting experience. Currently, Ibarra is a writing coach at UT and runs the social media channels for the university’s journalism school (including TikTok!). She is a proud member and officer of UT’s chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and loves amplifying Latinx stories through audio storytelling. Ibarra is a San Antonio native who enjoys naming her plants, keeping up with martial arts and all things Taylor Swift.

Kickin’ imposter syndrome to the curb

The Next Generation Radio program is no joke. When I got the email saying what we were supposed to accomplish in four days – an audio piece, a web story, photos and audiograms – I was overwhelmed, nervous, and if I’m being honest, scared out of my mind. I kept...

Mizelle Mayo

Mizelle Mayo is a multimedia and photojournalist who covers education, health care accessibility and mental health, along with racial and economic inequities. She is earning a master’s degree in journalism at the University of Texas at Austin. View her recent work on Reporting Texas. Mayo’s passion for journalism is anchored in her hometown of Anchorage, Alaska, where people in the community inspired her storytelling. When she’s not listening to peoples’ stories, she enjoys hiking with family and friends, and playing guitar.

I was given a chance to feel fulfilled

There’s so much we accomplished in a week, and that truly amazed me! So did seeing how hard working everyone is and how much care they have for the stories we tell. Before this, I believed my work always fell short – but Next Generation Radio continued to show me that...

Maria Ramos Pacheco

María Ramos Pacheco is a multimedia journalist based in El Paso. She currently covers the Spanish-speaking community along the U.S.-Mexican borders and Dallas as a remote fellow for Al Día, the Spanish language publication of The Dallas Morning News. Ramos Pacheco is a recent multimedia journalism graduate from UTEP, where she served as editor-in-chief for Minero Magazine, UTEP’s bilingual magazine. She was a ProPublica fellow for the class 2020-2021, an intern for El Paso Matters and participated in the 2020 NAHJ student project. Ramos Pacheco was born and raised in Chihuahua, Mexico, where her love for journalism was formed. She is always hunting for the hottest salsa and loves to listen to crime podcasts.

It truly takes a village

What resonated the most with me was a line from one of Managing Editor Stephanie Kuo’s first emails: “It truly takes a village.” I did not understand what she meant until the first day of Next Generation Radio, and I kept thinking about that all week. Interviewing a...

Pete Ramirez

Pete Ramirez is pursuing his associate’s degree in journalism at Austin Community College. He currently holds the editor-in-chief position at ACCENT, ACC’s student-led news organization. Ramirez is also the audience engagement intern at Decibel, a program out of Austin’s PBS station that covers local communities. When he’s not working on a story, Ramirez enjoys practicing photography and spending time with his partner and pups.

Trust in the work

The past week was an amazing whirlwind of journalism that I will never forget. Through participating in Next Generation Radio, I’ve had the opportunity to experience nearly every part of how modern journalism is made. And I met some wonderful people along the way. I...

Shardae White

Shardae White is a graduate student at the University of North Texas’ Mayborn School of Journalism where she has written for the campus paper, the North Texas Daily. A Dallas native, White lives in Plano and worked as an education reporter and proofreader for the Wylie News. She recently started as a community journalist for the Dallas Free Press, covering West and South Dallas neighborhoods. Having always explored various approaches to storytelling, she uses multimedia and mixed media to creatively form ideas. White can be found making lists, crafting and asking herself to eat more vegetables.

Taking ownership of my work through honesty and vulnerability

My experience with Next Generation Radio this week has taught me more than I could have anticipated. Of course, I learned plenty of technical skills, like making fine edits while working with audio, writing tight, and organizing ideas. The skills and tools we’ve used...

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

The Next Generation Radio Project is a week-long digital journalism training project designed to give competitively selected participants, who are interested in radio and journalism, the skills and opportunity to report and produce their own multimedia story. Those chosen for the project are paired with a professional journalist who serves as their mentor.

This edition of the #NPRNextGenRadio project was produced in collaboration with:

Managing Editor, Stephanie Kuo, Director of Training, PRX
Digital editors, Stephanie Federico, Digital Editor, KUT; Rachel Osier Lindley, Senior Editor, The Texas Newsroom, KERA
Visuals, Erica Lee, freelance photojournalist, New Jersey; Kevin Beaty, photojournalist, The Denverite/Colorado Public Radio
Illustrators Ard Su, Lauren Ibañez, and Natalia Polanco
Web developer, Robert Boos, Metropolitan State University
Audio techs: Selena Seay-Reynolds, lead Next Gen audio engineer/production assistant "Wondery; Sean Cronen, Music Mix Engineer/Producer, The Texas Monthly

Our journalist/mentors for this project were:

Stella Chavez, Immigration and Demographics Reporter, KERA
Dr. Jenn Erdely, Associate Professor, Journalism, Prairie View A&M
Dani Matias, Morning Editor Producer/Host, KUT
Alejandra Martinez, Reporter, KERA
Monica Ortiz Uribe, Multimedia Reporter, USA Today Networks, The El Paso Times
Laura Rice, Managing Producer, The Texas Standard, KUT
Special thanks to Amy Hinojosa, HUB Project Manager, KERA

NPR’s Next Generation Radio program is directed by its founder, Doug Mitchell.