Judith Smelser Profile Continued

Do your reporters have beats?

We have a dedicated arts reporter who also produces a weekly program on arts and culture.  Pat Duggins, who I'm sure many PRNDI members know, is our space reporter, but he also covers general news.  Everyone else is general assignment.

Your station recently did an extended series of reports on crime in Central Florida.  What did it involve?

In 2006, Orlando's murder rate more than doubled, and other types of violent crime were up as well.  The city and county governments were commissioning academic studies and task forces to try to figure out what was going on.  We decided we needed to spend some significant time on the issue, so we did a three-month occasional series at the end of last year on crime in Central Florida.  The series included fifteen features and two talk shows.  We talked to local law enforcement leaders, gang members, crime victims, nonprofit workers, academics looking at the causes of the crime spike, and national experts who could put the local situation in a national perspective.  Feature topics included stories about domestic violence, gangs, the role of schools in keeping kids from becoming criminals, the way the arts are being used in crime prevention and criminals' rehabilitation ... and much more.

Public radio isn't exactly known for its crime reporting.  How did you decide the topics you pursued?

We certainly didn't do "crime reporting" as it's commonly known.  That is to say, we didn't suddenly start reporting on daily murders and robberies.
Instead, we tried to examine crime trends, causes, and solutions.  For example, a series-within-the-series on gangs examined the problem law enforcement has figuring out which crimes are gang-related and which are not.  A story on domestic violence looked at a new local program designed to identify the most dangerous domestic situations and help the victims before those situations become lethal. 

What's your biggest struggle as a news director?

I constantly struggle with how much of my own reporting I can do and still stay on top of the planning, editing, and administrative duties of the news director job.  Right now, that's probably my biggest struggle ... but there are many more.  There's always the age-old spots versus features dilemma, which could also be framed as a "what" versus "why" dilemma - in other words, should we spend more time and resources getting the news out there quickly or doing deeper analysis a few days after the fact?

What's a good day for you?

A good day could be many things.  It could be a day when I have a great, productive edit with one of my reporters and we both feel we've created a quality piece.  It could be a day when I realize that a reporter is starting to "get it" - like recently, when one reporter said she could hear my voice in her head asking "what's the story really about?"  It could be a day when we respond well to a breaking news event.  It could be a day when I'm able to convince my managers that one of my reporters deserves a long-awaited pay raise.  And sometimes, I have to admit, it could be a day when I get to leave the office when it's still light outside!