Last week, West Virginia University’s P.I. Reed School of Journalism held a panel on how West Virginia media covered the January 9 chemical spill by Freedom Industries and the subsequent water crisis that affected some 300,000 West Virginians across nine counties.
The event, billed as “From Beats to Tweets: Media Coverage of the Elk River Spill,” gave reporters a chance to provide insight on their coverage of the spill and its aftermath–from using modern technology like Twitter to old-fashioned reporting techniques. WVU School of Journalism professor and former West Virginia Public Broadcasting reporter Emily Corio moderated the panel.
Panelists include:
- Ashton Marra, Statehouse Reporter for West Virginia Public Broadcasting
- Dave Boucher, Statehouse Reporter for The Charleston Daily Mail
- David Gutman, Reporter for The Charleston Gazette
- April Kaull, News Anchor for WOWK-TV
- Roger May, Documentary Photographer Commissioned by The Guardian
- Dr. Eric Waggoner, Professor of Literature and Cultural Studies at West Virginia Wesleyan College