Changes come during a year of growth and award-winning storytelling
Boston, Mass. — Oct. 21, 2024 — GBH News today announced a slate of new and expanded programs that reinforce its commitment to covering stories that matter across Massachusetts, from hyperlocal conversations informed by community stakeholders to regional reporting across the Commonwealth.
Paris Alston will transition from co-hosting Morning Edition to hosting a reimagined Basic Black, GBH’s longstanding television program that centers topical issues that matter to communities of color. The program will premiere under a new name in early 2025.
Alston also will expand her focus statewide on a program that she hosts called A Walk Down the Block, an original, multiplatform series that won the Regional Edward R. Murrow Award this year in the Excellence in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion category. The series has covered topics ranging from how big events for Boston’s Black communities resonated in Roxbury’s
Nubian Square
; LGBTQ+ Pride past and present in the
Sound End
; reimagining the
Charles River Esplanade
for better accessibility; and
Boston’s busing crisis history
through a citywide tour. Through collaborations with community organizations and leaders, Alston aims to get to the heart of underreported issues and use A Walk Down the Block as a connector for citizens to the changemakers in their neighborhoods. New episodes of A Walk Down the Block will air across GBH News platforms, including GBH 89.7,
gbhnews.org
Morning Edition co-host Jeremy Siegel is taking on several new roles, including hosting a new one-hour radio program and podcast that will take listeners all across Massachusetts to hear stories about what makes the Bay State unique. He will seek out perspectives that reflect both the challenges that face residents in rural and urban centers, and shine a spotlight on the dynamic growth, creativity, and entrepreneurship that often flies under the radar in a fast-paced news cycle. The show, which begins production in 2025, will air across all Connecting the Commonwealth partner stations: New England Public Media (NEPM) in Springfield; GBH, and CAI, the Cape and Islands NPR.
He also will be the transportation correspondent for both GBH News and
The World
“Paris and Jeremy are both accomplished storytellers, and we hope listeners will join us as we explore new topics and geographies together,” said Dan Lothian, Editor in Chief of GBH News and The World.
On Oct. 28, GBH News reporter
Mark Herz
will step in as interim host for GBH News’ Morning Edition. The show will air weekdays at a new time, 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. ET, on GBH 89.7 and stream at
gbhnews.org
These program additions continue a year of dynamic growth for GBH News, including the launch of its
Equity and Justice unit
; the
Connecting the Commonwealth
partnership with NEPM and CAI; and a
US Senate debate
About GBH
GBH is the leading multiplatform creator for public media in America. As the largest producer of content for PBS and partner to NPR and PRX, GBH delivers compelling experiences, stories and information to audiences wherever they are. GBH produces digital and broadcast programming that engages, illuminates and inspires, through drama and science, history, arts, culture and journalism. It is the creator of such signature programs as MASTERPIECE, ANTIQUES ROADSHOW, FRONTLINE, NOVA, AMERICAN EXPERIENCE, Arthur and Molly of Denali and a catalog of streaming series, podcasts and on-demand video. GBH’s television channels include GBH 2, GBH 44, GBH Kids and national services WORLD and Create. With studios and a newsroom headquartered in Boston, GBH reaches across New England with GBH 89.7, Boston’s Local NPR; CRB Classical 99.5; and CAI, the Cape and Islands NPR station. Dedicated to making media accessible to and inclusive of our diverse culture, GBH is a pioneer in delivering media to those who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind and visually impaired. GBH creates curriculum-based digital content for educators nationwide with PBS LearningMedia and has been recognized with hundreds of the nation’s premier broadcast, digital and journalism awards. Find more information at
gbh.org
Press Contact:
Emily Balk
emily_balk@wgbh.org
314 550 2448