21-WFMJ News Podcast

“The Outcue” is a 21 News journalist perspective of our top news stories.

Each week, the 21 News staff, including reporters and managers, will discuss behind the scenes in covering stories for you — from the newsgathering process to getting the final product on the air, in this new video podcast.

In this week's episode, Assistant News Director Justin Mitchell talks with 21 News Director Sheila Miller and Senior Digital Content Manager Robert McFerren about the editorial decision-making process that comes with covering sensitive news stories — and what does and doesn't get mentioned — on the air.

The podcast name — The Outcue — is a broadcast term meaning the last few words of reporting before the package ends. We hope you enjoy it.

“The Outcue” is a 21 News journalist perspective of our top news stories.

Each week, the 21 News staff, including reporters and managers, will discuss what goes on behind the scenes in covering stories for you - from the newsgathering process to getting the final product on the air, in this new video podcast.

In this week's episode, Assistant News Director Justin Mitchell talks with 21 Sports reporter Brittany Bissell and sports videographer Dan Pushcar about Friday night football and what goes into covering all the local teams each week during the football season.

 Natural gas accidents happen more often than you think. Experts we sought out, including the NTSB, say the lack of state and federal safety regulations is to blame. Could it happen again? Assistant News Director Justin Mitchell and Watchdog reporter Madison Tromler discuss the backstories behind the investigation into the Realty building explosion and what needs to change to stop "The Danger Beneath Us." 

Assistant news director Justin Mitchell sits down with reporter Kaitlyn McCarthy to talk about her path from working behind the scenes to holding the powerful accountable. McCarthy, a Valley native and YSU graduate, has only been reporting since April, but in that time has broken major developments on the Realty building explosion and exposed potential conflicts of interest at a major development organization.

Turn in every Friday on our YouTube channel or listen to the audio version on all major podcast platforms.

The podcast name - The Outcue - is a broadcast term that means the last few words of reporting before the package ends.

We hope you enjoy it.

In this week's Outcue podcast, 21 News Assistant News Director Justin Mitchell and Senior Digital Content Manager Robert McFerren discuss the story behind the story, looking at the fast-changing coverage of the Steward Health bankruptcy filings.

Our coverage has been following the bankruptcy court case in Texas and reporting those looking to place bids for control of Trumbull Regional, Hillside Rehabilitation, and the satellite facilities.

These stories we start working on in the morning may be completely different by the afternoon. 

We discuss keeping up with fluid stories like these and the importance of keeping everyone informed on the importance of these hospitals— from caring for the community to providing good-paying jobs to the tax revenue brought in to pay for essential services.

In this week's Outcue, Assistant News Director Justin Mitchell and Senior Digital Content Manager Robert discuss the story behind the story of 21 News coverage for months concerning the bankrupt Steward healthcare facilities in the Mahoning and Shenango valleys.

Trumbull Regional Medical Center and Hillside Rehabilitation Hospital, including satellite offices, all received mass layoff notifications this week, with the last date set for September 19 unless someone buys those facilities. Local investors are attempting to get financing to keep the facilities open but are racing against time.

Sharon Regional was granted an extension to August 30 for a group in Pennsylvania attempting to buy the facility. Otherwise, their clock for the shutdown will begin as well.

Our discussion looks at the fallout if the parties attempting to save miss the deadlines and the potential economic impact the Valley has been through many times before.

"The Outcue” is a 21 News journalist perspective on our top news stories, but with a different approach. It talks about the week's biggest story but gives you the perspective of the story behind the story.

This week, assistant news director Justin Mitchell sits down at 5 pm anchor and reporter Lindsay McCoy to discuss how her experience as a reporter helps her in her role as anchor.

The podcast name - The Outcue - is a broadcast term that means the last few words of reporting before the story ends. We hope you enjoy it.

On this edition of the 21 News podcast, 'The Outcue,' Assistant News Director Justin Mitchell talks with Senior Digital Content Manager Robert McFerren about the drive and burn that makes journalists do what they do.

This podcast explains what happens behind the scenes and the story behind the story.

In this case, we requested all the emergency calls handled by Youngstown Police and Fire Dispatch Center on May 28, the day of the downtown Realty building explosion, after a natural gas line was cut in the facility.

How many calls could that be? In total, there were more than 300 calls. Why go through them now? A reporter's intuition that says we will find a new angle to an ongoing story. 

And we did.

We looked into why it took more than two hours for Ohio Edison to respond that day to a severe crisis where water was pouring into the Realty building, and emergency crews needed the electricity shut off to attempt to rescue people from inside the building. We listened as Police and Fire dispatch pleaded and ultimately became frustrated over the lack of timely response, only to find a crew came downtown, saw the roads closed due to the emergency, and allegedly left, according to the 911 calls.

In today's Outcue, Assistant News Director Justin Mitchell is joined by 21 News Director Sheila Miller and Senior Digital Content Manager Robert McFerren to discuss how we address news bias in coverage in today's political climate.

The newsroom management team discusses how much discussion and thought goes into all newsroom reporting, including political coverage.

This podcast discusses the frame of reference for covering all news -- including political stories -- and our rule as a watchdog over all forms of government, local, state, and national. 

The Outcue is the term for the last few words of a news story before it ends.

 But the end of what you see on television is often only the story's beginning. This is The Outcue, a journalist's perspective on how we work for you.

In this week's The Outcue, Assistant News Director Justin Mitchell talks with anchor/reporter Madison Tromler, who speaks about the National Transportation Safety Board hearing this week in East Palestine, discussing what caused the February 3, 2023 train derailment and why the vent-and-burn was a botched decision.

The discussion examines the key moments from the day's nearly 8-hour final report that are quickly processed and disseminated to our viewers and readers online and how a reporter's know-how helps identify key moments and findings.

The Outcue is the term for the last few words of a news story before it's over. We know that the end of what you see on television is often only the beginning of the story. This is The Outcue.