On this episode, we’re joined by Erin O’Hare, the neighborhoods reporter for Charlottesville Tomorrow, a hyperlocal non-profit news website serving Charlottesville, Virginia (cvilletomorrow.org).

Erin explained what a neighborhood reporter does in a city of about 45,000 people, everything from reporting on the changing demographics of neighborhoods to making zoning ordinances understandable, to alerting people to the opening of a bathroom at a mall (the quotes in this one are great!), to writing impactful pieces that help residents living in shelters. Often, she focuses on people whose voices aren’t typically heard in mainstream media.

She also explained what it was like to cover the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, how that deeply affected her as both a journalist and a person, and how she wants to show that the city should be known for much more than that. And she shared her other writing interest – telling stories about culture, art, and music.

Erin’s salutes: Vinegar Hill Magazine and In My Humble Opinion, both parts of Charlottesville Inclusive Media

Thank you as always for listening. Please send us feedback at [email protected], visit our website at thejournalismsalute.org and Mark's website (MarkSimonmedia.com) or tweet us at @journalismpod.