https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/trippin-on-the-shoestring--4661286enNews CommentaryCopyright The Shoestringhttps://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/489bd68e91f0b0aac32dc3a7091f77b4.jpghttps://www.spreaker.com/podcast/trippin-on-the-shoestring--4661286Wed, 11 Dec 2024 16:29:33 +0000The ShoestringThe Shoestringtheshoestringmag@gmail.comIn-depth conversations and investigative journalism from the western Massachusetts-based independent news outlet The Shoestring. Investigative reporters Dusty Christensen and Shelby Lee bring you big local scoops and important voices from across the...falseepisodichttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-35-on-local-news-with-jason-pramas-corinne-colbert-and-brian-zayatz--63267338
In this episode, Shelby Lee and Dusty Christensen are joined by three guests fighting to save local news: Jason Pramas, executive director of the Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism; Corinne Colbert, editor-in-chief of the Athens County Independent in Ohio; and Brian Zayatz, managing editor of The Shoestring. Together, the group discusses discuss the crisis in local news, how to duct tape together an information ecosystem, and some of the organizing we've done together to advocate for reforms that would support stronger local news for everyone.

Produced by Dusty Christensen. Music by An Archaeologist.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/63267338Wed, 11 Dec 2024 15:14:44 +0000The ShoestringThis week, our guests let us in on an open secret in the journalism world: nobody knows how to fund local news anymore. With the traditional pillars that supported local information ecosystems eroding and eventually collapsing over the last few...
In this episode, Shelby Lee and Dusty Christensen are joined by three guests fighting to save local news: Jason Pramas, executive director of the Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism; Corinne Colbert, editor-in-chief of the Athens County Independent in Ohio; and Brian Zayatz, managing editor of The Shoestring. Together, the group discusses discuss the crisis in local news, how to duct tape together an information ecosystem, and some of the organizing we've done together to advocate for reforms that would support stronger local news for everyone.

Produced by Dusty Christensen. Music by An Archaeologist.]]>3691falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-34-election-post-mortem-with-dan-cannity-and-jeff-napolitano--62973553
Dan Cannity is a returning voice on the podcast, a former co-chair of the Northampton Policing Review Commission and a regular presence in Northampton as a community advocate. Jeff Napolitano, also a returning guest and local political analyst, is a longtime western Massachusetts activist who has the distinct honor of being blocked by U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern on social media.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/62973553Sat, 23 Nov 2024 02:31:14 +0000The ShoestringIn this week's episode of Trippin' on The Shoestring, host Shelby Lee is joined by guests, and impromptu political correspondents, Dan Cannity and Jeff Napolitano to discuss the dumpster fire that was the 2024 U.S. national election. Recorded the day...
Dan Cannity is a returning voice on the podcast, a former co-chair of the Northampton Policing Review Commission and a regular presence in Northampton as a community advocate. Jeff Napolitano, also a returning guest and local political analyst, is a longtime western Massachusetts activist who has the distinct honor of being blocked by U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern on social media.]]>3564falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-33-veterans-for-peace-with-nick-mottern-martin-omasta-and-donovan-lee--62600052https://api.spreaker.com/episode/62600052Mon, 04 Nov 2024 00:58:32 +0000The ShoestringThis week, Shelby Lee is joined by a special guest co-host — Shoestring friend and former co-chair of the Northampton Policing Review Commission Dan Cannity — to have an important conversation about the U.S. military, its impact on the world, and the...4028falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-32-all-politics-is-local-with-vijay-prashad--62313906https://api.spreaker.com/episode/62313906Thu, 10 Oct 2024 15:10:43 +0000The ShoestringIn this week's episode of Trippin' on the Shoestring, co-hosts Shelby Lee and Dusty Christensen explore the connection between local politics in western Massachusetts and U.S. foreign policy, the consequences of which continue to roil the region....3297falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-31-podcasting-on-the-pvta--62046982https://api.spreaker.com/episode/62046982Fri, 20 Sep 2024 17:28:53 +0000The ShoestringOn this week’s episode, Trippin' on the Shoestring comes to you from Pioneer Valley Transit Authority bus R41 and bus stops in Easthampton, Holyoke, and Springfield in an effort to document the daily experience of navigating public transit in the...2178falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-30-crisis-response-with-earl-miller-and-sera-davidow--61040308
We sat down with two guests to talk about what is happening at the state level here in Massachusetts around these crisis response models. We were joined by Sera Davidow, an author, filmmaker, and director of the Wildflower Alliance – a national training and peer support organization rooted in harm reduction. We were also joined by Earl Miller, the director of community supports at Wildflower Alliance. He is the former director of the civilian-response department that began operations last year in the town of Amherst, the Community Responders for Equity, Safety, and Service, also known as CRESS. 
]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/61040308Thu, 15 Aug 2024 17:26:58 +0000The ShoestringTrippin’ on the Shoestring is back from vacation and ready to take on a heavy topic: how we as a society respond to those in our communities experiencing crisis. The police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis in 2020 renewed national calls for...
We sat down with two guests to talk about what is happening at the state level here in Massachusetts around these crisis response models. We were joined by Sera Davidow, an author, filmmaker, and director of the Wildflower Alliance – a national training and peer support organization rooted in harm reduction. We were also joined by Earl Miller, the director of community supports at Wildflower Alliance. He is the former director of the civilian-response department that began operations last year in the town of Amherst, the Community Responders for Equity, Safety, and Service, also known as CRESS. 
]]>4288falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-29-summer-break-recap-with-dusty-and-shelby--60789151https://api.spreaker.com/episode/60789151Thu, 25 Jul 2024 13:10:56 +0000The ShoestringIt's summer break! As our podcast hosts and producer take some time to recharge, our hosts Dusty Christensen and Shelby Lee look back on Trippin' on the Shoestring's year so far, bringing back clips from some of our favorite guest moments and sharing...1779falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-28-palestine-protest-and-police-repression-at-umass-amherst-with-kevin-young-and-max-greenberg--60374331
Co-hosts Shelby Lee and Dusty Christensen are joined by two guests this week: Kevin Young, a history professor at UMass Amherst, and Max Greenberg⁩, a PhD student in the university's economics department. Young is part of the group Faculty for Justice in Palestine and an elected leader in the university’s faculty union. He’s also part of the multi-union environmental coalition on campus, the Environmental and Social Action Movement. Greenberg is a union member with the Graduate Employee Organization, which represents grad-student workers on campus, and is part of the steering committee of the union’s Palestine Solidarity Caucus. He has also done organizing with the Western Mass Coalition for Palestine.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/60374331Thu, 13 Jun 2024 16:19:31 +0000The ShoestringIn this episode, we delve into the student-led, anti-war activism that has been building on campus at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. It’s a movement that has been around long before the school’s leadership called in the police to break up a...
Co-hosts Shelby Lee and Dusty Christensen are joined by two guests this week: Kevin Young, a history professor at UMass Amherst, and Max Greenberg⁩, a PhD student in the university's economics department. Young is part of the group Faculty for Justice in Palestine and an elected leader in the university’s faculty union. He’s also part of the multi-union environmental coalition on campus, the Environmental and Social Action Movement. Greenberg is a union member with the Graduate Employee Organization, which represents grad-student workers on campus, and is part of the steering committee of the union’s Palestine Solidarity Caucus. He has also done organizing with the Western Mass Coalition for Palestine.]]>3729falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-27-housing-hardship-with-rose-webster-smith-and-jean-frances--60216919https://api.spreaker.com/episode/60216919Thu, 30 May 2024 11:36:20 +0000The ShoestringWe have been away, out in the field, working on an important episode about the housing crisis facing western Massachusetts. First, in Easthampton we interviewed 81-year-old resident Jean Frances, who is facing a steep rent increase on a fixed income....3459falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-26-farms-floods-and-climate-change-with-alisa-klein-and-piyush-labhsetwar--59631858https://api.spreaker.com/episode/59631858Wed, 24 Apr 2024 15:18:11 +0000The ShoestringIn every month of 2023, average global temperatures exceeded 1.5 degrees celsius above pre-industrial levels. That’s a first, and it’s a tipping point that climate scientists have raised concerns about for years. The Connecticut River Valley is not...2663falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-25-paper-city-politics-with-israel-rivera--59416786https://api.spreaker.com/episode/59416786Thu, 11 Apr 2024 12:59:56 +0000The ShoestringThis week on Trippin’ on the Shoestring, cohosts Shelby Lee and Dusty Christensen talk politics in one of our most beloved cities here in western Mass: Holyoke. In recent years, it seems like there have been some big changes happening in the Paper...3339falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-24-trader-joe-s-united-with-jamie-edwards-and-maeg-yosef--59209673three retail giants moved to form the first-ever unions at their respective stores. It all began in July 2022, when employees at Trader Joe's became the first in the nation to unionize at the grocery chain, giving birth to the independent union Trader Joe’s United. And that sparked a nationwide movement to unionize other Trader Joe's. So far there have been three other successful union drives at Trader Joe's stores in Minnesota, California, and Kentucky. On this week's episode, Shelby and Dusty are joined by Jamie Edwards, who serves as the union’s president and has worked at the Hadley store for more than a decade, and Maeg Yosef, who is the communications director at Trader Joe’s United and has been a Hadley store employee since 2004.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/59209673Thu, 28 Mar 2024 16:36:57 +0000The ShoestringTrippin' on the Shoestring cohosts Shelby Lee and Dusty Christensen bring you a dispatch from one of the most important labor struggles happening in western Massachusetts and maybe even the country. Over the past two years, the town of Hadley — best...three retail giants moved to form the first-ever unions at their respective stores. It all began in July 2022, when employees at Trader Joe's became the first in the nation to unionize at the grocery chain, giving birth to the independent union Trader Joe’s United. And that sparked a nationwide movement to unionize other Trader Joe's. So far there have been three other successful union drives at Trader Joe's stores in Minnesota, California, and Kentucky. On this week's episode, Shelby and Dusty are joined by Jamie Edwards, who serves as the union’s president and has worked at the Hadley store for more than a decade, and Maeg Yosef, who is the communications director at Trader Joe’s United and has been a Hadley store employee since 2004.]]>3014falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-23-after-dark-with-dusty-and-shelby-sunshine-week--59044907https://api.spreaker.com/episode/59044907Thu, 14 Mar 2024 14:59:48 +0000The ShoestringJournalists and civic organizations around the country are currently taking part in Sunshine Week, a national collaboration dedicated to spotlighting just how important public records and open government are. So this week, Trippin’ on the Shoestring...2111falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-22-ceasefire-now-with-kaia-jackson-and-lemy-coffin--58826024https://api.spreaker.com/episode/58826024Mon, 26 Feb 2024 15:38:26 +0000The ShoestringOn Feb. 15, community members effectively occupied the Northampton City Council chambers, ultimately shutting the meeting down as they called on councilors to pass a ceasefire resolution amid Israel’s continued invasion and bombing campaign in Gaza....3258falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-21-statehouse-rock-with-lindsay-sabadosa--58685476
Produced by Ático Studios. Music by An Archaeologist.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/58685476Wed, 14 Feb 2024 15:43:01 +0000The ShoestringState Rep. Lindsay Sabadosa, D-Northampton, joins hosts Shelby Lee and Dusty Christensen to discuss her work in the state Legislature, including what bills our local lawmakers are working on and which ones are dying quiet deaths on Beacon Hill. Their...
Produced by Ático Studios. Music by An Archaeologist.]]>3425falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-20-city-council-chaos-with-jeff-napolitano--58514524
Produced by Ático Studios. Music by An Archaeologist.]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/58514524Wed, 31 Jan 2024 15:21:43 +0000The ShoestringOver the last few weeks, new City Council members have been sworn in across western Mass. And in a few cities, the first order of business was to fall immediately into disfucntion and bickering. This week, we bring you: City Council Chaos! Longtime...
Produced by Ático Studios. Music by An Archaeologist.]]>3701falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-19-rank-and-file-unionism-in-the-413-with-barbara-madeloni--58330173
To talk about reform efforts within unions, Trippin’ on the Shoestring is joined this week by Barbara Madeloni, a Northampton educator who has been at the center of a reform movement within the Massachusetts Teachers Association. A decade ago, she stunned our state’s political class when she won election as president of the MTA as part of a rank-and-file caucus within that union. She’s now a staff organizer at Labor Notes, helping workers build power and democracy in their own workplaces and unions.

In this episode, Madeloni talks with Shelby Lee and Dusty Christensen about the MTA’s progressive caucus, her election as union president, how the United Auto Workers strike can spark nationwide organizing, and how teachers unions statewide can provide examples for educators in the 413 to build more democratic schools.

Produced in Ático Studios. Music by An Archaeologist.
]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/58330173Wed, 17 Jan 2024 15:06:36 +0000The ShoestringLast year, the United States witnessed a surge in labor militancy as rank-and-file union members worked to transform the labor movement from within. Everyone from actors to auto workers went on strike, leading to more work stoppages involving 1,000 or...
To talk about reform efforts within unions, Trippin’ on the Shoestring is joined this week by Barbara Madeloni, a Northampton educator who has been at the center of a reform movement within the Massachusetts Teachers Association. A decade ago, she stunned our state’s political class when she won election as president of the MTA as part of a rank-and-file caucus within that union. She’s now a staff organizer at Labor Notes, helping workers build power and democracy in their own workplaces and unions.

In this episode, Madeloni talks with Shelby Lee and Dusty Christensen about the MTA’s progressive caucus, her election as union president, how the United Auto Workers strike can spark nationwide organizing, and how teachers unions statewide can provide examples for educators in the 413 to build more democratic schools.

Produced in Ático Studios. Music by An Archaeologist.
]]>2952falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-18-retrospective-chief-kasper-s-progressive-policing--58059005https://api.spreaker.com/episode/58059005Tue, 19 Dec 2023 15:36:22 +0000The ShoestringThe Shoestring co-founder Will Meyer joins hosts Dusty Christensen and Shelby Lee to discuss the legacy of Northampton Police Chief Jody Kasper, who officially stepped down from her post last week after 25 years at the Northampton Police Department to...2959falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-17-police-accountability-and-the-media--57729717https://api.spreaker.com/episode/57729717Mon, 20 Nov 2023 15:04:59 +0000The ShoestringSierra Dickey facilitates a live discussion of one of our core coverage areas: policing. Reporters Dusty Christensen and Shelby Lee are joined by Daniel Cannity of Northampton's Policing Review Commission to discuss the state of post-2020 transparency...4455falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-16-remembering-the-era-of-covid-spending-with-michael-hanson-and-lin-gen--56064751https://api.spreaker.com/episode/56064751Tue, 11 Jul 2023 18:58:11 +0000The ShoestringAs a follow up to our written series, The Long March 2020, editor Brian Zayatz speaks with Hadley musician Michael Hanson about the ways stimulus checks and expanded unemployment impacted both of their lives in 2020 and 2021. In the second part of the...2247falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-15-cookouts-and-cash-sheriff-nick-cocchi-s-campaign-warchest-with-dusty-christensen--52163876
Read the piece here.
https://theshoestring.org/2022/11/11/cookouts-and-cash-sheriff-nick-cocchi-raises-big-money-to-run-unopposed/

To contribute to The Shoestring
https://theshoestring.org/donate/]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/52163876Mon, 12 Dec 2022 16:35:50 +0000The ShoestringWe speak to writer Dusty Christensen about his latest piece on Sheriff Nick Cocchi's campaign fundraising. Cocchi raised more than any other sheriff in the state to run unopposed. We explore what this says about the politician's power and influence in...
Read the piece here.
https://theshoestring.org/2022/11/11/cookouts-and-cash-sheriff-nick-cocchi-raises-big-money-to-run-unopposed/

To contribute to The Shoestring
https://theshoestring.org/donate/]]>1757false115fullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-14-climate-justice-with-terry-gibson-and-basav-sen--52066970https://api.spreaker.com/episode/52066970Thu, 01 Dec 2022 14:08:07 +0000The ShoestringShoestring reporters Sierra Dickey and Sarah Robertson speak to Terry Gibson and Basav Sen about climate justice efforts in Springfield, MA and beyond and how those struggles overlap with struggles for police & prison abolition.2570climate,climatechange,climatejustice,justice,prisonabolition,springfieldma,theshoestringfalse114fullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-13-cathy-mcnally-on-taking-down-her-black-lives-matter-sign--51626667http://jaredkclemons.weebly.com/uploads/1/1/7/5/117532940/clemons_2022_-_from_freedom_now_to_blm.pdf]]>https://api.spreaker.com/episode/51626667Wed, 19 Oct 2022 21:06:14 +0000The ShoestringIn a new episode of Trippin on The Shoestring, co-editor Will spoke with Cathy McNally about why she took down her Black Lives Matter sign. To read the paper mentioned in the episode:...http://jaredkclemons.weebly.com/uploads/1/1/7/5/117532940/clemons_2022_-_from_freedom_now_to_blm.pdf]]>1883false113fullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-12-dash-cams-motorola-solutions-northampton-oh-my--48920492https://api.spreaker.com/episode/48920492Wed, 02 Mar 2022 11:02:40 +0000The ShoestringIn this episode we talk with defense attorneys Rachel Weber and Dana Goldblatt, Ben Brucato, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology and Criminology at Framingham University, and Chris K., a local anti-surveillance activist about...4457falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-11-covid-19-and-the-media-w-dr-steven-thrasher--48776627https://api.spreaker.com/episode/48776627Thu, 17 Feb 2022 21:24:41 +0000The ShoestringIn this episode we talk with Dr. Steven Thrasher, a professor of journalism at Northwestern University, and author of the upcoming book, The Viral Underclass. We discussed the responsibility of media during the COVID 19 pandemic and more. But first, a...3114falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-10-ten-forward-with-sarah-lanzilotta--48650357https://api.spreaker.com/episode/48650357Wed, 09 Feb 2022 02:09:32 +0000The ShoestringIn this episode we share an interview we conducted in January with Sarah Lanzilotta, the owner of Ten Forward in Greenfield, about the challenges faced by the independent music venue during the pandemic. But first, a quick update about what we're up...2410falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-9-investigative-reporter-dusty-christensen--48544827https://api.spreaker.com/episode/48544827Tue, 01 Feb 2022 21:29:52 +0000The ShoestringWe sit down with investigative reporter Dusty Christensen of the Daily Hampshire Gazette to discuss his recent work on the internal affairs of the Northampton Police Department.2530falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/ep-8-covid-data-and-its-discontents-w-joe-pater--46588366https://api.spreaker.com/episode/46588366Sun, 19 Sep 2021 12:13:10 +0000The ShoestringThe Shoestring's Covid data columnist Joe Pater joins us to discuss how public information about the virus has been disseminated and how it hasn't. He compares the local response to that in his home town in Ontario, exposing the scattershot standards...1314falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/trippin-on-the-shoestring-ep-7-the-future-of-local-media-w-victor-pickard--44721992https://api.spreaker.com/episode/44721992Sun, 09 May 2021 17:05:52 +0000The ShoestringThe Shoestring talks with media scholar Victor Pickard about the failure of advertising revenue to fund local journalism, the need for publicly funded local media, and the case for media cooperatives.1886falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/trippin-on-the-shoestring-ep-6-who-does-servicenet-serve--44278536https://api.spreaker.com/episode/44278536Fri, 09 Apr 2021 23:09:22 +0000The ShoestringWe talk with Shoestring staff writer and labor correspondent Roman Nicholas about his recent expose on ServiceNet. In the piece, Nicholas spoke to shelter workers about the union bargaining process for better wages, high turnover, and staff burnout,...2007falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/trippin-on-the-shoestring-ep-5-officer-andrew-kohl--43864408https://api.spreaker.com/episode/43864408Sat, 13 Mar 2021 01:28:54 +0000The ShoestringWe talk with Molly Keller about her research on Northampton Police Department Officer Andrew Kohl who was recently featured in our Northampton Police Misconduct Trading Card series.2142falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/trippin-on-the-shoestring-ep-4-organizing-small-business-in-the-valley--43308784https://api.spreaker.com/episode/43308784Fri, 05 Feb 2021 20:53:14 +0000The ShoestringIn this episode we talk with our labor beat correspondent R. Nicholas about workers and the process and challenges of organizing small businesses in the valley.2498falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/trippin-on-the-shoestring-ep-3-disappearing-ink--43069479https://api.spreaker.com/episode/43069479Fri, 22 Jan 2021 20:48:46 +0000The ShoestringWe invited former Daily Hampshire Gazette reporter and frequent Shoestring and Montague Reporter contributor Sarah Robertson to discuss the state of local news in the valley in this recurring series of discussions we are calling "Disappearing Ink."2156falsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/trippin-on-the-shoestring-ep-2-northampton-city-council--42333944https://api.spreaker.com/episode/42333944Sat, 05 Dec 2020 19:24:00 +0000The ShoestringThe Shoestring has reported on over 50 Northampton City Council meetings in its regularly occurring column "I Go to City Council Meetings." Columnists Jules Marsh and Brian Zayatz along with the editorial team, reflect on what they have learned from...3029citycouncil,mapoli,masspoli,northamptoncitycouncilfalsefullhttps://www.spreaker.com/episode/trippin-on-the-shoestring-ep-1-lt-alan-borowski--41901149https://api.spreaker.com/episode/41901149Tue, 10 Nov 2020 14:46:35 +0000The Shoestring2667falsefull