Wyoming Public Radio Wins Two National PRNDI Awards

Wyoming Public Radio (WPR) recently won two national first-place awards from Public Radio News Directors Inc. (PRNDI) during the organization’s conference in Philadelphia.

WPR reporter Melodie Edwards won first place for Best Use of Sound in Division B, which recognizes stations with news staff sizes between 4-7 people. The program HumaNature also won first place in Division B for Best Station Podcast.

Edwards won the award for her piece “Archeologists Race to Find Artifacts Melting Out of Mountain Ice Fields.”

“This was excellent storytelling by Melodie. It was a story about climate, the loss of our historic past and concerns about the future all into one,” says WPR News Director Bob Beck. “The sound took you there and painted an incredible picture. She has always done an amazing job with sound, and this may have been her finest effort.”

It is the second straight year that WPR has won a first-place PRNDI award for Best Use of Sound.

“We have had a lot of success against stations in much larger markets. It’s a credit to the station and the staff for the good work we put out year after year,” Beck adds.

HumaNature’s winning podcast episode, “Through the Keyhole,” tells the story of a man who struggles with thoughts of suicide and who has a perspective-altering encounter while climbing Longs Peak in Rocky Mountain National Park.

“We knew we had a remarkable story with ‘Through the Keyhole,’ but it is validating to be recognized by our peers in public radio,” says cultural affairs and production Director Micah Schweizer, who oversees the production of HumaNature. “We set out to create a podcast that brings a Wyoming ethos to a national audience, and this award is an affirmation of that effort.”

HumaNature also received a second-place PRNDI award for Best Station Podcast in 2016. Since 2004, WPR has won 35 PRNDI awards.