A member of Nashville Public Radio’s Emerging Voices Fellowship, Damon Mitchell hit the ground running in late December, and he’s covered a variety of stories and brought important community voices on the air. He’s covered education from a community perspective, connecting the city’s budget woes to what happens in classrooms, and documented the tumultuous shift from classroom to remote learning. Significantly, Mitchell has reported crucial stories from Nashville’s Black community, like how artists use their work as a form of protest. In April, he spotlighted a grassroots program to train Black women to become doulas and thus ameliorate racial disparities in pregnancy care. Mitchell was on the ground the morning after the tornado hit in March, interviewing business owners in North Nashville. He is also responsible for my favorite moment in Nashville media this year — he interviewed the typically press-shy civil rights icon Diane Nash. Damon, we’re glad to have you. ERICA CICCARONE
Best New Voice in Media
WPLN’s Damon Mitchell
