USC Annenberg Radio News

Live news shows are webcast on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 4:00pm-4:20pm.

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Tuesday
Thursday

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Annenberg Radio News Staff
Click here for staff bios

Fall 2008 Producers:
Tuesday Producer:
Jean-Luc Renault

Thursday Producer:
Kaitlin Funaro

Fall 2008 Hosts:
Tuesday Host:
Brian Frank

Thursday Host:
Lata Pandya

Faculty Advisor:
Willa Seidenberg

Production Supervisor:
Billy Higgins

Current ARN theme music composed and produced by Andy Sternberg (M.A. Journalism 2007).

Additional student music composed and produced by Ben Thompkins (B.S. Music Industry 2008).

Welcome to Annenberg Radio News, a website and live webcast news show committed to fostering professional radio journalism at the University of Southern California. Our live webcasts take place on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons at 4:00pm-4:15pm. The ARN website also features webcasts from the previous week as well as archived stories and features from current and past semesters. Primary staffing for Annenberg Radio News comes from the JOUR 409 and JOUR 425 radio production classes, but we also have a multitude of Journalism student volunteers that work hard to help make our live newscast the best it can be. Thanks for listening!

Staff Bios

Kaitlin Funaro

Kaitlin Funaro is a first year graduate student in specializing in online journalism. She has previously worked as a reporter for Annenberg Radio News and is currently working with veteran NPR producer Sandy Tolan. Like all good reporters, her bachelor's degree is in something totally unrelated, Art History. She hopes to produce for radio and eventually work with USAID, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, or any international aid program as a multimedia producer and journalist.

Stories:
California budget woes
Religious questions with Reverend Peter Kreitler
Schwarzenegger asks Californians to buy bonds
Youth violence
LA Times reporter dispute
High-speed rail
Interview with San Diego relief effort volunteer

Laura Weber

Laura Weber is a second year graduate student at Annenberg. She's a self-professed public radio junkie who mainlines All Things Considered and This American Life. She also enjoys Detroit, hip-hop and Detroit hip-hop. She doesn't enjoy Matt Mundy's taste in hip-hop, on account of its unparalleled and daunting excellence. Laura graduated with a B.A. in English Literature from Michigan State University in 2004. After graduating, she was hard-pressed to find classified ads "Seeking English Major to write next great American novel," thus relegating her to the annals of world-wary post-collegiate cynics. Now that she's back in school, Laura doesn't like to consider herself a professional student... but she's pretty darn good at it. You can most likely find her pursuing a PhD. this time next year.

Stories:
A Place Called Home: South Los Angeles enrichment program
Education Solutions in Los Angeles
Obama’s speech “A work of genius”
Defending the defenseless
Bernard Parks speaks about area violence
Interview: Safety of Public Parks
Michael Whitman Interview - Third Planet Energy
Interview with Professor Raphael Bostic on the National Foreclosure Crisis
Interview with Dan Rather

Hannah Kim

Hannah Kim is a second-year print journalism student at USC. Growing up in Southern California, she grew up listening to KNX1070 traffic reports on the radio. This is her first semester at Annenberg Radio News where she works as the PA on the Tuesday edition of ARN. Hannah is also on staff at the Daily Trojan as a copy editor, where she was also a writer for the past two semesters.

Stories:
Google Apps might lack security
Arlington West remembers American soldiers
Councilman Bernard Parks stumps on election day
Cities in Los Angeles County District 2
New Nader office to promote awareness
Street theater protest
ACLU immigration asylum victory
City unveils clean technology manufacturing site
Officials endorse Proposition A
Tax Day
Border Fence
LAPD Suicide Rates

Ryan McAllister

Ryan McAllister is a junior majoring in public relations and international relations at USC. Ryan was born and raised in Normal, Illinois, and graduated as a 2005 class valedictorian at Normal Community West High School. Ryan is a proud member of the Trojan Knights, Troy Camp and works part-time at the USC Career Planning & Placement Center. His journalistic interests include international affairs, U.S. politics and sports at all levels. He has previously interned with the Office of Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, and hopes to one day pursue a career as a U.S. Foreign Service Officer. Ryan loves to play tennis, golf, watch sports and travel.

Stories:
NFL back in L.A.?

Kelly Kidwell

Kelly Kidwell is a junior at USC majorig in Print Journalism and History. This is her second semester working with Annenberg Radio News. She has also worked with Annenberg Television News and the Daily Trojan. When she's not writing and reporting she enjoys spending time with her sisters in Alpha Chi Omega.

Stories:

Camille Mann

Camille Mann is a sophomore majoring in print journalism and it is her first semester working at Annenberg Radio News. Camille hails from the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area where she interned at USA Today her junior year in high school, which helped her decide to study journalism in college. Camille is currently a member of Gamma Phi Beta where she is the Athletics Chair. When Camille is not studying, she loves playing soccer.

Stories:

Jonathan Horn

Jonathan Horn is a first-year graduate student in Broadcast Journalism. A San Diego native, Jon can never get too much Southern California sun. He spent his college years studying Communication at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where he also called several Gaucho sports on the campus radio station. Not wanting to leave this region, he decided to continue his journalistic endeavors at USC, which he hopes will springboard his career to the network sportscasting level. He can now be heard calling play-by-play for the Trojan Women's Basketball team's road games, and, of course, on Annenberg Radio News.

Stories:
Two very different auto shows
Prop Eight fight not over
Home foreclosures
The debate over Prop 5
Passing the naturalization test
Skid Row march

Daryl Paranada

Daryl Paranada is a second-year graduate student majoring in print journalism at USC. Born and raised in the lovely Bay Area, Daryl received his B.A. from the University of California, Davis, majoring in English and Communications. He has held a number of internship positions at various newspapers in California and spent this past summer in Cape Town, South Africa, working for the Cape Argus Tonight. After graduating from USC, he hopes to land a job at a magazine and eventually become an editor (while writing novels on the side). In the two or so hours he is not busy working on projects for school, he enjoys listening to music, hanging out with his friends and writing.

Stories:
Community activists to city leaders: Invest in youth programs
Remembering Armenian Genocide
Laborers march to fight for good jobs
South LA residents react to a plan for a new park
Community gathers to honor King’s legacy with moratorium
Celebrating April Fool’s Day
Reflections on race in the ‘08 campaign
Exhibit displays real human body parts
County-wide coalition rallies against education funding cuts
Taking a ride on the bus ride
Valentine, Arnold Style
Mortgage Relief With Project Lifeline
National Black HIV and AIDS Awareness Day

Courtney Kabot

Courtney Kabot is a first-year broadcast journalism graduate student at USC Annenberg. Currently she's hosting the Annenberg Radio News Thursday show. Last semester she volunteered as a writer/shooter/editor for Annenberg TV News. Courtney received her B.S. in Communications at James Madison University in 2005. After college, she moved to Washington, D.C. where she job-hopped from public relations to business development to political consulting. After a summer of backpacking around Europe, Courtney packed up her Honda Civic and drove cross country in hopes of pursuing a more fulfilling life and career. She is happy to be part of the Trojan family and aspires to work for CNN in the (near) future.

Stories:
Courtney Kabot talks with L.A. County Supervisor Yvonne Burke
Talking with Ralph Fertig about affordable housing in Los Angeles
Interview with Washington Post investigative reporters Dana Priest and Anne Hull
Alec Levenson host interview
Jean Ross host interview
T.C. Boyle interview
Interview with transit expert Lisa Schweitzer

David de Sola

David de Sola is a second-year graduate student. Originally from El Salvador, David has also lived, studied, and worked in the United States, Holland, and Italy. David is working on a degree in print journalism and also volunteers as a reporter for Annenberg TV News. He has a B.A. in history from Tufts University and moved to Washington DC after graduation. He decided to try his luck as a member of the Fourth Estate and eventually wound up working at CNN's Washington bureau. His journalism role models are Bob Woodward, Seymour Hersh, James Risen, and the 60 Minutes team. During his free time, David enjoys reading, playing guitar, traveling, and listening to his iPod (current favorites: Interpol, Dire Straits, Chemical Brothers, and Nine Inch Nails). He eventually hopes to work as a political, investigative, or foreign correspondent for a major news organization.

Stories:
Organizations celebrate May Day
Latino Catholics
Immigration raids
Gang Politics
Car wash
Mayor budget
Homicides in South Los Angeles
Bus stop shooting
Taxes and stimulus package
Becerra Politics Interview
Gang Proposal
Racial profiling allegations against L.A. County Sheriff’s Deputies

Marissa Monroy

Marissa Monroy is a second-year graduate student studying Broadcast Journalism. She enjoys long walks in the rain, sports and naps in all their glory. She currently works as a multimedia reporter for Pop + Politics and recently finished producing two mini-documentaries. The majority of Marissa's media experience is in television news, most recently as a producer for The Associated Press. However, she is looking forward to many long afternoons in the radio booth. Although she graduated from Notre Dame, Marissa has enjoyed becoming a part of the Trojan news teams. Being the news junkie that she is, Marissa enjoys keeping tabs on the rest of the world. This comes in handy since she's far, far away from her home sweet Texas home.

Stories:
City Budget

Emily Henry

Stories:
LA Riots - 16 Years Later

Brian Sica

Brian Sica is a first-year journalism student at USC. He grew up in Bronxville, NY, and hopes to enter the field of journalism in the future. He is a sports enthusiast and loves playing pick-up soccer, baseball, golf and paintballing whenever he gets a chance.

Stories:
How to make L.A. County better
Dodger Stadium renovations
What people think about Dodger Stadium
What people think
South L.A. residents react to recent homicides
What will you do with your tax rebate?
Yvonne Burke endorses Bernard Parks for supervisor

Katherine Riese

Katie is finishing her master's at Annenberg and currently serves as the Tuesday producer for ARN. She's majoring in Broadcast Journalism, minoring in communication law and media policy, and concurrently pursuing a master's in Online Journalism. When she's not at radio, you can find Katie Executive Producing or directing for Annenberg TV News or giving tours as an Annenberg Ambassador. Originally from the Eastside of Seattle, Katie loves boating, watching Grey's Anatomy, baking with her roommates, and taking trips to Orange County. Ultimately, Katie would love to produce for either a daily news show or a newsmagazine.

Stories:
Hip Hop High

Sonata Lee

Sonata Lee is a second-year broadcast journalism grad student from Harbor City, CA. She received her B.A. degree from Xavier University of Louisiana where she majored in mass communications with a minor in English. From selling lingerie to greeting Price is Right contestants, Sonata has worked many jobs on her way to Annenberg. Since entering grad school, she's worked as a reporter for Bush Radio in Cape Town, South Africa and interned at KPCC's Patt Morrison and NPR's News & Notes. Sonata enjoys covering social justice issues and going to spinning class.

Stories:
LA Riots Retrospective
USC Social Work students make recommendations for affordable housing
Mayor unveils his new gang fighting strategy
Labor community conference
Family of gunned down teen asks for tougher laws for illegal immigrants
Pico beautification
Book fraud
Jamiel Shaw Shooting
Million word challenge
Green Jobs

Natasha Chen

Natasha is a Dean's Scholar in the broadcast journalism graduate program and is currently the supervising producer of Impact, USC's student-produced television news magazine show. A native of the San Francisco Bay Area, Chen received a B.A. in psychology from Stanford University in 2006, with a minor in creative writing. In college, her passions included singing in an a cappella group and making student films. Chen continued to pursue her interest in visual storytelling at internships ranging from "America's Next Top Model" to Associated Press Television News in Hong Kong. She was part of Impact's senior producing team that placed at the College TV Awards in March 2007.

Stories:
Clinton on Super Tuesday

Lilly Fowler

Stories:
Jessica: Did her decision to become an egg donor prove fatal?

Dan Bence