KYUK has been honored with two national awards from the Public Media Journalists Association (PMJA) for work completed in 2023.
KYUK received first place for Investigative Reporting for the series “Lost in Translation,” on unintelligible disaster relief information in the wake of Typhoon Merbok. Listen to or read the series here:
A California-based translation company was paid to translate documents into Yup'ik and Iñupiaq, but failed to do it accurately.
A translation service company that contracted with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to offer disaster relief information to Alaska Natives will reimburse the federal agency for work that has been deemed indecipherable.
Joining us for “Coffee at KYUK” today are Emily Schwing and Rashah McChesney. They are both here to talk about Schwing’s coverage of translation issues with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)’s outreach to those in our region impacted by Typhoon Merbok.
Anyone impacted by Typhoon Merbok who has not already applied for federal assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency can still apply, but the process is unclear and the agency’s deadline is tight.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties is investigating whether there are systemic problems with the way FEMA works with Alaska’s Indigenous communities.
KYUK also received second place for Use of Sound for the story “New ‘Fire Lab’ helps train Bethel firefighters to respond to blazes,” on Bethel’s fire response training facility. Listen to the story here:
There are shipping containers stacked all over Bethel, but the three stacked containers on a lot next to Bethel’s dog pound and the city's sewage lagoon aren’t like any others.They’re meant to be set on fire.
These national awards reflect KYUK’s commitment to the people we live with and serve on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. Our reporting would not be possible without the support and collaboration of our fellow community members – we share these awards with you. Quyana.
