While the COVID-19 pandemic and remote schooling created difficulties for the KYUK Media Ready interns, it did not stop them from creating award-winning radio content. On May 9, NPR announced that KYUK interns Kaylee King of Mekoryuk, Jamin Crow of Bethel, and Ethan Lincoln of Toksook Bay were selected as finalists in the 2021 NPR Student Podcast Challenge. The interns’ podcast, titled “Y-K Delta,” was chosen as a top 15 finalist from over 2,600 submissions.
The students’ podcast documents life during the pandemic, and how remote schooling offered more time for subsistence. The students share stories about hunting moose and interview family members, emphasizing the bright side of life amid a pandemic.
A panel of 10 NPR contributors judged the Student Podcast Challenge based on criteria that included “information and structure, personality and creativity, and production.” Contest guidelines required that all content in the podcast, everything from the recording to background noises and music, be produced by students. King edited the podcast independently, and recorded original guitar music for the piece.
As the three interns prepare for their high school graduations this weekend, they will also be waiting to hear whether their podcast was chosen as one of the two grand-prize winners. NPR expects to announce the winners of this year’s competition this week.
