Expanding OPB’s Southwest Washington bureau: Better serving the public at a critical time

Since its founding in 2014, our Southwest Washington reporting bureau has been staffed by a single correspondent. Now, we aim to deepen our coverage with a new position reporting on the Vancouver area and beyond.

Expanding our coverage

With this new reporting position, OPB will be able to keep a closer eye on developments across the area, especially city and county meetings. This coverage of daily happenings will provide breathing space for our bureau chief to focus on deeper enterprise stories all across Southwest Washington.

The expanded bureau will also bring broader perspective to issues that impact people in both Washington and Oregon, such as the I-5 bridge project or how housing policies affect communities in each state.

Together, this larger bureau will be able to tackle stories from all corners of the region, such as our reporting on the unconventional sheriff of Pacific County who lacks a law enforcement background.

Building on the success of the bureau

This expanded reporting will build on a track record of success since OPB launched the bureau.

The founding reporter, Conrad Wilson, covered emerging issues such as oil terminals and now serves as OPB’s lead reporter on criminal justice and the courts. He was followed by Molly Solomon who broke important stories such as a non-inclusive working environment at Clark College.

Troy Brynelson has continued strong reporting on a wide range of issues, including unearthing new information about congressional candidate Joe Kent’s employment history.

Capturing portraits of community life

Beyond hard news coverage, audiences will gain more slice-of-life stories from Vancouver and beyond. This unique blend of in-depth public service journalism with rich portraits of regional life is a hallmark of OPB and is keeping with our mission:

“Connecting people across Oregon and the Pacific Northwest through the power of a shared story.”

Meeting audiences where they are

The new reporter’s stories will inform and engage audiences in numerous ways, including:

• In print and audio stories on opb.org and the OPB News app.
• In conversation on our weekday radio shows like “Think Out Loud®,” “Morning Edition” and “All Things Considered.”
• On OPB podcasts such as “The Evergreen” and “OPB Politics Now.”
• On social media, where we share visual stories and more on platforms like Instagram.
• Sharing stories with newspapers, public media organizations and other media outlets across the Pacific Northwest.
• Sharing with NPR and PBS NewsHour when a story has national significance.

Contact Us

Get in touch to learn how you can help support this effort.

Cheryl Ikemiya

Vice President and Chief Development Officer

cikemiya@opb.org | (503) 293-4162

Jordan Anderson

Director, Grants & Strategic Initiatives

janderson@opb.org | (503) 445-1858