On this episode Mark Simon was joined by Dr. Ken Schneck. Ken is the founding editor of The Buckeye Flame, Ohio's LGBTQ+ newsroom. He's written for many prominent publications, including The Huffington Post and The Advocate. He also was a tenured professor at Baldwin-Wallace, a book author, a public speaker, and a former syndicated radio show host. And he's a board member for NLGJA- the association of LGBTQ journalists. I hope that covers everything.

He's a 1999 grad of NYU with a masters there and a doctorate from Fordham and was formerly a college administrator. And we should have interviewed him a long time ago.

Ken talked about why The Buckeye Flame exists and what its purpose is. He shared examples of some of the things that he's written about, talked about his approach to teaching, explained how he managed his mental health, and much more.

Ken's salute: Queer Kentucky

Article Examples

Taking a call from his high school bully

https://thebuckeyeflame.com/2020/07/06/my-high-school-bully-just-called-me-25-years-later/

School board defeats anti-LGBTQ+ legislation

https://thebuckeyeflame.com/2023/03/24/ohio-school-board-defeats-anti-lgbtq-resolution/

The 2026 Pride Guide

https://thebuckeyeflame.com/2026/06/04/2026-ohio-lgbtq-pride-guide/

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On this episode Mark Simon was joined by José Ralat. José is the taco editor, yes, the taco editor, for Texas Monthly magazine. He is the author of American Tacos: A History & Guide. Ralat is a two-time winning editor of a James Beard Award, which is foodwriting's most prestigious honor.

He is a graduate of St. Andrews Presbyterian College.

José explained what he does as a taco editor and why it's important that the magazine has one. He shared how he covers food and stories related to it by traveling across the entire state of Texas. He talked about how covering this beat also means covering immigration-related stories and detailed his own experiences with ICE. He also discussed how he manages his epilepsy and his mental health in what is a difficult time in his state.

Jose's salutes: National Association of Hispanic Journalists and Javier Cabral of L.A. Taco.

José's website

https://joseralat.net/

José's story on the Missions

https://www.texasmonthly.com/travel/forgotten-old-missions-texas-history/

José's story on the Smashburger Taco

https://www.texasmonthly.com/food/smash-burger-taco-history/

José's Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/tacotrailofficial/

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You can find all our episode guides for teachers and professors here,

Please support your local public radio station: adoptastation.org

Thank you for listening. You can e-mail me at journalismsalute@gmail.com

Visit our website: thejournalismsalute.org

Mark Simon’s website MarkSimonmedia.com

Mark Simon's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-simon-92355124/

On this episode we're joined by Nicole Carr.

Nicole is a journalism professor at Morehouse College and author of the new book, The Price of Exclusion, The Pursuit of Healthcare in a Segregated Nation.

She's previously been a TV reporter in North Carolina, and in Atlanta, where she won four Emmys. And she was an investigative reporter for ProPublica.

Nicole has a degree in mass communications from Winston Salem State, a masters from Syracuse, and is currently studying for a doctorate at Clark-Atlanta University.

Nicole talked about her book writing journey and why she wrote it. She explained how she linked past to present with the story of her great grandfather's becoming a doctor and his work as one, in conjunction with an explanation about the shortage of Black doctors in America. She provided tips for those interviewing people "in the fourth quarter of their lives" and explained how a cold e-mail to Kamala Harris' father led to a gold mine of information.

We also talked about an article Nicole wrote for ProPublica about a school administrator from Maryland who took a new job in Georgia and was promptly chased out of town by overzealous anti-Critical Race Theory parents.

If you were a fan of the Longform podcast, I think you'll like the approach we took in this episode.

Link to Nicole's book

https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-price-of-exclusion-nicole-carr

Nicole's ProPublica story

https://www.propublica.org/article/georgia-dei-crt-schools-parents

Nicole on the importance of the Black Press

https://theemancipator.org/2024/11/09/topics/movements/the-black-press-democratized-america/

Nicole's salute: Ida B. Wells Society for Investigative Reporting & The Committee to Protect Journalists

Nicole's book recommendations: Caste, The Origin of Our Discontent & The Warmth of Other Suns (Isabel Wilkerson), How The Word Is Passed (Clint Smith)

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You can find all our episode guides for teachers and professors here,

Please support your local public radio station: adoptastation.org

Thank you for listening. You can e-mail me at journalismsalute@gmail.com

Visit our website: thejournalismsalute.org

Mark Simon’s website MarkSimonmedia.com

Mark Simon's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-simon-92355124/