“We are thrilled to be part of this innovative storytelling initiative spearheaded by AIR and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting,” says Davia Nelson. “There are so many stories to tell here, and we’re excited to showcase the amazing thinkers, innovators, and neighborhood artisans who make the Bay Area such a remarkable place in which to live and work.”
“KQED audiences are curious, inventive and engaged members of their communities,” states Vice President and General Manager for KQED Public Radio, Jo Anne Wallace. “We know that many in the Bay Area will be delighted to hear Localore stories on air or online, and also will be interested in sharing their own stories with the project. The Kitchen Sisters, Davia and Nikki, and KQED have collaborated over many years, and we are thrilled to be working with them again. We think this new program has the potential to engage different generations of people in our community, as producers and listeners, in the future of public radio and public media.”
Localore is a $2 million initiative produced by Boston-based AIR, with more than $1 million in funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting directed to support the Localore teams at public radio and television stations for up to one year. Lead producers are tasked with bringing their ingenuity to crafting journalism projects that blend digital and broadcast technology, and "go outside" public media's core platforms and traditional audiences. With guidance from a distinguished selection committee, AIR chose from proposals submitted to an open call, including 61 media shorts produced by a diverse range of public radio and television stations and posted to the unprecedented Localore “Station Runway.” The competition sparked broad interest, drawing nearly 7,500 unique visitors to Localore.net since mid-September.
ABOUT KQED
KQED Inc. has served Northern California for more than 50 years and is affiliated with NPR and PBS. KQED owns and operates KQED Public Radio (88.5 FM San Francisco and 89.3 FM Sacramento); the interactive platforms kqed.org and KQEDnews.org; KQED Education; and public television stations KQED 9 (San Francisco/Bay Area), KQED Plus (San Jose/Bay Area) and KQET 25 (Watsonville/Monterey).
KQED Public Radio, home to Forum, KQED News and The California Report, is the most-listened-to public radio station in the nation, and the top-rated radio station—public or commercial—in the San Francisco Bay Area. Its award-winning local news and public affairs program service delivers newscasts, news features, and long-form newsmagazine and talk programs and documentary specials. Approximately 20 percent of KQED Public Radio’s weekly broadcast schedule is locally produced, with the remaining hours provided by NPR, APM (American Public Media), PRI (Public Radio International), PRX, the BBC, and others.
ABOUT THE KITCHEN SISTERS:
The Kitchen Sisters, Davia Nelson & Nikki Silva, are producers of the duPont-Columbia Award-winning and James Beard Award-nominated NPR series Hidden Kitchens, and the two Peabody Award-winning NPR series, Lost & Found Sound and The Sonic Memorial Project. Hidden Kitchens, heard on Morning Edition, explores the world of secret, unexpected, below the radar cooking across America — how communities come together through food. The series inspired the Kitchen Sisters’ first book, Hidden Kitchens: Stories, Recipes, and More from NPR’s The Kitchen Sisters, a New York Times Notable Book of the Year for 2005 and nominated for a James Beard Award for Best Writing on Food.
The most recent work by the Kitchen Sisters includes the radio special Hidden Kitchens Texas, narrated by Willie Nelson, which was nominated for a James Beard Award and was the inspiration for their second book, Hidden Kitchens Texas: Stories, Recipes and More from the Lone Star State, and and the radio series Cry Me a River, a portrait of three pioneering river activists and the damming of wild rivers in the West, that aired as part of the series, Stories from the Heart of the Land.
The Kitchen Sisters began their radio work producing a weekly live radio program in the late 70’s on KUSP-FM in Santa Cruz, California. Their radio documentaries have been featured on NPR’s All Things Considered and Morning Edition, the BBC, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Radio Smithsonian, California Public Radio, Pacifica Radio, Soundprint, and others. Other noted Kitchen Sisters stories include: Waiting for Joe DiMaggio, The Nights of Edith Piaf, Carmen Miranda: The Life and Times of the Brazilian Bombshell, WHER: 1000 Beautiful Watts, Guillermo Cabrera Infante: Memories of an Invented City, Tupperware, The Road Ranger, and War and Separation.
The Kitchen Sisters also are involved in educating and training new voices for public media in an imaginative, artistic and creative approach to storytelling. They teach at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism and frequently lecture and provide training at universities, festivals, workshops, radio stations, public forums and events throughout the country. They also train and work with interns, college students, and youth radio apprentices and participate in the life of the public radio community throughout the country. In addition to producing radio, Davia Nelson is also a screenwriter and casting director. She lives in San Francisco. Nikki Silva is also a museum curator and exhibit consultant. She lives with her family on a commune in Santa Cruz, California.
