Press Contacts:
Blake Zidell – StoryCorps
blake@blakezidell.com
917.572.2493
Christina Kuzmych – Wyoming Public Media
ckuzmych@uwyo.edu
307.766.4241
June 9, 2022 – Wyoming Public Media will host StoryCorps in Cheyenne, Wyoming this July. StoryCorps, the national nonprofit organization dedicated to recording, preserving, and sharing the stories of people from all backgrounds and beliefs, announces its 2022 Military Voices initiative tour, made possible by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and undertaken in partnership with veteran service organizations (VSOs) across the country. This spring and summer, StoryCorps will honor veterans and members of the military community by gathering and preserving their stories. The organization will offer both in-person and virtual recording opportunities.
Millions of American men and women have served in the armed services, while their family members have stood behind them at home. The military community knows well the challenges of multiple deployments, combat injuries, and long-awaited homecomings, yet few civilians have been exposed to the unique challenges.
“Veterans and their families make an invaluable contribution to our country through their courage and sacrifice. The Military Voices initiative aims to honor them by recording, amplifying, and preserving their stories,” said Dave Isay, Founder and President of StoryCorps.
The 2022 Military Voices Tour will visit Washington, D.C., Hilo and O’ahu, Hawaii, and Cheyenne, Wyoming from July 18-29. In each location, StoryCorps will partner with a local public radio station, which will air a selection of the interviews recorded and, in many cases, create special programs around the project. In addition, virtual listening events will be held locally, to give civilians opportunities to engage with veterans and service members in their communities.
The 2022 Military Voices visit to Cheyenne marks the fourth StoryCorps visit to Wyoming. Wyoming Public Media is proud to partner with this initiative that highlights the voices of Wyomingites.WPM General Manager, Christina Kuzmych
Since its launch in 2012, the Military Voices Initiative has gathered over 2,800 of these stories. With participant permission, the recordings are preserved for posterity in the StoryCorps Archive at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress, an unparalleled world resource for over two-hundred years. This year, the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress will host the culminating listening event of the 2022 Military Voices tour, where stories from the Military Voices Initiative will be presented alongside interviews from the Veterans History Project. Participants from all three tour locations, and members of the general public, are invited to this hybrid virtual and in-person event. Additionally, StoryCorps may share edited versions of interviews collected throughout the tour via its NPR broadcasts, podcast, animated shorts, and digital platforms. Reservations are free and available to the public, and can be booked online at storycorps.org/military-voices.
StoryCorps fosters an environment of comfort and intimacy for its interviews, with a trained facilitator guiding participants throughout the process. For those who choose to record virtually, the interview process and experience will be conducted via StoryCorps Virtual, a browser-based platform that allows both participants to see and hear one another during their conversation, which is guided remotely by a facilitator. After each 40-minute recording session, participants receive a complimentary copy of their interview, and a second copy is archived at the Library of Congress with the participant’s permission.
StoryCorps will honor veterans and members of the military community by gathering and preserving their stories. The organization will offer both in-person and virtual recording opportunities July 18th-29th at the Botanic Gardens in Cheyenne. We invite you to reserve a virtual or in-person recording session with a military member in your life this summer, or invite a service member to share theirs and reserve a time slot now through this secure scheduling link.
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About StoryCorps
Founded in 2003, StoryCorps has given nearly 600,000 people, in all 50 states, the chance to record interviews about their lives. The award-winning organization preserves the recordings in its archive at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress, the largest single collection of human voices ever gathered, and shares select stories with the public through StoryCorps’ podcast, NPR broadcasts, animated shorts, digital platforms, and best-selling books. Learn more at storycorps.org.
About CPB
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private, nonprofit corporation created by Congress in 1967, is the steward of the federal government’s investment in public broadcasting. It helps support the operations of more than 1,500 locally managed and operated public television and radio stations nationwide. CPB is also the largest single source of funding for research, technology and program development for public radio, television and related online services. For more information, visit cpb.org, follow on Twitter@CPBmedia, Facebook and LinkedIn and subscribe for email updates.
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About Wyoming Public Media
Wyoming Public Media (WPM) is Wyoming's public radio/media statewide network operating four FM channels and online services. Its Wyoming Public Radio (WPR) FM signal alone reaches approximately 95 percent of the state and is heard by over 70,000 Wyomingites. Online content is accessed by over 1.2 million unique visitors annually. It is the NPR affiliate for Wyoming and licensed to the University of Wyoming as a statewide public service.
WPM's mission is to connect Wyoming through programming that informs, inspires, and educates. Its objectives are to 1) encourage lifelong learning, 2) foster interest and participation in community, national, and world affairs, and 3) reflect Wyoming's and America's culture and heritage.
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Wyoming Public Media is a service of the University of Wyoming.
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