A reporter from the Connecticut Mirror takes a new approach to telling stories in an underserved community often wary of the media.

WSHU’s Ebong Udoma spoke with CT Mirror’s Reginald David to discuss his role as the CT Mirror’s Community Engagement Reporter focused on Bridgeport as part of the collaborative podcast Long Story Short.

WSHU: Hello, Reginald. What does community engagement mean?

RD: I would say, for me, community engagement means journalism that’s built with the community. I feel a lot of times, you know, the traditional reporter usually goes in with a story idea, but as a community engagement reporter, my approach is a little bit different. I like to go into communities and neighborhoods, and not to be looked at as a reporter, but more like a neighbor, you know, a lot of my story ideas come from word of mouth, from a conversation, from me going to the community, from going to different events, maybe grabbing a coffee, or even sometimes, you know, even hosting a listening session, so I feel like, you know, being a community engagement reporter, it’s literally that it’s literally engaging with the community and having the community be the base of your reporting and your sources.

WSHU: Isn’t that what traditional media is supposed to be engaging with the community? Why is it necessary to write, actually emphasize, and have a community engagement reporter?

RD: Yeah, I think it’s so important because you know with the community and traditionally a lot of reporters and media, everyone wants the sort of “bigger story,” and sometimes that sort of goes through the cracks when it’s so many great stories out there in places specifically like Bridgeport, where it’s a lot going on. But there’s a lot of people on the ground, doing a lot of great work for the community, and a lot of the times, if you’re not in the community, boots on the ground, going to these events, connecting with the people, you will really miss out on a lot of great opportunities that’s out there for stories, resources, information, and a lot of times, you know, with the community engagement reporting, it’s not all about just writing a story on what’s going on. Sometimes it’s simply showing up, simply having an influence in the community, being a trusted face, a trusted voice, and a trusted source for community residents. So I feel like, you know, with community engagement, you do have the typical traditional duties of a reporter, but it allows me to go a little bit deeper, where I can be that go-to person for information and resources.

WSHU: So, let’s get into a little bit of your background. How did you get into this? And how has it worked out as you try to engage in Bridgeport?

RD: Yeah, so going a little bit back, you know, I started at WNPR in Connecticut, then went to Kansas City, worked as a producer for KCUR NPR Kansas City before returning home to take this position to cover Bridgeport, and you know, during all of that time I always been, you know, involved in a community and trying to uplift, you know, under underserved communities and their voices, and making sure that those issues are on the forefront. So this has always been up my alley, and something I wanted to do, and I feel like coming in this position, being able to cover the city that I grew up in, I was born in, I was, I’m a Bridgeport native through and through, so coming back home and being able to bring that fire and that passion to cover my city adds a whole different layer to my work, and it’s something that I’m very proud that I get to come back home and do.

WSHU: So, could you tell us some of the stories you’ve been able to generate?

RD: Yeah, so you know some of my favorite stories to date. One of them is a story on Little Liberia, a free black community that settled here, and who actually stopped in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and it’s a couple of houses that are still standing from that from that time period, so you know me being able to highlight that Black history in Bridgeport, that you know, often got overlooked, or sort of got, you know, buried under, under in the past, I got to, you know, revitalize that, that story, and you know, bring more attention to that. Also, you know, I’ve been able to cover, you know, public housing, you know, in Bridgeport, that is something that we see that doesn’t get a lot of attention, so being able to highlight those residents that live in those public houses, to make sure that their voice, those concerns are, you know, being amplified to the people that need to know.

And, you know, also on a positive note, I get to highlight a lot of culture things that happen in Bridgeport, something like, Bridgeport has its first Haitian Flag Day, and that was a big thing for Bridgeport, you know, highlighting that Haitian culture, highlighting the diversity of Bridgeport, something that you know might get overlooked with, you know, being a state in Connecticut where people might have different thoughts, so you know, being able to shine a light on those unique things that you know make Bridgeport Bridgeport. Something I’m also proud about that I got to accomplish is, you know, building relationships with people like, you know, Bridgeport’s police chief. I’ve been able to start a couple of projects, community policing projects, basically meaning, you know, I’ve been able to interview parents, interview the police chief about, you know, their feelings, how community policing is done, and hopes to, you know, build that bridge between, you know, Black and Brown communities and the police force, something that we have seen in our country for so long. So, being able to, you know, in my role, try to help bridge that in the city that I’m covering. So, you know, doing different projects like that, and being able, you know, to put the community’s voice at the forefront has been helping me shape my work and shape the stories that I’ve been, uh, been able to do.

WSHU: Now it’s helped to build trust, but at the same time, how does that affect your objectivity when you’re dealing with these stories?

RD: Traditionally, a lot of people, you know, just swoop in and, you know, get what they need and usually get out. I try to use a different approach when building trust. I don’t always like to just the first time I meet someone, I don’t like to bring out my pen and pad. Maybe I’ll like to, maybe our second or third meeting, that’s when I’ll, you know, might try to talk about the actual issue, because I’ve learned that, you know, you sometimes you have to break down that barrier, especially in different underserved communities who have a lot of people come in and out, and you know, get promised things, and this and that. So, being able to build that trust and show up consistently has been a couple of key things I’ve used to build trust in these communities.

WSHU: Okay. Well, thank you so much, Reginald. Really appreciate your doing this, and absolutely looking out for more of your stories going forward.

RD: Thank you so much for having me.