WHYY News is hosting a ‘pop-up’ newsroom in Princeton

From Camden and Cherry Hill to Trenton and the Jersey Shore, what about life in New Jersey do you want WHYY News to cover? Let us know.

WHYY News will be hosting a “pop-up” newsroom at the Princeton Library from 1:30-8:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 5. These off-site events are part of a continuing effort by WHYY News to deepen relationships with the communities they cover.

“When I started covering the Garden State four years ago, it was the height of the pandemic,” said WHYY News New Jersey Reporter Kenneth Burns. “Everyone I met at that time was through email or zoom.”

Burns adds “pop-up” newsrooms “gives [him] a chance to do something [he] didn’t get a chance to do because of the health emergency.”

“I get to meet the people I get to cover and the audience who listens to WHYY or reads my stories on our website,” he said.

Burns and WHYY News Suburban Managing Editor Madhumita “Madhu” Bora will be hearing from the Princeton community about issues they care about and stories they want to hear. This will also be an opportunity for residents in Princeton and surrounding communities to learn about our newsroom and news gathering process.

Kenneth Burns is WHYY News’ New Jersey reporter. He joined the station in 2018 as an anchor. Prior to WHYY, he covered city government and urban issues for WYPR in Baltimore. His coverage of the Freddie Gray police trials earned a 2017 National Headliner Award. The native Marylander and adopted New Jerseyan is a graduate of Towson University and Anne Arundel Community College.

Madhusmita “Madhu” Bora (she/her) is WHYY News’ managing editor of suburban coverage and an Assamese American journalist, teacher, writer, filmmaker, and award-winning dancer. Madhu has previously worked for The Philadelphia Inquirer, Indianapolis Star, Tampa Bay Times, and Press of Atlantic City. Her work has appeared in numerous publications, including Quartz, WURD Radio, All India Radio, and SAGE Business Researcher. Madhu is an international classroom speaker at The Penn Museum and an adjunct professor at Lincoln University.