Studio 2 Extra: Pulitzer Prize and Emmy-winning journalist Trymaine Lee

Pulitzer Prize and Emmy-winning journalist Trymaine Lee reflects on the decade-long journey of reporting on the frontlines of America’s defining stories – from Hurricane Katrina to Ferguson to the killing of Trayvon Martin. 

He talks with Studio 2 co-host Cherri Gregg about writing his groundbreaking book, A Thousand Ways to Die, which explores the profound and often overlooked costs of violence on Black communities in America. 

Lee discusses how a near-fatal heart attack at age 38 became a pivotal moment, prompting him to confront the psychic weight of covering stories of Black death and survival. 

“When the heart attack happened,” Lee said, “I came to understand that blood clots and bullets are different things, but (…) both can twist and shred a life.”

He shares how his personal family history, marked by generations of violence and loss dating back to Jim Crow Georgia, intertwines with his journalistic work, revealing a cycle of systemic brutality that has shaped his identity and mission to humanize the stories of those affected.

Listen to the full interview in the player above.