The Promise: Life, Death and Change in the Projects is a podcast produced by Nashville Public Radio.
Background
The podcast is hosted by Meribah Knight and produced by WPLN. The show focuses on the James Cayce housing project in Nashville. The housing authority had a 600 million dollar redevelopment plan for the neighborhood that would involve tearing down old buildings and constructing new ones. The redevelopment plan is called Envision Cayce and was started in 2014. The podcast discusses gun violence. Knight decided to investigate disparities in housing and education after reporting on the shooting of Jocques Clemmons. The second season focuses on disparities in public education. The season specifically focuses on the racial desegregation of schools in Nashville.
Meribah Knight wrote an article called "Black Children Were Jailed for a Crime That Doesn't Exist. Almost Nothing Happened to the Adults in Charge.", which began her second podcast called The Kids of Rutherford County. The article was a 2022 finalist for a Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing and won a 2021 Sidney Award.
Reception
The New Yorker included the show on their lists of best podcasts in both 2018 and 2020. Season two won a Peabody Award in 2021.
References
- "Best Podcast". Nashville Scene. October 17, 2018. Archived from the original on July 19, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- "Hardcore History returns with a measly 4.5-hour meditation on torture and execution". The A.V. Club. February 5, 2018. Archived from the original on August 9, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- Larson, Sarah (May 3, 2018). ""The Promise," a Stellar Podcast About Life in Nashville's Public Housing". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Archived from the original on June 2, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- Haggard, Amanda (April 12, 2018). "Pod Goals: The Promise Helps Nashville Reckon With Public Housing Problems". Nashville Scene. Archived from the original on November 5, 2021. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- "WPLN's 'The Promise': A Beautiful Day In The Projects". WBEZ Chicago. June 10, 2018. Archived from the original on December 6, 2021. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- "The Woman Behind WPLN's Award-Winning Podcast, "The Promise"". StyleBlueprint. February 7, 2021. Archived from the original on May 28, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- Benkarski, Ashley (September 10, 2020). "Impossible to Ignore: New Season of "The Promise" Examines Inequities in Nashville Education". The Tennessee Tribune. Archived from the original on March 28, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- Mathewson, Eryn (December 26, 2020). "These podcasts helped get us through some of 2020's most difficult conversations". CNN. Archived from the original on June 6, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- "Pulitzer Finalist". Archived from the original on April 5, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- "Nashville Public Radio and ProPublica win November Sidney for Shocking Investigation of Black Kids Jailed for Imaginary Crimes in Tennessee". Hillman Foundation. November 10, 2021. Archived from the original on March 24, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- Larson, Sarah (December 5, 2018). "The Best Podcasts of 2018". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Archived from the original on February 28, 2021. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- Larson, Sarah (December 9, 2020). "The Best Podcasts of 2020". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Archived from the original on June 4, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- "The Promise: Season 2". The Peabody Awards. Archived from the original on May 27, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- Hipes, Patrick (June 24, 2021). "Peabody Awards Winners: 'Small Axe', 'The Cave', '20/20′ Among Final Honorees As Full List Revealed". Deadline. Archived from the original on August 13, 2021. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- Towers, Andrea; Nededog, Jethro (June 24, 2021). "'Ted Lasso,' 'Late Show With Stephen Colbert,' and 'Unorthodox' score Peabody Awards". EW.com. Archived from the original on May 26, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- Lewis, Hilary (June 21, 2021). "Peabody Awards: Stephen Colbert's 'Late Show,' 'I May Destroy You,' 'Small Axe,' 'Ted Lasso' Among Winners". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2023.