Jim Gates

Year started with KUOW: 2008

As Senior Editor Jim edits feature pieces and helps guide staff reporters through their stories. Jim has helped to oversee and develop the investigative reporting efforts of KUOW with the mission to provide in-depth coverage of issues that affect Washington and the Puget Sound Region. Jim developed KUOW’s story telling project Local Wonder where listeners ask questions about their community and then vote on the stories that they want KUOW reporters to cover.

Prior to coming to KUOW, Jim worked as an editor on such national shows as Day to Day and Marketplace. Jim helped develop and launch Weekend America where he directed the live broadcast and edited feature stories. He started his public radio career as a volunteer at NPR member station KPCC in Los Angeles. Jim kept showing up at the station and eventually they actually started paying him. Jim moved to national programming when he joined the staff of The Savvy Traveler as producer of the interview and listener segments. It was on The Savvy Traveler that Jim first began editing and reporting.

Jim has won numerous awards for his editing work including the Society of Professional Journalist Sigma Delta Chi Awards for Public Service in Radio Journalism for an investigative series about workplace safety (co-winner) and for Investigative Reporting (co-winner) about a failed oil spill test. Jim has also been awarded First Place Beat Reporting (co-winner) from the Education Writers Association and Third Place for Health Policy stories from the Association of Healthcare Professionals (co-winner) for a collaboration with The Seattle Times. The series investigated health issues facing American soldiers as a result of wearing heavy gear loads into battle.

To see more of Jim's KUOW portfolio, visit our current site.