Rachel Estabrook is the news director at CPR News. She joined Colorado Public Radio in 2013 as a producer/reporter for Colorado Matters.

Education:

Bachelor’s degree in Spanish language and literature, George Washington University; Master’s degree in communications, Stanford University.

Professional background:

At CPR, Rachel co-reported and hosted the serialized podcast “The Taxman,” which was a finalist for the Gerald Loeb Award for business journalism. Her work reporting and producing for Colorado Matters, and editing in the newsroom, has earned regional Edward R. Murrow awards, recognition from the Public Radio News Directors Inc. and the Colorado Broadcasters Association, as well as other honors.

Before coming to CPR, she worked on a Frontline documentary about antibiotic resistance through the Investigative Reporting Workshop, and served as a newscaster and board member for KZSU at Stanford University. While completing her Master’s degree in journalism, Rachel also worked as a reporter and radio editor for the Peninsula Press.

Rachel got her start in journalism in 2000 as a columnist covering local sporting events in Dover, NH. She has reported for New Hampshire Public Radio, and volunteered for “The Diane Rehm Show” at WAMU.

Previously in her career, Rachel served as international specialist for the Department of Justice and as an associate director in NPR’s development department.

Q & A

In her own words…

Why I became a journalist:

Journalism was like a little bug inside my body – an itch that had to be scratched before I even really knew what journalism was. I’ve always loved interviewing people, hearing their stories and keeping up with what’s new—we have home videos of me in elementary school interviewing my family in front of our very old, clunky video recorder. I love to write—in fact, I think I express myself best in writing—and I love the idea of serving a local community with information and entertainment that really matters to their lives.

My first journalism experience was in high school in New Hampshire; I edited the school paper and wrote for the local paper on high school sports. As an adult, the more I learn about journalism the more important I think it is—particularly good, reasoned, fair, serious-but-engaging journalism at a time when that can be very hard to come by.

Why I got into radio:

I started to like radio a lot when I still lived in New Hampshire, where the public radio station is the state’s best news source. Radio offers such a perfect balance: It allows personalities to come through without restricting listeners’ imaginations with too many images—the perfect combination of intimacy and authority. I love how listeners feel connected to the hosts on public radio. It creates a strong sense of community without being sensationalist.

How I ended up at CPR:

Coming to CPR was a long journey for me, and I’m so happy it ended here. For someone with mountains and rivers in her genetic makeup, the attraction to Colorado is obvious, and I think my affection for public radio comes through in my previous answers. Most simply, after freelancing, volunteering and interning in public radio for many years at several different stations, I went to journalism school at Stanford and then landed here. It’s the only place I really wanted to work after school, and I’m lucky to be part of such an excellent team of journalists serving a community as interesting, dynamic and thoughtful as Colorado.