Centennial, Colo., Aug. 7, 2025 - Colorado Public Radio’s podcast “Systemic,” an award-winning audio documentary that takes an innovative look at people working to reform institutions, will return Aug. 11 for a third season. Host and reporter Jo Erickson focuses the season on one man’s fight to stop youth gun violence in communities of color.
“When I first started research into the impact of guns within communities of color I thought it would lead me to more conversations on gun reform,” Erickson said. “Leaders in the Black community, police and victims of gun violence were concerned about one aspect of gun violence: youth gun crime and how to reduce teen homicide rates.”
Over three episodes, season three documents the work of a youth leader, Jason McBride, as he affects the lives of young Black men living in Aurora, Colorado. McBride is a former gang member himself, and he’s devoted the past 30 years to helping others, even at the expense of his own mental and physical health. In addition to hearing from McBride, listeners will meet a young man he impacted, police officials invested in new solutions and a grieving mother fighting for change.
“Each story shows a part of a solution,” Erickson added. “Like a jigsaw puzzle, we assemble the pieces to see the big picture — and the barriers that prevent change.”
Last season, Erickson explored debates around race and equity in public education during a tumultuous school year in Denver and Colorado Springs. The award-winning first season of “Systemic” followed Black Americans working in Colorado, Minneapolis and around the country to create change in the wake of George Floyd’s death and 2020’s racial justice protests. That season won a Regional Edward R. Murrow Award, a first-place award from the Society of Professional Journalists Top of the Rockies Awards and was a finalist in the social justice podcast category at the New York Festivals Radio Awards.
Erickson joined CPR in 2020 and has worked as a producer and editor for “Back from Broken,” “Music Blocks,” “Colorado in Depth” and other award-winning CPR podcasts. Before joining CPR, she worked for Minnesota Public Radio and the BBC as a producer and journalist.
The “Systemic” trailer is out now. Episodes will be available starting August 11 wherever podcasts are found. Catch up on the first two seasons of “Systemic” on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
Media kit available upon request. Media inquiries: [email protected]
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