Melanie Faizer
Interim News DirectorMelanie is WUOT’s interim news director and is a distinguished lecturer in journalism at the University of Tennessee, where she has taught reporting, editing and media entrepreneurship since 2012. Before teaching, Melanie worked for Bloomberg News for 11 years in a variety of cities and roles, from managing the multimedia desk to producing television. In between her journalism jobs, Melanie worked as director of information services at Opera America, putting her M.A. in musicology, from Montreal’s McGill University, to good use.
In her spare moments, Melanie enjoys gardening, movies, novels, cooking, swimming, and of course hanging out with her husband, daughter and cat.
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The EF2 tornado that hit Knoxville on Aug. 7, 2023, was accompanied by thunderstorms and straight-line winds that meteorologists warn can be just as dangerous as the tornado itself. Geographer Kelsey Ellis, local broadcast meteorologists and Logan Korn, a student who rode his motorbike through the storm, talk about that day's events, and the challenges of communicating tornado risk to the public. -
The University of Tennessee is hiring a consultant to look at best practices in campus parking. UTK also said applications are being driven by new admissions standards.
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As the city of Knoxville and the Planning Commission look for ways to rezone to allow for more multi-family housing, like duplexes, or so-called "missing middle" housing, some residents and realtors say the plan isn't thorough enough.
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Maha Ayesh, president of the Muslim Community of Knoxville, talks about the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, how the messages of media and political leadership affect Palestinians, and how the current conflict is affecting some residents of Knoxville's community.
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Experts say rejecting education funds would risk safeguards for Tennessee's most vulnerable studentsAs Tennessee prepares to debate whether to accept $1.8 billion in federal education funds, policy experts agree that low-income students and those with disabilities have the most to lose.
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As the candidates for municipal judge in Knoxville head toward a Nov. 7 runoff election, issues of politics in a nonpartisan election, and the operations of the court, are at stake. Incumbent Judge John R. Rosson was endorsed by the Knox County Republicans and says he's "working hard" for re-election. His opponent, Tyler Caviness, says the court needs some operational change.
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The University of Tennessee Athletics Department said payouts to past coaches contributed to the financial challenges in recent years.
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The University of Tennessee Board of Trustees today approved a new admissions policy that will apply to the statewide system. One criteria will not yet be applied to the Knoxville campus due to concerns over housing capacity, and the potential costs associated with lowering the ACT standard.
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Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon was re-elected for a second term on Aug. 29. She talked with WUOT's Jacqui Sieber about the outlook for the next four years, including initiatives in housing affordability, housing the unhoused, and improving public safety and transport. This interview has been lightly edited.
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Tick-borne diseases, native and invasive species are on the rise in East Tennessee. Researcher Richard Gerhold is an expert in parasites.
