NPR announced today that Juana Summers, former KBIA student and graduate of the Missouri School of Journalism, is going to become a national host of All Things Considered.
Juana Summers has been selected as the host of All Things Considered, NPR's flagship evening news magazine carried by 825 public radio stations nationwide, and the daily news podcast Consider This. She joins Ailsa Chang, Mary Louise Kelly and Ari Shapiro rotating through host duties across the shows. Her first day on the air will be June 27.
KBIA news producer and professor Janet Saidi said, “It has been a joy to observe Juana’s journey as a national political reporter and an increasingly recognizable voice on NPR. Juana seems to have one of those engaging voices that can convey warmth and connection through the air waves, and we’re excited that she’ll be part of the team taking NPR’s flagship program, All Things Considered, into the future.”
In an April interview for KBIA's 50th anniversary audio series, Summers said KBIA was "the first place I ever had the opportunity to cover presidential campaign politics." Summers worked at KBIA and graduated from the Missouri School of Journalism with a Bachelors in Convergence Journalism in 2009. "I was in college during the 2008 campaign, and I was able to travel outside of Missouri to go to both the vice presidential announcements for Senator John McCain, who was running on the Republican side of the aisle when he named Sarah Palin as his running mate. And for then candidate Barack Obama, when he named Joe Biden as his running mate. KBIA gave me the freedom to go out and interview voters and to cover these huge high profile news events. I was 20 years old, and I knew that I wanted to cover politics. Having that freedom to be able to be in the press pool with professional reporters to be able to ask voters questions, and to be able to come back and put together a piece for the audience in mid-Missouri... it was one of the coolest things I've ever done. And I think it really cemented for me that what I'm doing right now is kind of exactly what I always wanted to do."
“In my work as a political correspondent, I spend a lot of time talking with young people about the country and the world that they are inheriting. It's made me think about the future of our audience, and the opportunities that we have to grow,” said Summers. “I'm excited to become a part of the All Things Considered team, and to play a role in introducing a new, diverse generation of listeners to the blend of powerful storytelling, accountability journalism and culturally relevant conversations that you can only find on NPR.”
“Juana emerged as the top candidate after a rigorous national search that included both internal and external candidates - propelled by her authoritative reporting expertise, her versatile journalistic talent, and her drive to explore and interrogate the most challenging questions of the moment.” added Sarah Gilbert, NPR’s Vice President for News Programming.
Prior to joining NPR, Summers has covered politics for outlets like Politico, CNN, The Associated Press and The Kansas City Star. She previously covered Congress for NPR and got her start in public radio at KBIA in Columbia, Mo. Summers served on the Board of Directors of the Online News Association from 2012 to 2014 and was a fellow at Georgetown University's Institute of Politics and Public Service in 2016. Summers also served as the University of Missouri's School of Journalism December 2016 commencement speaker.
