Oregon Public Broadcasting

OPB's Public Insight Network

What You Can Expect | How It Works | Sign Up | FAQs

Share What You Know: Become a News Source for OPB

The Public Insight Network (PIN) is a group of people from around the Northwest who have agreed to help OPB cover the news by sharing their experiences and knowledge.

You can help make OPB's news coverage even stronger by signing up for OPB's Public Insight Network.

Or, you can share what you know about a subject we're looking into: 

•    Have you sat on a jury?
  
•    Where does your family history intersect with Oregon history?
  
•    Is the economy affecting your small town?
  

Or tell us: What issues are on your mind? 

 

How It Works

As we look into various subjects, we will e-mail people in the Network and ask them to tell us about their experiences. If we're looking into a medical issue, we'll seek insight from doctors, nurses and patients who have direct experience with that issue. If we're looking into education, we'll talk to teachers and administrators as well as parents with school-age children. Your work, education and life experience, even your hobbies, give you knowledge and insight.

Our Public Insight Analyst will pass on this knowledge to our reporters and editors. Network sources may reveal new angles on the stories we're covering or may provide us with entirely new ideas. Reporters may follow up with you for quotes and comments for broadcast or online discussions.

As a Public Insight Network source, you can expect to receive an e-mail no more than once a month. If you don't have knowledge about a particular topic, we'll ask you to forward the message on to someone who does or simply delete it.

We promise that access to personal information shared with us will be restricted to a small group of journalists. The journalists may work for OPB or for national programs like Marketplace and Weekend America. That means no spam, no marketing and no requests for donations as a result of signing up.

What You Can Expect

• Up to one e-mail a month asking for your insight on issues we plan to cover -- you respond only if you have knowledge; otherwise, pass it on to someone who has experience or simply ignore the request.
• An occasional follow-up call or e-mail to get more information
• Confidentiality: We won't quote you on the radio or the Web without your permission.
• An open line for you to tell the newsroom what stories are important to you
• No spam, marketing calls or requests for money as a result of signing up -- your information is private and is not shared outside of a small circle of public radio journalists.
• Through our partnership with American Public Media, you may be called on to help with national stories on programs such as Marketplace, Speaking of Faith and American RadioWorks.
• You can quit the Network any time you want.

» Frequently Asked Questions about PIN

Stories and Shows Informed by the Public Insight Network

Think Out Loud: As We Are: Abortion Stories
Women terminated 11,663 pregnancies in Oregon last year, according to state health statistics. Though abortion is an issue that is often under the media microscope, we rarely hear the stories of individual women who have been through the experience of terminating a pregnancy. On the next installment of our As We Are series, we're inviting women into the studio to talk about what it was like for them to have an abortion. 

Think Out Loud: The White State
In 2006, the US Census Bureau ranked Oregon as the 16th whitest state in the country, with 86% of our population identifying as only white. While we're nowhere near the top, we're well above the country as whole, which is only about 74% percent white. What is your own daily experience of Oregon's particular racial makeup? How does being a part of a relatively homogeneous majority -- or a relatively small minority -- affect your life? 

Think Out Loud: As We Are: Obese People
Prejudice about obesity abounds. A person's weight can influence how other people view their intelligence, their personal habits and their work ethic. What does it feel like to live inside an obese body? How does that impact a person's daily life? The second conversation in our occasional series As We Are will bring together people who are obese and ask them these and other questions. 

Think Out Loud: Jury Deliberations
Oregon is currently one of only two states that allow non-unanimous juries to convict someone of a crime. In all other states except Louisiana, if even one juror dissents from his peers decision, the jury is hung and a mistrial is declared. But in Oregon only ten jurors are required to convict people accused of non-capital offenses.  Have you served on a jury? Have you been convicted or acquitted by ten out of twelve people?  What does your experience tell you about whether non-capital jury verdicts should be unanimous or not?

Think Out Loud: As We Are: Ex-Convicts
In a state where more than 13,500 people are incarcerated, plenty of Oregonians are affected by prisons -- and prisoners -- in one way or another. We've spoken about prison issues before, and taken a few calls from ex-convicts, but we've never had a discussion that focused on the voices of people who have committed crimes.  On this show, we'll begin by talking with three ex-convicts. We'll ask them why they went to prison, what it was like and how living behind bars impacted each of their lives. 

Think Out Loud: Faith in the Northwest
People in the northwest attend church far less frequently than nearly anywhere else in the country, however we're not necessarily irreligious. By some estimates, only 17% of Oregonians call themselves "non-religious."  Are you religious? Are you spiritual? Do you find the northwest open or hostile to your ideas and beliefs? How does living here affect the way you express your religious beliefs? 

Think Out Loud: Hurrah for the Red, White and Blue
What does patriotism mean to you? Is it connected to the military, or peace and prosperity? Is patriotism the "last refuge of a scoundrel," as Samuel Johnson claimed? Is it "looking out for yourself by looking out for your country," as Calvin Coolidge is credited as saying? Is it a "splendid thing" as Pablo Casals said, before adding, "But why should love stop at the border?" Does patriotism, as the German poet Goethe asserted, ruin history? 

Think Out Loud: Summer Slump
As high schools shut down for the summer, some teenagers are entering the work force for the first time. But the number of people age 16 to 19 working in the summer has dropped from 72 percent in 1978 to about 35 percent now.  And the current economic slowdown means this probably won't be the year that bucks the downward trend in teenage employment.

Oregonians Seek News About Friends And Family In China
Over the weekend, rescue crews continued digging out survivors from the massive earthquake that struck China's Sichuan province last week. Donations have poured into Oregon's charitable groups.  Many people with ties in China are still trying to get information. 

Fifth District Race Turns Ugly With Abortion Accusations
Some Oregon voters have a particularly tough call to make on their primary ballots.  People in  Oregon's 5th Congressional District are choosing who will represent them -- and the races in both major party primaries are competitive. But this week, the Republican race went to the political equivalent of Def Con Three. 

Think Out Loud: Where Bikes and Cars Intersect
Bikes and cars share the roads in Oregon, but there are some who say that bicycles should be more integrated into automobile traffic. Should bicycles be treated the same as cars when it comes to where they travel in traffic? Are bike lanes helpful or harmful when it comes to safety for cyclists and drivers alike? What is the best way to share the road? 

Think Out Loud: The Upside of a Downturn?
Warren Buffet says we're in a recession. The President calls it a "slowdown." Either way, the Fed says "economic growth is slowing."  But for whom?  Are you feeling a slowdown? Or do you work in an industry that's been spared? Are you preparing for tough times? Or do you see a recession as an opportunity -- personally or professionally? 

Think Out Loud: Once Upon A Time in Philomath
In 1959, wealthy Philomath timber baron Rex Clemens and his wife Ethel set up a foundation to grant college scholarships to every graduate of Philomath high schools. It became an expectation of the community, considered by some, eventually, almost a right.  But in 2002, the administrators of the foundation, were unhappy with a cultural shift they felt was transforming the town, and added criteria to the scholarship to emphasis traditional values. The national media swooped in on the story...

Think Out Loud: Classy Politics
As the economy continues its downward trend and the campaign season continues to heat up, class, specifically the middle class, is a word that creeps into political rhetoric more and more.  What's your economic outlook? Do you identify with a particular class? How does that affect your level of political involvement or the way you vote?

Local Military Families Struggle With Strain Of Deployments
Laural and Brian Miller know they have a different perspective on the war in Iraq than most people. Their marriage is dangerously close to breaking, because of Brian's three deployments. Their family lives in Olympia, Washington, just a few hours from Oregon, where Laural grew up.  April Baer reports.

Think Out Loud: Report Cards for Special Education
When Oregon released its report on special education programs around the state, the results were a mixed bag - with serious disparities from district to district.  Do these disparities hold lessons for what works in special ed. and what doesn't?  And in a larger sense, is the "special education" umbrella still a viable designation when it lumps together students diagnosed with everything from autism and emotional disturbance to orthopedic impairment and ADHD? 

MindFreedom Seeks To Insure Rights Of Those With Mental Illness
OPB is taking a month-long look at the state’s overall mental health system, in a series called On Our Minds.  Oregon is home to a small non-profit called MindFreedom, which describes itself as coalition of grassroots groups dedicated to human rights and alternatives for people with mental illness.  The mission may sound basic, but the stance MindFreedom takes on several different issues puts it at odds with many other mental health groups and the mainstream of mental health care professionals. 

Rural Oregon's Hidden Epidemic - Mental Illness and Suicide
OPB is taking a month-long look at the state’s overall mental health system, in a series called On Our Minds.  The 8 eastern counties of Oregon are home to 180,000 people. It's some of the most sparsely populated land in the entire country. And those empty high desert plateaus hold a dark secret about severe mental illness -- and its sometimes tragic results. 

Needs Of 'Dual Diagnoses' Sufferers Difficult To Meet
OPB is taking a month-long look at the state’s overall mental health system, in a series called On Our Minds.  Doctors estimate that about half of the people who struggle with mental illness also suffer some form of addiction.  Doctors and therapists have been trying to address the special needs of those with a dual diagnoses for years. But as Kristian Foden-Vencil reports, getting government, treatment centers and colleges on board has been a slow process. 

Think Out Loud: Recognizing Mental Illness
OPB is taking a month-long look at the state’s overall mental health system, in a series called On Our Minds.  When we discuss mental illness we usually only talk about what experts call "tertiary prevention." That's the work done at hospitals and in prisons long after a person has been severely affected by a psychotic illness like bipolar disorder or schizophrenia.  But can mental illness -- or perhaps its worst effects -- be prevented with early intervention? 

Police And Jails Providing Much Of State's Mental Health Care
OPB is taking a month-long look at the state’s overall mental health system, in a series called On Our Minds.  If someone you care about gets sick enough, you take them to the doctor -- or maybe even the hospital.  But if an illness is mental, rather than physical in nature, the symptoms are more confusing -- and sometimes downright threatening.  And that behavior is more likely to bring them in contact with a police officer than a doctor. 

Wraparound Program Aims To Care For Mentally Ill Children At Home
OPB is taking a month-long look at the state’s overall mental health system, in a series called On Our Minds.  How the state of Oregon cares for mentally ill children is undergoing a revolutionary shift right now. Oregon is charting a course aimed at keeping kids out of institutions and instead caring for them at home. 

Think Out Loud: Was the Special Session Justified?
Right now, our state capitol is usually in business only every other year.  But this year was an exception, with a "special session" this month to test the idea of yearly lawmaking. It lasted for 19 days (about seven less than expected), during which lawmakers passed 73 bills and rejected 36.  But with limited resources, and even less time, did Oregon’s politicians do enough to justify meeting every year? Should they have met for longer? Or not at all? 

Oregon’s Mental Health Parity Lets Some Fall Through Cracks
OPB is taking a month-long look at the state’s overall mental health system, in a series called On Our Minds.  The series starts by examining a much-ballyhooed law that went in effect just over a year ago, that told insurers to cover mental health care the same way they cover physical health care. Ethan Lindsey reports on promise of “mental health parity.”

Think Out Loud: Fixing Foster Care
According to a federal review of Oregon's foster care system, we have a serious shortage of foster care homes, and when kids are placed they are often moved from home to home, preventing them from receiving the stability and security they need.  A similar study was done in 2001, and we fared a little bit better than today. Why is the situation worsening for kids in foster care here? 

Think Out Loud: Autism in Oregon
According to the Autism Society of Oregon, our state has the highest rate of autistic diagnosis in the United States, with one in 98 children being diagnosed somewhere on that spectrum.  What are we doing to aid the thousands of children in the Northwest who are diagnosed with autism? 

Think Out Loud: The end of timber payments?
For most of the last century, U.S. counties with federal timber land (read: much of Oregon) got a share of the proceeds of sales. But when logging on federal lands plunged in the 1990s the revenue dropped, too. Congress fixed it for a while, making up the difference from other funds. But that fix expired, and a stop-gap one year extension is now due to go away this June.

Think Out Loud: Who are your new neighbors?
According to US Census figures, Oregon's population is going to increase by about one million people between now and 2025.  Those numbers also show that Oregon will be older, more Hispanic, and will have more people who moved from out-of-state.  But what else will this more populous Oregon be? 

Drivers License Debate Hits Oregon Statehouse
Oegon lawmakers took up the contentious issue of whether illegal immigrants should be allowed to have drivers’ licenses.  A panel is reviewing possible legislation for the upcoming special session in February.

Mental Health Cutbacks Have Ripple Effect
What happens when the only psychiatric unit in a rural county closes?  It happened in Roseburg, Oregon recently.  The closure left the city of about 21,000 people with a big gap in services for the mentally ill.  And as correspondent Chris Lehman reports, the shut down could have a ripple effect across the entire region.

Eastern Oregon Democrats Hope 2008 Is A Breakthrough Year
The national political map is famously split between red and blue states, solidly supporting either Democrats or Republicans. The political map in Oregon is possibly even more divided.  But at a party in Bend, state Democrats say 2008 will be the year they change that. 

Multnomah County Moves to Limit Mental Health Coverage
Portland’s health organizations are reacting to news that Multnomah County is planning to refuse mental health services to most new applicants.  In a draft letter, obtained by OPB, the county says it no longer has the money to pay for treatment under its ‘Adult Verity Plus’ program. 

Gresham Looks For New Way To Manage Rental Complaints
As inner Portland rental prices have increased, many families have moved to Gresham, which up to now hasn't had a code of standards for rental units. But now, the city of Gresham is holding a public meeting to talk about how its new rental housing inspection program might work.

Lack of Health Insurance Leads Many To Bankruptcy
Half of all Americans who file for personal bankruptcy say that medical expenses are a major factor, according to a Harvard study.  A study by consumer group Families USA suggested that the number of uninsured Americans may be twice as high as previously believed.  Kristian Foden-Vencil found some struggling Oregonians using OPB's new Public Insight Network, and has this report.