CINCINNATI — For a group of Northside kids, the news is more than a job -- it's a passion. With the help of Happen, Inc., the nonprofit that brings families together in creative exercises, a daily newscast is being produced by local teens five days a week. It’s called KMNH, which stands for "Kids Making the News Happen."
The daily newscast had been in the works for a couple of years, but all programming had to be put on hold because of the coronavirus.
“It really gave us an opportunity and the space and time to focus and create a whole new program,” Happen, Inc. executive director Tommy Rueff said.
First, the kids produced the current events show from their homes – then when quarantine orders lifted a bit, they masked up and turned their old creative space into a television studio. The kids covered everything from COVID-19 to George Floyd.
Anchor Larkin Overton’s dad is a photojournalist at WCPO, so the news runs in her family.
“We’re not exactly causing the news, but we’re sure reporting on it,” Overton said.
Anchor Omer Lyons Siler said about a third of the stories offer hyper-local coverage about Northside. The rest of the show is national, international or feature content.
The kids are getting a new studio space off the very busy Hamilton Ave., thanks to someone who donated it.
Kristyn Hartman’s full interview with KMNH is on the Happen, Inc. Facebook page.
