Eleanor Bennett
Morning Edition Anchor and ReporterEleanor is an award-winning journalist who currently serves as “the voice” of Aspen Public Radio during "Morning Edition." She has reported on a wide range of topics in her community, including the impacts of federal immigration policies on local DACA recipients, creative efforts to solve the valley's affordable housing crisis, and hungry goats fighting climate change across the West through targeted grazing. Connecting with people from all walks of life and creating empathic spaces for them to tell their stories fuels her work.
Her reporting has been featured on NPR and she has received several statewide, regional and national awards including a 2023 Regional Edward R. Murrow Award for her feature on an immigrant family who cut down their first Christmas tree together. She earned “Best News Feature” three years in a row from the Colorado Broadcasters Association, including for her stories about an education initiative to bring more Ute history and cross-cultural conversations to local schools and a citizen-science project to help understand how climate change is impacting birds. She also contributed to the award-winning series, "In The Woods: Trees and Climate Change in the Roaring Fork Valley.”
As a Morning Edition anchor, Eleanor pioneered the station’s award-winning "Outdoor Report," which highlights local flora and fauna, recreation opportunities and environmental causes in the Valley, and hosts the "Aspen Public Radio Newscast," a podcast for locals on-the-go.
Growing up in the Valley listening to KAJX in her parents’ car on the way to school, Eleanor learned the power and urgency of community storytelling. She was further captivated by the medium while interning at Aspen Public Radio after graduating from Middlebury College in 2015. From there, she covered issues of climate justice and women's empowerment for SiriusXM Radio in New York City. Eleanor also had the opportunity to work with French photographer and muralist JR to record the dreams, hopes and fears of 1,500 New Yorkers for an interactive audio-visual exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum.
In 2019, Eleanor returned home to serve as producer of Aspen Public Radio’s teen-focused podcast, "Gen Z Tea." She started working full-time for the station in August 2020. Eleanor is delighted to be home in the Rocky Mountains working to shine a light on the critical issues and community voices that shape our Valley.
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Michael “Mongo” Ferrara, a trained paramedic and educator, saved many lives and played a large role in emergency response over his decades in Aspen and beyond. -
Chain and luxury stores have been pricing out locally-owned, affordable businesses across the country and the world. In Aspen, two business owners are finding a way to collaborate as city leaders explore creative solutions.
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En respuesta al aumento de la legislación antitrans y antidrag en todo el país y a los casos locales de discriminación, los defensores y aliados de la comunidad LGBTQ+ refuerzan su compromiso con los espacios seguros como el Bluebird Café de Glenwood Springs.
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Glenwood Springs resident Cole Buerger announced this week that he’s running for Colorado State Senate District 5. Buerger joins Montrose Mayor Barbara Bynum as the second Democrat to announce their candidacy for the district in the 2024 election.
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In response to a rise in anti-trans and anti-drag legislation across the country and local instances of discrimination, LGBTQ+ advocates and allies are strengthening their commitment to safe spaces like the Bluebird Café in Glenwood Springs.
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El grupo pasó una semana en Ciudad de México este verano como parte del nuevo programa de educación cívica y defensa de Voces Unidas. Aspen Public Radio habló con varios participantes y líderes del programa sobre su experiencia.
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The group spent a week in Mexico City this summer as part of Voces Unidas' new civic education and advocacy program. Aspen Public Radio spoke with several participants and program leaders about their experience.
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Community members are invited to join the Colorado Pika Project on Independence Pass this Saturday to collect data and observations on pikas in their natural habitat. The volunteer training is part of a statewide effort to better understand how climate is impacting the small, furry animals.
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Pitkin County commissioners narrowly voted to authorize a new fleet-mix and growth forecast for the Aspen airport last week. Aspen Public Radio takes a closer look at how the latest vote fits into a decades-long divide in the community.
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In the latest story in Aspen Public Radio’s four-part climate series “Adaptation,” we look at how ski areas in the Roaring Fork Valley are adapting to warming temperatures and working to prevent more damage in the future.
