ANNIE AVILÉS
I make stories about the future of rural places and the people who call them home. I also help teams build podcasts.
A few of the stories I’ve made include: A reported essay about Bolivia’s struggle to reclaim its lost sea, for Harpers. An investigation into FEMA flood maps in Maine, for Pacific Standard. A narrative podcast about the opioid epidemic, for Vice.
I’m from a rural, blue collar community—and I learned journalism in the field, while working as a translator and fixer in Bolivia. My first solo assignment was for NPR and involved spending a month at the epicenter of an 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile. I then continued working for NPR, covering rural lands and resource conflicts from remote communities throughout North and South America. Following a move to the U.S., I began to help people build podcasts, including the team at Vice Audio, where I stayed for several years and led editorial.
My work has earned a Murrow, a Fulbright, a Rona Jaffe Bread Loaf Fellowship, and other awards. I’ve also taught writing and/or audio at Boston University, Colby College, the University of California at Berkeley, and the Salt Institute of Documentary Studies.
Today, in addition to freelance reporting, I work as series editor on Staying Human with Dr. Vivek Murthy, which I helped develop and create.
For assignments, consulting, or stories:
aviannie@proton.me
Photo of a broken computer and other refuse in a ditch. Nor Yungas, Bolivia.