Courtney Flatt / Northwest Public Radio

Job Title

Multimedia journalist, based in Richland, WA at Northwest Public Radio and Television

Bio

Courtney Flatt began her journalism career at The Dallas Morning News as a neighborsgo editor. There, she also wrote articles for the Metro section, where she reported on community issues ranging from water security to the arts. Courtney earned her master’s in convergence journalism at the University of Missouri and developed a love for radio and documentary film. As a producer at KBIA-FM she hosted a weekly business show, reported and produced talk shows on community and international issues. Her work took her from the unemployment lines, to a Methamphetaminebust, to the tornado damage aftermath in Joplin, Mo.

What I cover

Energy, climate change and the Columbia Basin

New favorite outdoor activity

Having never lived so close to mountains, I took up skiing this year. While I quickly learned that beginning skiers should avoid black diamonds at all costs, spending all day in the snow is worth the tumbles.

A funny thing happened one day in the field...

It was an icy winter morning, and I was trying to get some ambient sound of the Missouri River, which seemed easy enough. I had to make it over a pile of cement rocks to reach this one sandbar. (And if you know me, you know I’m a walking example of Murphy’s Law.)

Realizing this, I securely attached every piece of equipment to my body. Everything except my extra mic. I had climbed halfway across the cement pile when, woosh! My mic fell through a small hole covered by leaves. The mound was probably 10 feet tall.

As I peered down, a fisherman wandered by. He helped me lift a few of the blocks – they probably weighed 50 pounds each. But the mic wasn’t anywhere near the top. Every time I saw the pile after that day, I wondered where my mic wound up.

Likes

Farmers markets, traveling, tea and painting (though I’m pretty bad at it)

Dislikes

There’s not much… Maybe traffic?

If I weren't a journalist, I would be...

Working on an organic farm in Spain. I actually joined the WOOF program right before graduation. Then I got a job.

Contact

email / desk 509-372-7404 / cell 979-324-9297 / twitter / facebook


Recent Articles:

How Northwest Sewage Helps Plants Grow

May 9, 2012

'Personal Care Products,' Pharmaceutical Toxics Found in Columbia River Study

May 8, 2012

The Case of the Great Horned Owl Mix Up

May 4, 2012

Field Notes: Feasting on First Salmon

April 24, 2012

Cutting Back A Nuke Site's Greenhouse Gas Emissions

April 19, 2012

Climate Change Threats: How Prepared is the PNW?

April 19, 2012

Report: Chinese Companies Consider Vestas Takeover

April 16, 2012

Energy Controls Could Mean Big Savings for Building Owners

April 12, 2012

More Electric Cars Could Mean More Power Demand

April 11, 2012

Can Grafting Help Organic Farmers Reduce Plant Disease?

April 10, 2012

Tribe Works To Restore Basic Water Needs

April 4, 2012

Report: Geothermal Industry Expanding

April 4, 2012

Diesel Emissions and Cancer Rates

March 27, 2012

Increased Coal Train Traffic Could Mean Bad News For Public Health

March 27, 2012

Tribe Hopes to Restore Hanford's Natural Plants

March 23, 2012

BPA Wind Power Sets New Record

March 21, 2012

Got Pollution? Study Links Dairies to Bad Air Quality

March 8, 2012

Ceremonial Fisheries Culturally Important to NW Tribes

March 5, 2012

A New Explanation for the Columbia River Flood Basalt

Feb. 28, 2012

EarthFix Conversations: NW Clean Energy Innovation

Feb. 23, 2012

Conservation Group: ‘Take Permit’ Needs More Data

Feb. 17, 2012

Reeling in the Northern Pike Population

Feb. 17, 2012

Ringing The Dinner Bell For Wintering Elk

Feb. 16, 2012

How Wind Turbines Bring Different Dangers to Different Birds

Feb. 10, 2012

6 Things You Need to Know about Water Rights

Feb. 2, 2012

Wildlife Areas Close to Protect Wintering Elk

Feb. 1, 2012

Can a Supercomputer Be Super-Green, Too?

Jan. 23, 2012

Does Global Warming Mean More Winter Snow Storms?

Jan. 17, 2012

Researchers: Mount Adams' Glaciers Half Gone

Jan. 9, 2012

EarthFix Conversations: Bringing Ideas to Market

Jan. 9, 2012

Wind Farm Applies for First Golden Eagle ‘Take Permit’

Jan. 3, 2012

How Green are Green Buildings?

Dec. 28, 2011

WA Supreme Court Upholds Water Permit Exemption

Dec. 22, 2011

What the EPA's New Rules On Coal-Plant Toxics Mean for the Northwest

Dec. 21, 2011

Tribes Announce Lamprey Restoration Plan

Dec. 19, 2011

Sherman County Gets Boost from Wind Farms

Dec. 9, 2011

Poll Finds NW Residents Would Live Near Wind Farms

Dec. 8, 2011

How Climate Change Affects Pacific Northwest Butterflies

Dec. 6, 2011

EarthFix Conversations: Photographing the Northwest's Butterflies

Dec. 6, 2011

How Native Insects Could Reduce Pesticide Use in Northwest Vineyards

Nov. 25, 2011

Wapato: A Sacred Food Returns to Yakama Nation

Nov. 23, 2011

Wind Turbines Blow Money Gorge Museum's Way

Nov. 21, 2011

Experimental Homes Move Energy Research into the Real World

Nov. 15, 2011

How The Columbia Gorge Scenic Act Helps Native Species

Nov. 14, 2011

Recovering the Western Pond Turtle

Nov. 14, 2011

Northwest States in Top Ten for Wind Power

Nov. 2, 2011

Portland Neighborhoods to Start EcoDistrict Projects

Oct. 26, 2011

WSU Report: Hotel Chains Become 'Greener'

Oct. 26, 2011

NOAA Task Force Recommends OR, WA to Kill 85 Sea Lions

Oct. 25, 2011

How Transmission Works

Oct. 21, 2011

Transmission Lines: An Interstate Highway for Energy

Oct. 21, 2011

Pacific Smelt Receive Critical Habitat Designation

Oct. 20, 2011

OR, WA in Top 10 States for Energy Efficiency

Oct. 20, 2011

U.S., Oregon Solar Manufacturers File Trading Petition Against China

Oct. 19, 2011

EarthFix Conversations: Improving Renewable Energy Efficiency

Oct. 14, 2011

Bringing Back Wapato

Oct. 10, 2011

Council Approves Whistling Ridge Wind Project

Oct. 7, 2011

Eastern Oregon Wind Farm Fight Marks New Era

Sept. 26, 2011

'Robo Fish' Sense Salmon's Tortuous Turbine Passage

Sept. 13, 2011

Electric Vehicles Could Help Balance Wind Power

Sept. 12, 2011

Pine White Butterflies Now Calling Washington Desert Home

Sept. 7, 2011

Pacific Northwest Hydropower Grants to Improve Generation

Sept. 6, 2011

Turbines Catch Good Wind in Eastern Washington

Sept. 5, 2011

Solar Thermal Energy Finds Advocate in Prosser Rancher

Aug. 30, 2011

Richland Researchers Study Efficient Carbon Capture Methods

Aug. 25, 2011

A Railroaded Oregon Creek Recovers From its Past

Aug. 22, 2011

Roman Artifacts Help Nuclear Waste Storage

Aug. 14, 2011

Factoring Forests Into Climate Change

Aug. 10, 2011

Salmon Advocates See Jobs in Healthy Fish Runs

Aug. 9, 2011

Hiding Carbon Emissions Under the Northwest's Big Rocks

Aug. 8, 2011

Richland Reseachers Develop Biofuel Catalyst

Aug. 4, 2011

BLM Seeks New Habitat Plan For Sage Grouse

July 26, 2011