Zach Perez

Helping new audiences find and connect with news sources through social media and video content is what originally got me into journalism. It's time get back to my roots and dust off my video and graphic design skills!

I got a new job!

I'm still with @kcur.org, but I've taken on a new role, Audience Engagement Strategist.

In this new position I'll keep some of my responsibilities with our community engagement team, manage our social media, and lead production on short-form video content!

Leaders in Kansas City's Ivanhoe neighborhood refuse to let federal budget cuts stop progress Despite its long history of valuable service to the community, recent challenges within the Ivanhoe Neighborhood Council have cast doubt on the future of the organization and the residents of the neig...

"We will never be at the arrived state. It will always be a process of making the neighborhood a better place to live.”

Read my latest w/@kcur.org on how two generations of leadership at the Ivanhoe Neighborhood Council are building faith in the future of their east side community.

Retailers feel pressure to eat the price increases from tariffs From Target to Walmart, retailers are fighting two battles at once: a financial battle to keep costs low in the face of new tariffs, and a political one to avoid the president's wrath.

From Target to Walmart, retailers are fighting two battles at once: a financial battle to keep costs low in the face of new tariffs, and a political one to avoid the president's wrath.

Shaping the Future of Local Programs: Spring Event - American Public Square Hosted at the Brew Lab, American Public Square once again invites local leaders, residents, and organizations to explore how we can collectively shape more meaningful, inclusive, and engaging programming for our community.

I'll be speaking at this event about my time working on @npr.org's Seeking Common Ground series!

I'm excited to meet everyone who comes out to share their ideas and desires for future community engagement programs at @kcur.org and American Public Square!

If you’re interested in getting a ticket in exchange for putting your name in a hat to tell a story, message me or email me at zperez@themoth.org.

This month’s theme is “ONLY IN KANSAS CITY”: Prepare a five-minute tale of events that transpired in your town that couldn’t happen elsewhere. Secret histories or local mysteries. Tourist traps or hidden gems.

The Moth in Kansas City: Only in Kansas City The Moth is a nonprofit organization that builds empathy through live and virtual storytelling shows, open-mic storytelling events, The Moth Radio Hour, The Moth Podcast and storytelling workshops.

Our next Kansas City Moth StorySlam is one week away (Monday May 12th) and I’m looking for people who are willing to share their stories with our audience! I’ve got 10 FREE TICKETS to hand out to those willing to drop their name in the hat for a chance at getting called up on stage to tell a story!

Kansas City, Kansas, Latinos rally at Cinco de Mayo celebration: ‘We are here to stay’ In addition to its yearly Cinco de Mayo celebration, the Central Avenue Betterment Association organized the “Good Of All People’s Rally.” The demonstration aimed to highlight and support the area’s g...

During its yearly Cinco de Mayo celebration, the Central Avenue Betterment Association held the “Good Of All People’s Rally,” which aimed to support the area’s growing population of Mexican residents amid an increasingly hostile political environment for Latinos in America.

My latest w/@kcur.org:

Electronic Arts Lays Off Hundreds, Cancels ‘Titanfall’ Game The video-game publisher cuts between 300 and 400 jobs

BREAKING: Electronic Arts is laying off between 300 and 400 staff, including around 100 at Respawn, and canceling a Titanfall extraction shooter that was in early development, according to people familiar. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Hegseth ends Trump-backed Pentagon program for women The first Trump administration touted the program as having "advanced women's economic empowerment."

Pete Hegseth today announced he's "proudly" ending a Pentagon program intended to advance women's participation in peace-building and security.

The program was signed into law by Trump in 2017 with the support of Kristi Noem, Marco Rubio and Ivanka Trump.

Watched all three of the premiere episodes last night, this show is so god damn good.

If you consume only one piece of media to come out of the Star Wars franchise please have it be this.

Another call out for Kansas City storytellers!

In Missouri, innocence isn't enough to get out of prison. The attorney general wants it that way Freed after more than 43 years in prison, Sandra Hemme’s story illustrates how difficult it is to correct errors when the criminal justice system gets it wrong. In Missouri, the challenge is complicat...

Freed after more than 43 years in prison, Sandra Hemme’s story illustrates how difficult it is to correct errors when the criminal justice system gets it wrong.

In Missouri, the challenge is complicated by an attorney general's office that opposes innocence claims regardless of the evidence.

If you’re interested in getting a ticket in exchange for putting your name in a hat to tell a story, message on Blue Sky or email me at zperez@themoth.org.

This month’s theme is “BLOOM”: Prepare a five-minute story about growth. Rising from the concrete or blossoming late in life, tell us about the journey to reach your full potential.

Our next Kansas City Moth StorySlam is coming up soon (Monday 4/14 ) and I’m looking for people who are willing to share their stories with our audience! I’ve got 10 FREE TICKETS to hand out to those willing to drop their name in the hat for a chance at getting called up on stage to tell a story!

The Moth in Kansas City: Bloom The Moth is a nonprofit organization that builds empathy through live and virtual storytelling shows, open-mic storytelling events, The Moth Radio Hour, The Moth Podcast and storytelling workshops.

Want to attend an upcoming Kansas City Moth StorySLAM for FREE?

Let me know you've got a story to share and I can get you in! 🧵/

Kansas City Public Schools targeted by Virginia group over hiring of Black and Latino teachers Kansas City Public Schools has goals to increase its numbers of Black and Latino teachers. A parents’ group says that’s race-based hiring and it’s discriminatory.

Kansas City Public Schools has goals to increase its numbers of Black and Latino teachers.

But a parents’ group from Virginia has filed a complaint with the Equal Opportunity Commission, saying that’s race-based hiring and it’s discriminatory.

Via @thebeacon.bsky.social:

She arrived in Overland Park undocumented. It took her 22 years to get her citizenship 28-year-old Natalie Zarate spent two decades working towards becoming a citizen after crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally as a child. Except now she worries that the Trump administration’s aggre...

Natalie Zarate spent 22 years working to gain her citizenship after coming to the US illegally as a child. She now worries that the Trump administration’s efforts to crack down on immigration and end birthright citizenship could endanger her and her family.

Read my latest w/@kcur.org:

Kansas City's rideshare helps people travel where buses don't. Budget cuts may end both The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority's proposal to cut bus routes would also defund IRIS, a rideshare service intended to fill the city’s transportation gaps. For people without cars, that wo...

NEW: Passengers will lose nearly half of Kansas City’s bus routes if the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority’s budget cuts go into effect.

And they would also lose the rideshare service IRIS, which fills holes in the bus system.

‘Just following Hispanic people': Citizen detained by ICE questions vote for Trump A naturalized Hispanic man says he was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents who were looking for another person on a deportation order, and now the man is questioning his vote for Pr...

"I told him I was an American citizen, and he looked at his other partner like, you know, smiling, like saying, can you believe this guy? Because he asked the other guy, ‘Do you believe him?”

Local resident Chuck Nunn raised similar concerns about federal workers.

"I wasn't paid. It makes no sense. If they were going to have a paid actor, they would pick somebody a hell of a lot better looking than I am, and someone that's much better spoken than I am."
www.cjonline.com/story/news/p...

Hi y’all!

For my next story with @kcur.org, I'm looking to speak with KC area residents who have immigrated to the US, and completed the process to obtain citizenship or permanent legal status after moving here.

If that sounds like you or someone you know, feel free to reach out!

Unhappy voters at a Roger Marshall town hall in far western #Kansas. Very unhappy.

Fantastic episode!

Cuts at USAID and Elsewhere Strain Global Journalism Investigative journalists around the world relied on funding from the U.S. Now, those watchdogs are scrambling to survive a sudden cash crunch.

Investigative journalists around the world relied on funding from the U.S. Now, after the Trump administration abruptly stopped all foreign assistance from the USAID and other federal agencies this month, those watchdogs are scrambling to survive a sudden cash crunch.

Venezuelan men allege mistreatment while in detention in Guantánamo Bay The men told NPR they were kept in the dark about why they were in Guantánamo Bay, and were denied access to an attorney or a phone call with loved ones.

The men told NPR they were kept in the dark about why they were in Guantánamo Bay, and were denied access to an attorney or a phone call with loved ones.

Supreme Court seems poised to lower bar for Whites to sue for job bias Marlean Ames challenged rulings requiring members of majority groups to meet a higher bar to prove job discrimination than groups that traditionally face bias.

Breaking news: The Supreme Court appeared to support the idea of making it easier for men, White people and straight people to sue for job discrimination, based on oral arguments Wednesday.