Phoebe Martel

I’m one of WUSF’s summer radio news interns, reporting on all things Tampa Bay for the next few months.

In May, I graduated from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, where I studied Communications and English. My introduction to journalism came through The Daily Tar Heel, UNC’s independent student newspaper, where I covered arts and culture, affordable housing and university governance.

Writing was my first love, and it shaped my path into reporting.

Outside the Tar Heel, I worked for a campus literary magazine and a local lifestyle publication. While I still love writing album reviews, community journalism is where I’m focusing my energy these days.

As an “NPR baby,” I grew up listening to Baltimore affiliate WYPR on car rides home, and my inner theater kid always secretly wanted to be on air. I first got my radio feet wet during a collegiate internship at Vatican Media in Rome, where I produced web stories and broadcast segments on human rights and migration policy — while also managing to meet Pope Francis and befriending several nuns.

In every place I’ve lived, storytelling has been my way of feeling connected to something larger than myself. Now back stateside, I’m excited to channel my curiosity into stories that reflect Tampa Bay in all its fascinating complexity.

In my free time, I do very amateur boxing and dance, write equally amateur screenplays and obsessively curate Spotify playlists.