Take One Small Step in 2021 with KUNR, Noticiero Móvil and StoryCorps
One Small Step is a nationwide effort to reconnect Americans, one conversation at a time.
In collaboration with national nonprofit StoryCorps and other community organizations throughout Northern Nevada and Eastern California, KUNR invited residents to meet someone new — a fellow resident with different views from their own — for a simple, personal, 50-minute conversation in English or Spanish.
Tested and safe, One Small Step conversations were:
- Hosted virtually or in person by a trained facilitator
- Seamless, powerful and respectful
- Archived as part of American history at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., at the discretion of both participants
- And importantly, never shared without participants’ permission
One Small Step conversations are not debates or meant to convince. They’re simply a chance to break the ice: to talk about who we are as people, what we care about, and our dreams for the future. Participants in 2021 asked and answered questions like:
- “Who has been the most influential person in your life? What did they teach you?”
- “Is there someone you disagree with but still love or respect?”
- “What are your fears or concerns about the future of our country?”
One Small Step helped participants move beyond labels like “Democrat” and “Republican” and into the life experiences that shaped how others see the world.
KUNR, in partnership with Noticiero Móvil, was one of just six stations selected nationally to host One Small Step in 2021 and the first to offer the program in both English and Spanish.
How KUNR and Noticiero Móvil worked with these recordings:
Some conversations, with participants’ permission, have been or will be edited for brevity and broadcasted on the radio, as well as published on the websites for KUNR and Noticiero Móvil.
- If your conversation is selected for editing/broadcast by KUNR and Noticiero Móvil, we will notify you and preview the edited clip for you to ensure you’re comfortable with it before it’s broadcasted and published digitally.
You can listen to locally-produced One Small Step conversations from this initiative below:
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Rikki Ricker and Tray Abney are longtime friends and transplants to Reno. They both participated in One Small Step, a conversation program designed to bring people with different political ideologies together. -
As part of KUNR’s local One Small Step conversation program, Reno/Sparks residents Adrian Paul, 57, and Faith Machuca, 24, explored their views on government spending and how frustration with unmet campaign promises can lead to apathy. -
Pat Ragains and Monica Kales participated in One Small Step, a StoryCorps program to connect people with different political values through dialogue. In their discussion, they reflect on the people who have influenced their evolving political values and grapple with the nation’s political divides.
You can also hear excerpts from some of these conversations and more about what it was like to facilitate this program by viewing the following video:
Nevada Humanities was a key community partner for this initiative.
Can I participate in One Small Step moving forward?
If you signed up in 2021 but haven’t been matched, you are still in the pool to participate! StoryCorps receives all applications and will continue matching participants across the country in 2022 and beyond. StoryCorps will contact and schedule you to record when they find the right conversation partner for you. Visit www.storycorps.org/onesmallstep to learn more.
If you haven’t signed up for One Small Step, you can start and record your own conversation with a friend, relative, colleague, or someone else you know using StoryCorps technology. Take the One Small Step: DIY participant course here, which will guide you through the process, step by step!
You can join the One Small Step community by participating in discussions and upcoming events through the One Small Step Facebook group. Joining the One Small Step email list is also a source for information on an ongoing basis about the initiative, related resources and articles, and a way to experience the stories of people who’ve had a conversation.Learn More About One Small Step
About StoryCorps
Since 2003, the non-profit public service organization StoryCorps has perfected a method for helping people feel more connected and less alone, for increasing hope and reminding us of the inherent worth of every life and every story. More than half a million Americans have participated in StoryCorps interviews to date, making it the largest single collection of human voices ever gathered. Interview recordings are preserved for history at the American Folklife Center at the U.S. Library of Congress.
StoryCorps’ One Small Step is made possible in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.