Survey Finds Black, White Metro Detroiters Feel Far Apart on Access to the Arts
A new report shows that white and Black metro Detroiters feel far apart when it comes to their ability to...
Ryan Patrick Hooper is the award-winning host of "In the Groove" on 101.9 WDET-FM Detroit’s NPR station. Hooper has covered stories for the New York Times, NPR, Detroit Free Press, Hour Detroit, SPIN and Paste magazine.
Hooper grew up reading the Sunday paper with his dad. That’s where he learned the basics of writing while dreaming of one day writing the stories himself. At 16, he knocked on the door of his hometown paper and asked for a job as a reporter. Since then, he's written extensively for the Detroit Free Press -- the same paper he grew up reading.
Since joining WDET in 2017, Hooper has expanded the station’s arts and culture coverage and received numerous awards from the Michigan Association of Broadcasting along the way. Nationally, Hooper was awarded a 2020 RTDNA Regional Edward R. Murrow award for feature reporting for his story “Would You Rent a Stray Dog From the City of Detroit?“ In 2018, Hooper was named the Associated Press Michigan Editors Broadcast Rising Star in broadcast journalism. He received the prestigious Crain’s Detroit Business “20 In Their 20s” award in 2014. His commitment to volunteerism was recognized by the State of Michigan in 2007.
His juggalo-inspired I.C.Pizza costume was selected by the Huffington Post as one of the best Halloween costumes of 2014.
Orville Hubbard. Lewis Cass. What Happens When Michigan’s Problematic Past Catches Up?
America’s problematic past of racism, slavery and systemic oppression often finds itself fossilized in our street names, statues and buildings...
Pop Culture Gets Mental Illness Wrong. Here’s How to Shift the Narrative.
The portrayal of mental illness in pop culture is often volatile, stigmatized and inaccurate, says Dr. Vasilis Pozios, M.D., an...
Resident Calls for Name Change of Indian Village, Historic Detroit Neighborhood
There’s a call to change the name of a historic Detroit neighborhood. Since the 19th century, Indian Village on the...
Watch a Short Film On the Black Woman Who Integrated the Boblo Boats
On a summer day in 1945, Sarah Elizabeth Ray stood up for something because she wasn’t allowed to sit down....
Marvin Gaye, 50 Years Later: Why We’re Still Asking “What’s Going On?”
The rich layers of Marvin Gaye’s unmistakeable vocals. The lush strings of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. An important message that...
The Motown Museum is Back: Social Distancing, a New Exhibit and a Slice of Detroit History
A trip to the Motown Museum will be different these days. After a four-month shutdown due to COVID-19, the historic...
After 44-Year Run, Dally in the Alley Won’t Happen This September
The free neighborhood festival Dally in the Alley started as a protest party 44 years ago. Wayne State University wanted...
Downriver Mental Health Clinic Helps Bartenders, Service Industry Workers
Last week, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer dealt a blow to bars just a few weeks into reopening by issuing an executive...
Whitmer Closes Indoor Seating at Bars in Metro Detroit
A new executive order from Governor Gretchen Whitmer means bars that make more than 70% of their revenue from alcohol...
Detroit Perfume-Maker Says New Scents Will Help Us Move Past Pandemic
If your house smelled like lemon on a Saturday morning, it was a cleaning day. That smell of fresh citrus...
Fund For Detroit’s Black Farmers Raises Thousands To Generate More Land Ownership
As the country continues to focus on both police brutality and the myriad ways people of color are put at a systemic...