Overview:
-Planet Detroit expands its editorial team.
-Dustin Blitchok joins as Managing Editor and Ethan Bakuli is the Climate Solutions and Service Journalism Reporting Fellow.
-Their focus will be on delivering in-depth, community-centered reporting on climate, public health, and the environment in Detroit and Michigan.
Planet Detroit is expanding its editorial team with two key hires: Dustin Blitchok as Managing Editor and Ethan Bakuli as Climate Solutions and Service Journalism Reporting Fellow. Their addition marks a significant step forward in the newsroom’s mission to deliver in-depth, community-centered reporting on climate, public health, and environment in Detroit and Michigan.
Blitchok brings extensive editorial leadership experience, having served as an editor at Benzinga and Metro Times, and got his start in journalism at The Oakland Press. As a longtime Detroit resident and journalist, he has covered a wide range of public interest stories, including criminal justice and government accountability.
“I’m beyond excited to work with the Planet Detroit team to help shape in-depth reporting on major polluters, the effects of federal budget cuts and regulatory changes, and matters of public health,” Blitchok said.
“At a time when local journalism is shrinking, Planet Detroit plays a critical role in providing essential coverage that holds power to account.”
Bakuli joins the team after covering education and community issues for Chalkbeat Detroit and working as a freelance journalist reporting on race and labor issues. Before launching his career as a reporter, he taught high school students how to produce audio and visual stories about their communities, an experience that cemented his belief in the power of community-led journalism.
“I’ve long admired the reputation Planet Detroit has built — not just as an independent newsroom focused on climate accountability, but also for creating space for community members to take part in the reporting process,” Bakuli said.
“Whether through the Neighborhood Reporting Lab, Summer Journalism Camp, or freelance collaborations, Planet Detroit is helping Detroiters shape and inform coverage of their own communities.”
In his reporting, Bakuli plans to highlight both the urgent environmental challenges facing Metro Detroit and the solutions already emerging at the local level. “I believe one of the ways we as journalists can meet this moment is by spotlighting the creativity and problem-solving of Detroiters,” he said. “I want to explore how people are resisting and responding to our local environmental and public health crises — and what lessons we can learn from other communities.”
Strengthening climate journalism in Detroit
The hiring of Blitchok and Bakuli is part of Planet Detroit’s broader effort to expand its capacity and deepen its impact. Laprisha Berry Daniels, Planet Detroit’s executive director, said the additions to the newsroom will allow the organization to strengthen its investigative and solutions-based reporting.
“Welcoming Dustin and Ethan to the team marks an exciting new chapter for Planet Detroit,” Daniels said.
“Dustin’s leadership will help shape our editorial strategy as we take on ambitious investigations and accountability reporting. Ethan’s work will strengthen our ability to deliver stories that inform and inspire by focusing on challenges as well as community-led innovation and initiatives that address environment and public health challenges.”
Planet Detroit’s executive editor and founder, Nina Ignaczak, said the team’s growth comes at a critical time for climate and environmental journalism in the state.
“The environmental and public health crises we cover demand sustained, rigorous reporting,” Ignaczak said. “With Dustin and Ethan on board, Planet Detroit is in a stronger position than ever to provide the kind of journalism that serves our communities, holds power accountable, and elevates local solutions.”
Planet Detroit’s expansion has been supported in part by recent funding from the MacArthur Foundation and Press Forward, which have invested in growing local, nonprofit journalism to serve communities in need of strong independent reporting.
Blitchok and Bakuli join a newsroom dedicated to covering the intersection of climate, public health, and equity — reporting on the challenges facing Metro Detroit while also highlighting grassroots efforts to create a more sustainable and just future. Their work will also contribute to Planet Detroit’s involvement in the newly formed Climate News Task Force, a collaboration of climate-focused journalists nationwide to strengthen coverage of climate issues at the local level.
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