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Libby Denkmann

Host, Soundside

About

Libby Denkmann has covered veterans' issues, homelessness, and local politics during her radio journalism career. She became the host of KUOW's Soundside in November 2021. Previously she was a producer, reporter, anchor, and host for stations KIRO, KFI, and KPCC in Seattle and Los Angeles. During a yearlong hiatus from journalism in 2011, she worked as a congressional staffer in Washington, D.C.. Libby was born in Seattle, grew up on the eastside, and graduated from the University of Washington. Her favorite things include soccer, video games, and her dog, Monty.

Location: Seattle

Languages: English, limited Japanese and Portuguese

Pronouns: she/her

Stories

  • caption: An entrance sign for Seattle Children's Hospital is shown on Thursday, November 14, 2019, in Seattle.

    Seattle Children's nurses call out workplace violence

    Members of the Washington State Nurses Association say there’s been an increase in violence in the Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine Unit at Seattle Children's Hospital and want to bring attention to the need for safer working conditions. KUOW reporter Diana Opong talked to Soundside host Libby Denkmann about what nurses in the unit have been experiencing.

  • barred owl generic

    Why the feds want to cull barred owls in the Pacific Northwest

    In an effort to protect the native northern spotted owl, U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials announced 500,000 barred owls need to be culled throughout the Pacific Northwest over the next 30 years. But some conservationists worry the effort might be too late.

  • caption: From turtle crossings to butterfly migrations, "Crossings" covers the ways in which roads damage -- and benefit -- ecosystems across the country.

    Hear it Again: Roads devastated our ecosystems. But they might also save them

    There’s something so romantic about roads, if you’re a human. Nature might have something else to say about them. While connecting people and communities, roads have rerouted centuries-old migration routes. Roads grant us access to some of the most scenic corners of the planet, and at the same time, offer access to their destruction.

  • caption: Patrol cars and ambulances are shown at the intersection of Third Avenue and Pine Street on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2020.

    Is Seattle's new drug law working?

    It's been about six weeks since Seattle's new law against public drug use and possession went into effect. The ordinance was written to bring the city in line with a new state law that treats things like having or using fentanyl in public as a gross misdemeanor. One of the directives handed down to Seattle Police is to emphasize diversion when enforcing the law. So how does that work? And how is the effort going?

  • caption: An elections worker feeds ballots into a ballot sorting machine on Wednesday, October 28, 2020, at King County Elections in Renton.

    Why didn't more Washingtonians vote in the 2023 election?

    Turnout for this year’s November election was the lowest on record since Washington started keeping track in 1936. Statewide, 36.41% of registered voters returned their ballot in 2023. That beats the previous low of 37.1%, held in another odd-year election — 2017, and the one before that, 38.52% in 2015. So, what is it with odd-year elections and low voter turnout?