Charles Michael Ray
Charles Michael Ray grew up in the Black Hills of South Dakota. He began working for South Dakota Public Radio as a reporter in 1992 at the age of 19. He worked his way through college at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology and received a degree in Geology in 1997. He then worked as a freelance journalist in the Czech capital of Prague. After a year overseas he returned home to continue his work at SDPB-Radio and to get back to the Black Hills.
Over the years his work has been recognized with numerous awards and fellowships. He's won two national Edward R. Murrow awards and a National Scripps Howard News Service award. In 2006 Ray was a finalist in the Livingston Awards for Young Journalists. In 2009 he was selected as a Logan Science Journalist Polar Fellow. He has won 25 regional Murrow Awards since 2004 and over 40 awards from the Associated Press since 1993.
Ray and his wife Andrea live in Rapid City. He still enjoys spending time at the family home in the Black Hills. He's an avid kayaker and also enjoys ice hockey, mountain unicycling, backpacking, and several other outdoor activities. Follow Charles Michael Ray on Twitter here.
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A conflict over alcohol is escalating in the tiny town of Whiteclay, Neb., which sells millions of cans of beer annually to residents of the nearby Pine Ridge Reservation. While protesters are trying to block beer deliveries to the town, some tribal leaders are considering legalizing alcohol at Pine Ridge. -
A colossal monument of the Lakota warrior chief in South Dakota is 64 years in the making. Problems in the underlying rock are forcing the sculptors to deviate from the original model. But the family carving the monument says it will carry on even if it takes another lifetime to finish. -
More consumers are turning to buffalo meat as a healthier choice that's often better for the environment. South Dakota is the biggest producer of buffalo, and ranchers there say their biggest challenge is keeping up with the demand.
