Catherine Shen
Host, Where We LiveCatherine is the Host of Connecticut Public’s morning talk show and podcast, Where We Live. Catherine and the WWL team focus on going beyond the headlines to bring in meaningful conversations that put Connecticut in context.
Before her current position, Catherine was Connecticut Public’s education reporter for just over a year. She covered a variety of stories like student mental health, childcare shortages, and teacher burnout. She joined Connecticut Public's newsroom in 2021. The Los Angeles native came to CT Public after a decade of print and digital reporting across the country.
She started her journalism career in the Los Angeles fashion scene. While that was an exciting time, Catherine ultimately needed to get back to her news roots. She was soon traipsing all across California’s Central Coast as a freelance news reporter for several newspapers, where she broke stories about local government, law enforcement, and education. She also covered crime, healthcare, business, as well as arts and culture.
After finding herself on the East Coast, she continued reporting in New Jersey, covering a mix of academic news, nonprofit projects, and human feature stories both off and on camera. Then she moved to Connecticut and started reporting for the New Britain Herald, where she won several Connecticut Society of Professional Journalists awards for her coverage on the COVID-19 pandemic, social justice movements, and police accountability.
Catherine received an undergraduate degree in broadcast journalism from Washington State University’s Edward R. Murrow College of Communication. While an undergraduate student, she was a reporter for the university newspaper and its student-run television station, Cable 8 News. She’s also a proud member of the Asian American Journalism Society.
In her downtime, she tries her best to catch up on her reading list but often fails due to a variety of distractions, including reorganizing her bookshelves, scavenging library book sales, and thinking about reading books.
Catherine can be reached at cshen@ctpublic.org.
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Before you cruise into the holiday weekend, we have some tips for staying safe on the road. Connecticut Department of Transportation Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto joins us to talk about the state of our roads and answer listener questions. -
Back-to-school season can bring a familiar feeling. Suddenly, there’s too much to do and not nearly enough time to do it. We explore why so many of us have become so good at filling every minute — and how to make a little more room to breathe. -
Today, we listen back to a conversation with author Chris Bohjalian. He’s the author of over twenty books and he calls his latest novel “The Amateur” highly autobiographical. -
We’re talking about the state rock, which is, you guessed it: marble! Housatonic marble, specifically. We learn more about how this special solid substance earned its honorary title. -
What makes someone swim across an ocean or sail around the world alone? Connecticut adventurers, Elizabeth Fry and Brec Morgan, join us to talk about the pull of the sea, the fear and isolation of their journeys, and what they bring home with them. -
The death of a child can leave parents with more questions than answers, and a lifetime of grief. Today, we talk with parents who have experienced this first hand, and learn about the advocacy that followed their unimaginable loss. -
In June, Connecticut Public held a conversation about dementia caregiving in Wethersfield. On this episode, we hear that discussion, from the logistics of care to speaking openly about dementia. -
What's your go-to ice cream flavor? And where's the best scoop in Connecticut? This hour, we celebrate one of summer's sweetest traditions, from nostalgic ice cream truck memories to the people crafting delicious frozen treats across the state. -
Today, we look at geomagnetic storms — how we predict them, how they impact us, and how we might someday even prevent those impacts. -
If you found a note from a loved one that said, “burn without opening,” would you? Or would curiosity get the better of you? Author Paul T. O'Connor joins us to discuss “The Missing Child” and the extraordinary journey that began with a single note and led him to uncover the hidden story of his mother's life.
