Will James
Audio Documentary Producer
About
As an audio documentary producer, Will James creates deeply-reported podcasts and specials that illuminate complicated and polarizing issues in the Seattle region. He hosted, co-reported, and co-produced Lost Patients, a 2024 podcast series by KUOW and The Seattle Times that explores why people with serious mental illness cycle between emergency rooms, jail, and the streets.
Will previously worked at KNKX Public Radio, where he created the 2020 podcast Outsiders and co-created the 2022 podcast The Walk Home. Prior to working in audio journalism, he reported for newspapers in his home state of New York.
Podcasts
Stories
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KUOW Documentary: Fentanyl fuels a persistent 'hot spot' at Seattle's 12th and Jackson. What will it take to fix it?
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KUOW Documentary: Fentanyl fuels a persistent ‘hot spot’ at Seattle’s 12th and Jackson. What will it take to fix it?
For years now, members of Seattle's political establishment have been trying to fix one particular street corner: 12th and Jackson, in Little Saigon. This corner is an example of what city leaders call "hot spots" — tiny sections of the city that are home to disproportionate amounts of crime and disorder.
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Fentanyl fuels a persistent ‘hot spot’ at Seattle’s 12th and Jackson. What will it take to fix it?
A report by Seattle auditors found that the “hot spot” of 12th and Jackson in Seattle’s Little Saigon neighborhood has one of the city’s highest concentrations of drug overdoses and crimes against people, despite efforts to police the intersection and help people suffering from addiction.
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5 years after CHOP in Seattle, teen’s shooting death is without answers
In the five years since Antonio Mays Jr.’s death, there have been no arrests, no charges filed, no answers. His father is now seeking redress.
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Homelessness continues to get worse. Should Seattle, and the U.S., still embrace 'Housing First'?
Housing First grew from a fringe practice in cities like Seattle to the U.S.'s guiding philosophy for homelessness response. As President-elect Trump prepares to take office, all that could change.
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The Housing First Approach: A Documentary
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Lost Patients live show explores what's next for mental healthcare
In the podcast "Lost Patients," journalists Will James, Sydney Brownstone ,and Esmy Jimenez explored why so many people with severe mental illness in Washington state are not getting the care they need.
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Seattle’s troubled past and present suggest a new approach to mental health
The story of Seattle’s first known homeless man and how he was treated speaks to the continuing problems with mental health care 170 years later.
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Vulnerable patients caught in ‘churn’ between Washington mental health care systems face life and death circumstances
Lost Patients is a deeply-reported, six-part docuseries examining the difficulties of treating serious mental illness through the lens of one city's past, present and future. With real-life testimonials from patients, families, and professionals on the front lines, Lost Patients provides a real, solutions-oriented look at how we got stuck here...and what we might do to break free.
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50 years ago, many psychiatric hospitals closed. Did that cause today's mental health crisis?
