Blaise Gainey joined the station in August to cover state politics for The Texas Newsroom.
Previously, he worked at Nashville Public Radio, where he reported on state politics, elections and breaking news. Prior to that, he covered state politics in Tallahassee, FL, at WFSU, the local NPR station.
While at WFSU, Blaise won a Regional Edward R. Murrow in Hard News for his coverage of the police shooting death of Tony McDade.
His work has aired on the BBC, NPR’s “Morning Edition,” “All Things Considered” and a myriad of national newscasts. He’s also made live appearances on PBS NewsHour and local television stations in Nashville and Tallahassee.
Gainey grew up in Central Florida, then moved to North Florida for college and stayed for work.
He has an undergraduate degree from Florida A&M University.
Got a tip? Email him at bgainey@kut.org or follow him on X @BlaiseGainey.
What are you listening to these days?
I listen mostly to hip-hop and R&B. I switch usually every few weeks what I listen to. So right now, I’m listening to a lot of Destroy Lonely, Lil Keed and Future. If you asked me two weeks ago, I was listening mostly to El Snappo, Luh Tyler, and Bossman Dlow. Those three are artist from Florida. So being from there, I usually try and keep a few artists from there in the mix. My go-to R&B artists are Usher, Keith Sweat and Jacquees. I think what’s most cool about the music I listen to is the energy behind it. It either gets me pumped up to start the day or gets me in a calm mood before bed.
Read anything interesting lately?
I mostly just read articles and peer reviews. Mostly for research purposes for my stories. So that means I’m reading every article I can find about a specific person or topic. Sadly, I can’t name any of these honestly because it’s rarely the headline that matters it’s the content that I’m just trying to consume and have in my mind when I go to write a story.
What are you loving about Austin lately?
The people have been very welcoming. The H-E-B grocery store is amazing. The Thinkery and Mueller area is great. Me and my son spend a lot of time walking around the lake and watching the ducks, geese and turtles. Also, all the great food.