ListenAmy Isackson has been the border reporter at KPBS in San Diego since 2004. She covers breaking news and feature stories on California-Mexico border issues and immigration, for local and national broadcast.
Amy got her start in public radio by pitching a series of stories about rural New Zealand - horse dentistry and sheep sheering - to Radio New Zealand's "Country Life" program. She then worked with Peabody Award-winning radio producers Nikki Silva and Davia Nelson, to help create the Sonic Memorial, a series of stories on the World Trade Center before, during and after 9/11.
Since joining KPBS, Amy's work has been recognized with awards from the Associated Press Television-Radio Association of California and Nevada, the California Chicano News Media Association, and the San Diego Press Club. Most recently, she won the Sol Price Prize for Responsible Journalism for her story about high school students smuggling people and drugs across the U.S.-Mexico border.
Prior to venturing into the wonderful world of public radio, Amy worked for Yahoo! Inc. for nearly five years as an editorial surfer, associate producer and broadcast communications manager. She majored in Latin American History at Williams College. She grew up in San Diego and made frequent trips south of the border.
Recent Stories
60 S.D. Businesses Inspected For Illegal Hiring
Federal officials will inspect the hiring records of 60 employers in San Diego to see if they employ illegal immigrants. It is part of a nationwide inspection of 1,000 businesses.
Thousands Allegedly Smuggled Through Border Fence Holes
U.S. federal officials say they've broken up a ring that allegedly smuggled thousands of people across the U.S.-Mexico border to San Diego County during the last few years. The group allegedly cut holes in the border fence.
Activists Protest Drownings In All American Canal
Immigrants rights activists dove into the All American Canal Tuesday to protest migrant drownings. Activists strung buoys across the canal to honor the dead and to ask for new safety measures.
Activists Question Delays On Canal Safety Measures
Imperial County water officials plan to add new safety features to the All American Canal to help prevent migrants from drowning. When that will happen, however, is uncertain. Immigrants rights activists say the delays are costing lives.
Federal Officials Tout Program To Deport Criminal Illegal Immigrants
A federal program launched six months ago has helped law enforcement authorities identify more than 6,000 illegal immigrants as they are booked into San Diego County jails. Federal officials say the program is a success.
UCSD Researchers Study Tijuana Sex Workers And Their Husbands and Boyfriends
UC San Diego researchers will study 100 couples in Tijuana to learn what role female sex workers' husbands and boyfriends might play in spreading sexually transmitted diseases.
New Center At UCSD To Study How Migration Affects Health
Public health experts and social scientists will study migrant health at a new center at UC San Diego. The center intends to improve migrants' health and access to care.
Mexican Authorities Free Kidnap Victim With Help From FBI
Baja California law enforcement authorities have freed a young woman who was kidnapped on her way to San Diego. The FBI helped lead Mexican investigators to the 21-year-old.
Activists Say Friendship Park Access Not Enough
A group that's fighting for public access to San Diego's Friendship Park along the U.S.-Mexico border wants to make sure park visitors can go right up to the border fence. The group wants federal officials to remodel the access area they just built.
Mexican Southbound Screening Snarling San Ysidro Traffic
Mexico's screening of cars headed south across the U.S. Mexico border into Tijuana is snarling traffic on San Ysidro streets and on freeways in the South Bay. It can take an hour and a half to cross into Tijuana during peak hours.
