About Fred
Fred de Sam Lazaro is director of the Under-Told Stories Project at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota, a program that combines international journalism and teaching. He has served with the PBS NewsHour since 1985 and is a regular contributor and substitute anchor for PBS' Religion and Ethics Newsweekly.
He also has directed films from India and the Democratic Republic of Congo for the documentary series Wide Angle. Fred has reported from more than 60 countries: from Haiti to sub-Saharan Africa to south Asia. He has focused on stories that are under-reported in the mainstream U.S. media. In addition to regularly covering AIDS, public health concerns, development issues and social entrepreneurship, he led the first American crew to report on the crisis in Sudan's Darfur region.
Fred is the recipient of two honorary doctorates, numerous journalism awards and media fellowships from the Kaiser Family Foundation and the University of Michigan. He serves on the board of Minnpost and was a trustee at the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minnesota, his alma mater. He also has served on the boards of the Asian American Journalists Association and the Children's Law Center of Minnesota.
Fred’s Recent Stories
World Apr 19
In India, this group helps turn wasteland into greener pasturesMost rural Indian parents dream of an education and job in the city for their children, rather than a life spent farming. But with a growing migration to cities, there is concern India might not be able to produce enough…
World Mar 05
The factory that combines school and work to give El Salvador a brighter futureAt a garment factory that makes T-shirts bearing the logos of American universities, about a fifth of the workers at high-school dropouts. But if they want to keep their jobs, they'll need to do something about it. Special correspondent Fred…
World Mar 02
The race to develop coffee that can survive climate changeWhat has driven tens of thousands of Salvadorans to leave home, many for the U.S.? El Salvador's coffee beans suffered a devastating disease five years ago, and now face an even greater existential threat: climate change. Special correspondent Fred de…
World Feb 28
The ‘silent massacre’ killing El Salvador’s sugarcane workersA mysterious, chronic kidney disease is wreaking havoc on farm workers in Central America, particularly those who harvest sugar. Despite the risks, Salvadoran cane cutters continue the grueling work, pushed by economic troubles. Special correspondent Fred de Sam Lazaro reports…
World Jan 04
Analysis: The devastating stigma of fistula and the surgery that can helpFistula, once a common occurrence in the United States, continues to be an unfortunate reality for many of the world’s poorest women around the world.
World Dec 27
Erasing the pain and taboo of this female injuryRoughly one million women in the developing world suffer from obstetric fistula, an injury that results from inadequate medical care and causes incontinence. But beyond the physical effects, the condition can subject them to shame and isolation from their families.
World Dec 19
Impact of ‘global gag rule’ goes beyond abortion for these health groups in KenyaThe so-called global gag rule, which cuts off some U.S. government aid to health agencies that offer or mention abortion services, has been reinstated by every Republican president going back to Reagan. But the Trump administration has gone much further,…
Health Dec 14
Fighting the public health threat of counterfeit drugsFake pharmaceuticals are a multi-billion dollar problem around the world. Made and packaged to look like the real deal, these phonies may contain a fraction of the active ingredients or none at all. these fake drugs can have serious consequences…
World Nov 24
This all-women’s college is training Rwanda’s future leadersThe first all-female college in Rwanda is making strides in empowering women from all backgrounds to become the nation’s next business leaders, part of an effort to leave behind an image of a violent country, wracked by genocide. At the…
World Nov 22
In remote Kenyan villages, solar startups bring lightSome 1.3 billion people around the globe don’t have access to an electric grid. But solar startup companies say harnessing an abundant resource -- the sun -- can light up some of the world’s most remote areas. In this Kenyan…
