ThreeSixty Journalism is excited to share program alumnus Dymanh Chhoun is joining its leadership team.
Since participating in camps as a senior in high school in 2005, Chhoun has been an active alum, volunteer and mentor in ThreeSixty’s programming.
“I always volunteer, give my time to the program. That’s so important to me. What they did to me, what they’ve done to me is what I will always remember, and I always want to give back to them no matter what time it is, what time of year it is,” Chhoun said.
When reflecting on how ThreeSixty has impacted his life, he remembers mentors he gained from ThreeSixty. He hopes he can play the same impactful role for students now.
“Even if they aren’t going into news, here’s the biggest thing for me – I hope they think education is important,” Chhoun said. “I hope after they’re done with high school, they go to college. That’s all I hope for because it was not easy for me to go to college. That four years was not easy.”
Chhoun, who grew up in South Minneapolis, was a first-generation high school and college graduate in his family.
“There is so much value into going to college,” Chhoun said. “There’s something that I want to get out of the ThreeSixty students who come through our program.”
Chhoun comes to ThreeSixty from WCCO-TV CBS, where he was a full-time photojournalist since 2014. Most known for his breaking news coverage, he has covered several protests relating to the police killings of Jamar Clark, Philando Castile, and most recently George Floyd.
“It’s unbelievable what I capture,” Chhoun said. “I was the guy out there capturing moments for people to see on WCCO that some other people would not get to capture.”
He began his career as a photojournalist at FOX 21 in Duluth after graduating from the University of Minnesota School of Journalism and Mass Communications in 2011. Shortly after, he joined the NBC-affiliate KTTC-TV NewsCenter in Rochester, where he worked for almost 2.5 years before settling back in the Twin Cities.
“I’m happy that I got over nine years of TV business under my belt,” Chhoun said. “I’ve been out there so I know how to put the right words, the right environment for the kids.”
His work has been nominated for multiple Upper Midwest Emmys Awards over the years. He was awarded first place for Special Project/In-Depth Series at the Society of Professional Journalists Page One Awards in 2016.
“Dymanh is such a great example of what ThreeSixty Journalism is about,” ThreeSixty Executive Director Chad Caruthers said. “We’re so excited to have him as a big part of the ThreeSixty team. It will be a great experience for all of us, especially for our students.”
Chhoun lives in Bloomington, Minn. with his wife and three kids. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his family, taking photos and exploring nature.
To learn more about Dymanh, read his alumni profile piece written in 2017 by then-ThreeSixty-student Paqazi Xiong.
