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St. Paul, Minn. —
From war in Burma
to peace in Minnesota
This story took a long time, many
phone calls and visits. It was an introduction to a culture and
people truly unknown to me. The Karen were very patient and gracious
as they told their story to me and recounted horrific experiences.
The adults carry many physical and psychological scars as a result
of escaping their homeland. However, their children appear to
be flourishing. If ever I needed a tonic to lift me above the
petty cares of my daily life I was given a long draught of optimism
and hope for the future based on how the Karen are adjusting to
life in, "freedom country." (08/09/2004)
The "N word"
I picked the 'N-Word' story because
it was refreshing to be able to bust out of the traditional news
style for a bit. I think the informal tone and the writing allowed
me to temporarily poke through that invisible wall that insulates
the reporter from the public radio listener. Editors don't get
bylines on stories but Mike Edgerly deserves one here. He kept
prodding me to tear down that barrier and use less lofty language
and be more personal. It wasn't an easy process and due to the
sensitive topic, the piece was written, and rewritten, over and
over again.
(08/09/2004)
A family
devastated by meth
Mainstreet Radio focused its spring/summer
project on the methamphetamine scourge that is sweeping through
rural Minnesota. My contribution to the meth series focused on
a woman named Rubetta. Drug counselors and law enforcers typically
call meth "devastating" and "unrelenting." Those descriptions
ring sadly true through Rubetta's eyes. For me, it was an emotional
story to cover. I found myself really wanting Rubetta to succeed.
But when I walked away from her after our final interview, I really
wasn't convinced that she would.
(06/14/2004)
God's art
Working on this story gave me
an opportunity to visit a variety of houses of worship around
the Twin Cities. I had heard that there were some fine religious
art collections around town, but I had no idea how magnificent
some of them are! It was a particular treat to tour Temple Israel's
Judaica collection, guided by temple member Marilyn Chiatt. She's
a smart, fun woman with a real passion for ritual art, and she
knows her stuff! As someone who covers the art world on a regular
basis, it was enriching to see people of different religious faiths
using art both to treasure their past and communicate their hopes
for the future. (07/29/2004)
Two funerals
I told a friend I had been to
Rice Lake to report on the funerals. She said it was hard to reconcile
her normal picture of me as a nice, intelligent person who reports
on important issues, with her picture of people who report on
funerals after disasters as vultures preying on vulnerable people
for a sensational story. I explained to her that it was the most
difficult assignment I've had so far, on several levels. There's
the physical strain of standing outside for hours in the snow
and wind, waiting for people to come out of churches. You know
nearly all of them will not want to talk to you, because they're
hurting and they don't want to talk to strangers, let alone be
mobbed by people with tape recorders and cameras. Then, when one
in the crowd of reporters does persuade someone to talk, you join
the degrading sprint to poke your microphone in front of them,
along with the rest of the pack.
There are other challenges, like equipment that malfunctions in
the wet, cold weather, and driving back home on snow-packed roads
to file the story. But you do the job because your editors sent
you there to do it, and because huge numbers of people are going
to the web page for stories about the episode. And you realize
most of the other reporters feel the same way about it. The lucky
thing is, there usually seems to be at least one person who is
willing to talk to reporters, and not only to say how badly they're
feeling, but to speak coherently about the person they're grieving
for and about how the experience is affecting others. Some of
them seem to accept it as a responsibility to their community
or to the larger world; others simply want to share their thoughts.
The second bright spot is the church ladies who bring coffee and
sandwiches out to the reporters, saying, "we know you're just
doing your job." (11/28/2004)
The mysteries
of ice fishing revealed
The story I enjoyed producing
in 2004 was a very important investigative piece about the allure
of ice fishing. It gave me the chance to ask some tough questions
about the sport, such as "Are you REALLY REALLY sure that my car
isn't going to fall through the ice when I drive out to the middle
of the lake?" The piece takes a tongue in cheek look at one of
Minnesota's great winter traditions.
(01/16/2004)
Convincing
Latinos their vote counts
This story was rewarding because
I was mostly an observer, along for the ride as volunteers spent
several hours trying to sign up new Latino voters. A white guy
with a microphone pounding on doors of poor Latino residents didn't
seem the best way to get an honest perspective on voting. Along
the way a strong central character developed, and I learned a
couple of things that surprised me. As a reporter, staying in
the background sometimes (often) produces the most compelling
stories. (09/20/2004)
Children
are the unintended victims of meth
I have friends who have foster
children and they talk often about the system being overloaded
with babies born addicted to meth. It was a difficult story to
tell because there aren't any real statistics. There's only the
feeling from those in the trenches that this is a problem. I also
tried to tell the story differently by trying to zoom in at the
end on the baby. I'm not sure I succeeded, but I still hear from
people who want to know more about the people in this story. It
touched me personally, and I'm determined to do more stories on
this topic. (06/14/2004)
Bringing
the trail through Duluth
I was lucky enough to find Judy
Gibbs in charge. I wanted to let the trail volunteers tell the
story, with as little of my voice as possible. Judy Gibbs was
just the person to do that. With the sound of hard work in the
background, Gibbs talks about the Superior Hiking Trail and why
it's being expanded across Duluth. But more, she shares the pleasure
of doing hard work in a wonderful place on a nice autumn day.
I'd like to be there now. (09/22/2004)
Soaring Solos
This is a piece I did on air guitarist
in Jonathan Maki, as he prepared for the U.S. Air Guitar Regional
Championships in Minneapolis. It's my overwelming favorite of
2004. How many opportunities does a reporter have to mix in music
by Kiss, Led Zeppelin, Rush, INXS, and Chicago, all in the same
story? Mr. Maki is an intense, irreverent fellow who looks great
in a headband. He also gave an insightful, revealing interview
on what it means to be an air guitar master. His supernatural
talent is evident in every picture I took. He's an inspiration
for all dudes who play imaginary Fender Strats.
(06/10/2004)
Some
Republicans see Pawlenty on a national stage
I chose this story on Governor
Pawlenty's Club for Growth debut in New York for a couple of reasons.
First, it's a good example of stumbling onto a story you didn't
anticipate. I went to New York to cover the Republican National
Convention, and planned to spend some time following Norm Coleman,
who had a plum role as a convention co-chair. But after covering
Pawlenty's appearance before the Club for Growth, it was clear
that Pawlenty has gained quite a bit of national exposure because
of the way he's handled Minnesota's budget crisis. And it will
be interesting to see whether Pawlenty's appearance signals a
national political future. Plus, the press corps' Club for Growth
experience was hilarious in hindsight (see blog).
(09/02/2004)
At party conventions,
the party is where it's at
This story was not an easy one to report. It required some legwork before leaving St. Paul for Boston; some wheedling to learn about possible parties and their locations; and a bit of luck to actually score an invitation to one. It also meant leaving the beaten path (i.e., the Fleet Center and the official proceedings) for an evening and then working through the night to write and produce for next morning's air. But the result is a much clearer appreciation for the networking, fund-raising, and general cozying that goes on at the conventions and that, in some ways, are the main order of business during the week (for both parties).
(07/29/2004)
Nearly
20 years later, the Hormel strike lives on
It was the winter of 1986 when
more than 1,000 Hormel meatpackers walked out of the company's
flagship plant in Austin. Those months on the picket line would
change the town forever. Nearly twenty years later and its like
pulling teeth to get people to talk about what happened. But two
men, Charlie Valdahl and Allan Wesely, were generous (and brave)
enough to share their stories in photographic detail. They took
a chance by talking with me so frankly, reopening old wounds in
the process. Thanks to them the radio story that followed was
a privilege to put together. (01/29/2004)
Horses part of student life at U of M Morris
Whenever I traveled to campus
to cover other news stories, I was always curious about the horse
stables situated on campus. Finally, I asked around and found
out students can board their horses on campus, if they pay a fee,
and help take care of all the horses. It made for an interesting
story. The only problem was -- and I know a lot of people will
think this is a terrible thing to say -- I don't like horses.
They make me nervous. While interviewing people in the stables
I always kept one eye on their horse. I figured they'd rear up
and stomp me into the ground at any moment. Or maybe I'd spook
one of them with a microphone, and they'd plant a deadly kick
to my stomach. Hey I've got my reasons for this phobia. When I
was 12, I rode a horse at summer camp, it got spooked and reared
back. I slid off the saddle, hit my chin on his back, and bit
through my tongue. Anyway I made it through the interviews just
fine, and I'm hoping now I'll be a little less skittish around
horses. (05/07/2004)
Closing
the gap: one school's approach
We were in the early stages of reporting for our project on the racial achievement gap. I needed a school scene, and a source recommended a visit to Dayton's Bluff elementary in St. Paul. What I found there was a remarkable story of how one school had turned around its performance and narrowed the gap. It's a rare opportunity to get this much time on the radio for one story, but there was so much to tell. I was truly inspired by the people I met at this school.
(09/27/2004)
Missed
opportunity
This is a RealMedia slideshow
of the World Trade Center site visit of the Minnesota delegates
to the Republican National Convention. They came, they saw, some
cried, and they went back to the convention. I, on the other hand,
arrived early and met family members who were protesting the fact
they have to get permission to visit a dump to visit the final
resting place of their loved ones. I tried to tell the delegates
that the family members wanted to see them. But many chose not
to, and others never knew they were there, partly because their
tour guide was an employee of Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who had
rejected the family's pleas. (08/08/2004)
Managing the
illness
I could say that the Bad State
of Mind series is my favorite stories but one story stands out
for me. It was a profile of Gary Johnson, who is doing an good
job of managing his illness. We in the media too often report
on the failures of the mental health care field. There's not enough
beds. There's not enough treatment. Treatment isn't as effective
as we would want. The police are the ones who are on the first
lines of the defense, etc. This story focused on someone who struggles
to manage his illness and works to help others who have mental
health problems. (02/09/2004)
Whose recovery is
it?
This story broke with our usual
format to get personal with an issue of economic significance
to Minnesotans. It takes a concept that is otherwise abstract
and technical -- the economic recovery -- and translates it into
the voices of ordinary people from all walks of life. It also
took advantage of a relatively new newsroom program to reach out
to our audience to help shape the story with their ideas and contributions.
(09/13/2004)
A different
approach
For the meth series I spoke with
two recovering addicts, one who became an addiction counselor
and one who wants to become a counselor. The story also debunks
the myth that meth addicts can't beat the drug.
(06/14/2004)
Hmong migrate to
little houses on the prairie
The idea for this story came
from an MPR listening session in Marshall. At the listening session
MPR staff met with community members to find out what sorts of
things they thought would make good radio stories. We knew there
was a large population of Hmong in Walnut Grove. One person added
the tantalizing twist which turned the whole thing into a story.
The person claimed the Hmong came to Walnut Grove because they
fell in love with the fictional Walnut Grove in the TV show "Little
House on the Prairie." When I went to Walnut Grove I found
out there was truth in the claim, and it made a nice story.
(07/28/2004)
Alcoholic
central
This was only partly my story.
It belongs equally to Paul Ojanen. He is the voice of the story;
my voice never appears. We worked together on the writing and
the structure of the piece. I've been trying to take myself out
of many of my pieces, and trying to put the subjects of the stories
at the center of the pieces. "Alcoholic Central" is one of the
best examples of those efforts.
(04/21/2004)
Stepping in the
same river twice
It's a story about a documentary
telling the stories of a group of friends who once lived a wild
life together as river guides out West. Robb Moss made a film
about them when they were in their twenties, then returned 25
years later to see what had become of them. It just struck a chord
with me, probably because I am at that time in my life where I
can see where my wild friends of 25 years ago have now found themselves.
(01/14/2004)
The making
of Bob Dylan's "Blood on the Tracks"
According to Morning Edition
producer Jim Bickal, "one of my favorite pieces of 2004 was
an interview that Cathy Wurzer conducted and I produced with Kevin
Odegard, author of "A Simple Twist of Fate: Bob Dylan and the
Making of Blood on the Tracks." Dylan is a very important cultural
figure whose roots are in Minnesota, but much of his life story
is a mystery. In this book, Odegard offers insight into Dylan's
personality, his unusual creative process, and how he works with
other musicians. What made the story stand out was the opportunity
to show how the songs were transformed from the first takes recorded
in New York to the final sessions in Minneapolis."
(02/23/2004)
Mosley examines
1960s race relations in sleuth novel 'Little Scarlet'
I enjoyed interviewing Walter
Mosley because I'm a big fan of his work. I've read all of the
books in the Easy Rawlins series and was waiting with great anticipation
for the next installment. I spoke with Mosley when he was in town
promoting "Little Scarlet" -- the latest Easy Rawlins mystery.
We also talked that series as well as his other work. Mosley is
probably known most for his mysteries, but he writes science fiction
and non-fiction as well. (07/29/2004)
Abu Ghraib
interrogator tells his story
This story was my favorite because
it took a lot of courage for Roger Brokaw to speak out critically
against the U.S. military's handling of prisoners in Iraq. He
saw haunting situations and he reported them to his superiors.
Brokaw could have left it at that. But he felt he had an obligation
to share what he saw in Iraq with the American public. To do that,
he had to overcome the considerable shyness and anxiety that he's
endured for years. Brokaw says he might not have been able to
muster the strength to speak out, but his wife's sudden death
last year changed him. Now he doesn't obsess about what people
think of him. He just wants to do what's right - even at the risk
of angering the U.S. military. I felt inspired by Roger Brokaw
and I've wondered many times if I possess his kind of strength.
(10/11/2004)
Minnesota lags in
new business formation
This story was full of interesting
contradictions. Minnesota is home to some phenomenal entrepreneurial
success stories, including 3M, Control Data, Medtronic, the Carlson
Companies, and Best Buy. Yet, Minnesota ranks low among the states
in new business formation. Despite our prominent successes, we
don't have as much entrepreneurship as most other states. Despite
this, Entrepreneur magazine ranked the Twin Cities as the best
city in the country for entrepreneurs. Why? Largely because the
companies that do start here have a better rate of survival. The
statistics posed some interesting questions and it was a fun challenge
to find the reasons that lay behind them.
(8/8/2004)
Art
imitates life for Somali teens
It captured voices of the children
of some of Minnesota's newest immigrants which is rare to hear
in itself. Also, the play and the very frank disucussion with
the Somali students highlighted an important and somewhat surprising
division in our community between the latest immigrants from Africa
and African-Americans who've been here for generations. Also,
its always good to see ourselves in the reflection of newcomers
to the region. (4/15/2004)
Witness
to Terror
The voices from this piece still haunt me. We wanted to give listeners a chance to hear some of the testimony and recorded evidence presented to the 9-11 commissioners. Much of this material had not been aired before, and I discovered to my surprise that some of the most fascinating information was barely covered in news accounts, perhaps because other portions of the testimony took priority. For example, there's the story of a Florida customs inspector who probably prevented the 20th hijacker from entering the country. There's the voice of flight attendant Betty Ong, calling in to calmly report that her plane has been hijacked. And there's the hoarse voice of Harry Waizer, whose throat and lungs were burned by a fireball of jet fuel at the World Trade Center. I thought I was tired of hearing about 9-11. But these voices moved me profoundly, and I can't forget them.
(4/15/2004)
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