I got into journalism because I’m curious about the world. The industry hasn’t let me down yet.
As a political reporter at the Bismarck Tribune, I covered the 2008 election and the 61st North Dakota legislative session, ultimately culminating in a North Dakota Newspaper Association “Rookie Reporter of the Year” award in May. I spent the summer of 2008 covering crime, nightlife and business for the Arizona Republic during my Pulliam Fellowship. And in my senior year of college, after two Washington internships, I served as the editor in chief of the student-run newspaper, the Nevada Sagebrush, which I led to its first Pacemaker Award after two previous nominations. Here are a few examples of my published work:
What’s in the future for Bobcat and its owner?
Amid the global recession, North Dakota-based Bobcat Co., known for manufacturing their skid steer loaders, closed its Bismarck plant and cut 475 jobs in the area. I wrote a story about the company and its parent company, South Korea-based Doosan, trying to shed some light over why the manufacturer had to close one of its original plants.
A look inside modern Germany
In September 2009, I participated in a 10-day journalism study trip for the Atlantik Brucke program, a non-profit established after World War II as a way to get American journalists to the war-ravaged country. These are the images I shot for the Bismarck Tribune.
Waiting on Hoeven
As the political reporter for the Bismarck Tribune I’ve been following the speculation regarding North Dakota’s Republican governor and his potential Senate bid against Democrat Sen. Byron Dorgan. It’s been pegged as one of the most potentially competitive races in the nation if Hoeven decided to run.
In search of a health plan
North Dakota’s Sen. Kent Conrad took a central role in the nation’s health care debate, which heated up in the summer of 2009. I took a look at what his efforts could mean to the rural state.
Showdown nears on Employee Free Choice Act
A explanatory Sunday story that details the potential effects the Employee Free Choice Act could have on North Dakota, as well as a look at labor and history of it in the Peace Garden State.
Gilbert night life lacking, residents say
Amid the soccer and alfalfa fields, Gilbert residents say they are looking for something to do on a Friday night. For a town of 200,000, residents of this Phoenix suburb seemed to yearn for something more exciting than just sports bars and malls.
Students return from war but don’t leave it behind
Of all the stories I wrote during my college years, this one sticks out to me as the most important one. The story is a culmination of many interviews in coffee shops and veteran help centers about the aftereffects of war on the young. The story focuses on John Newman, an Iraq War veteran who returned to the University of Nevada shortly after his tour was complete. Things were never the same for him again. The story also earned me the Steve Martarano “Best Published Article Award.”
21-year-old shares thoughts on family killed in plane crash
I was assigned this story while at the Arizona Republic to cover a family that had died in a plane crash. One daughter was not aboard and later shared her story.
Reid, Ensign vote opposite on immigration
Among the many stories I wrote for the Las Vegas Review Journal’s Washington bureau, this one gave me a chance to cover one of the biggest bills in 2007: immigration reform. I even got Sen. Ed Kennedy, D-Mass., to answer one of my questions at a press conference after the bill died.
Comparing North Dakota and Nevada
One of my favorite columns that I wrote for the Bismarck Tribune: “Since moving to North Dakota nearly three months ago, I’ve witnessed two very different economic realities. One is an optimistic, albeit cautious, one. The other is, well, the opposite.”
Why some bills get no debate
Another column I wrote for the Bismarck Tribune in wake of the state Senate approving a bill that would expand fair housing and employment protections to gays and lesbians. Even though 19 lawmakers voted against it, no one was willing to say why.
