Articles

Since 2002, I have been reporting my way through life.

As journalists, we capture the sights, smells and sounds of this world with a scribbling pen and a sloppy scrawl. Helped by unhealthy doses of caffeine, our flying fingers turn notes and thoughts into words, words into sentences, and sentences into articles that are placed on your morning doorstep, in your inbox, and all around the World Wide Web.

Daily newspaper journalists are always busy, always on the job and always learning. Most of us are pretty smart. The best of us are aggressive and relentless with the powerful and compassionate with the weak. Many of us got into this business because we want to make a difference, we believe in freedom of the press, or quite simply — we just want to write and couldn’t find another way to get paid.

Me, I’m just curious. About everything.

Some of our stories get real results — my story on a shrimper’s woes with government red tape garnered calls from a Congressional representative who wanted to help, another time, calls to an insurance company about a man whose policy was cancelled got it reinstated. Some articles don’t deserve to be remembered beyond their daily news shelf lives of one day. Still others capture a moment or tell a story that is timeless.

The words of billionaires and beggars, ministers and atheists, senators and ship welders have found their way into my notebook. As a business reporter who’s held several jobs and internships, my byline has appeared in weekly journals, tiny community dailies and in some of the largest newspapers in the country.

Below are some of my best:

Boeing bosses spy on workers
This was one of the hardest stories of my career because source development was so precarious. The article remained on the most-read list of our Web site for more than two weeks.

Series: Boeing’s struggles with Sarbanes-Oxley
My series of investigative articles into Boeing started with a tip. As a general assignment business reporter, I eagerly took on the challenge. This article involved late-night document handoffs, visiting the homes of dozens of sources, and gathering enough information so that Boeing’s executive team took the story seriously. To my knowledge, no other media outlet had uncovered a large company having such problems with this law. The SEC is still looking into the issues uncovered, one of my sources tells me.

Boeing B-17 carries passengers over Seattle, back in time
My report on the experience of flying in a World War II bomber: The unrefined and unapologetic B-17 offers a different kind of ride. In a commercial jet, you could close your eyes pretend that you are on a tour bus and your mind might let you get away it. The B-17 allows no such foolery. The bomber demands that passengers be fully aware that they are in a flying piece of aluminum, held aloft by spinning engines roaring to make themselves known.

Hemlines doing their part for the economy
Here, I attempt to get to the bottom of the legend that skirts get shorter when the economy gets tighter. I have a couple of zingers in here that I’m way too proud of, including this question: “Which comes first, extra thigh or an S&P high?” (Because someone’s got to make economics coverage fun.)

Grab a slice of pizza to grasp economy’s woes
Soon after I wrote this article, several other publications had similar stories, including the New York Times. But, my editor and I conceived of the concept on our own. The story begins: “To grasp a slice of the changing economic times, consider the pizza shop. Rising pulp prices mean more expensive boxes. Dairy increases have made cheese costs soar. Rising wheat flour prices have tripled dough costs. Filling up on gas for delivery? Fuhgetaboutit.”

With economy running on fumes, car sales tank
This story on car dealership woes became a hit online and in print. Our newspaper jumped in single copy sales on the day this story ran, in large part because of this story, our managing editor told me.

Feel less than green? Buy back your pollution
I take a hard look at carbon offsets, following the money to see if they are really cleaning the air.

In Mobile, aerospace is part of a bolder vision of global commerce
The U.S. Air Force dealt a blow to Boeing earlier this year when it chose a competitor that includes Airbus to build refueling tankers. But the news was great for the town in which I used to work, because Mobile, Ala., will be building those tankers. When the news came out, I was at a computer assisted reporting conference in Houston. I proposed to my editor that I could delay my trip to Seattle and head to Mobile instead. And I could do it on a small budget. The next day, I landed at New Orleans airport around midnight, got a rental car and drove into Mobile, arriving at 2 a.m. Four hours later, I woke up and started my day at Mobile’s Chamber of Commerce, where officials were literally cheering. I got two articles out of this two-day trip, the first of which was a snap shot of the town’s mood and its challenge in becoming a jet city. A week later, I turned in this piece, which has more context.

For sale: The P-I
My colleague and I wrote this story after learning that our own newspaper was up for sale and would likely close. I was one of two reporters who covered the newspaper closing.

Finance guru Suze Orman talks about faith, power — and money
I sat down with Suze Orman for a Q&A about her new book and asked her probing questions about faith, her stance on gay marriage and, of course, money.

Investment gender gap: Men tend to charge ahead, women hold back
On his and hers investing, here’s the breakdown: He’s confident, heady. She’s shaky, hesitant. He’s got a game plan and he’s optimistic that he’s going to meet his financial goals. She contributes less to her retirement account and is less likely to trade stocks. He trusts his own decisions. She worries more about her financial future, but does less about it.

Sci-fi author Greg Bear to feed Halo fans hungry for details
This post got linked to from a bunch of gamer sites with praise from the gamer community. I’m told that it’s difficult to write for them because they’re so picky.

AmazonFail: An inside look at what happened
I was the only reporter to score a source from inside Amazon.com regarding this “AmazonFail” issue. This post received more than 50,000 views in one day, which is big for Seattlepi.com.

Mahogany imports from Peru via docks questioned
A wood importer in sleepy Evergreen, Ala. finds himself and his lumber yard at the center of an international controversy.

‘Normal’ is very different along the Mississippi Coast
The Thanksgiving following Hurricane Katrina was full of pain and hope for residents of the hardest-hit towns on the Gulf Coast.

Battered Bayou’s blessed holiday
A glimpse into the private Christmas celebrations of a hurricane-battered shrimping village on the Gulf Coast.

Old-world repair store hanging on by a shoelace
Raymond Angel is a Jewish cobbler. His story is one thread in the beautiful tapestry of Seattle. Click the link. Read the story. And step into another place.

Home on the Holiday
An inside look at life and love aboard a Carnival cruise ship that served as a floating shelter following Hurricane Katrina.

A high life in Mobile
A day in the life of a tower crane operator on the construction of a skyscraper. And accompanying Q&A about what it’s like up there. I donned a hard hat and boots and climbed the crane to write this story. My newspaper signed a legal agreement to not sue the construction company if the reporter and photographer fell (ie, died.)

Fighting the new fight
The man who served as an aide to Martin Luther King Jr., and led the children’s march in Birmingham, Ala. is still fighting for civil rights in Chicago. Only today, he says, change has to come from within black men.

Politics and religion mingle at the Christian Inaugural Eve Gala
On the eve of George Bush Jr.’s second inaugural, high-profile members of the Christian right gathered at a ball to celebrate the Republican win. Here’s a glimpse of what went on. Among the attendees: election mastermind Karl Rove and Republican party chairman Ken Mehlman.

Execs get down and dirty
Some white-collar corporate executives toil in the sewers for a week to take on some of the grimiest blue-collar jobs in their company.

Hurricane bond funds are widely distributed
An investigative look at how the governor of Alabama allocated bond money intended for hurricane relief.

A trip around the world: From war-torn Somalia to Chicago
A Mogadishu-born immigrant tries to make it as a taxi driver in the United States. The story takes the reader through the story of Somalia’s government collapse as seen through the eyes of a little boy.

Danger present as ships ply bay
Using a freedom of information request of the U.S. Coast Guard and a lot of Excel sorting, I examined investigations of hits and near-misses on Mobile Bay. Story opens with a nightmare scenario that actually almost happened.

Big crowd raises Cain
Mardi Gras on the Gulf Coast is a crazy month-long celebration that culminates on Fat Tuesday, when offices, schools and banks close. This story captures the celebration in Mobile, Ala. on the Sunday before Mardi Gras, which is known as being one of the wackier – if you can imagine that’s possible – celebrations.

Unions need shake-up
I sat down with Andy Stern, a prominent labor union leader, to talk about the future of America’s working class and organized labor.

Ex-Microsoft exec set to be next space tourist
The man who pioneered Microsoft Word and Excel started out as an immigrant from Hungary, eager for a shot at capitalism and freedom. Now the accomplished billionaire is aiming for the stars.

The loan amounts are small, but the results are huge
The microlending movement, where tiny loans of $50 to $300 are given to poor entrepreneurs in developing countries, is taking off. This story tells of the difference it made in the life of one woman.

Father of microloans sees end to poverty
Envision a world with poverty museums — places where children would go to learn of a dismal way of life extinct, of malnourishment, illiteracy and premature death. Covered 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus’ visit to Seattle.

Dalai Lama visit: A compassionate look at doing business
The Dalai Lama shares his childlike wisdom. Is this what it means to be divine?

Moses adorns Supreme Court, Capitol
A walk through the religious symbolism in Washington, D.C.’s most famous buildings. I wrote the story when the Supreme Court was in the midst of a national legal battle over whether religious monuments should be allowed on public property.

Panhandlers on the rise and “This is my job”
Have you ever had the urge to talk to a homeless man and ask him why he doesn’t work? My journalism partner and I did, and wrote on the homeless problem in Chicago. The story is accompanied by a profile of a beggar.