JOURNALISM

The Boston Globe                                                                           

I started as a stringer, writing from Latin America, Washington and the former Yugoslavia. I spent more than two years writing narratives and breaking news about academia in New England, while also covering everything from the deadlocked presidential election in Florida to the terrorist attacks in New York. Some scoops made national news, including Harvard professor Cornel West's row with Larry Summers, a cheating scandal at Dartmouth and admissions errors at Northeastern. Later, I launched a new beat at the paper covering poverty issues. Stories included how the region's largest homeless shelter cut services after amassing a multimillion-dollar endowment, how a growing number of welfare dads fare in a system dominated by women and how shelters barred hundreds of homeless people on the coldest nights. In 2005, I became co-editor of the Globe's City Weekly, the paper's equivalent of an urban magazine that provides in-depth coverage of the characters and issues that color Boston. A year later, with the paper in a financial crisis and many jobs cut, I returned to the Metro section as a reporter. (December 1999 to present)
 

Defense Week                                                                                

I spent a year covering stories such as the conflict in Kosovo, war games aboard an aircraft carrier and the controversy surrounding the military's testing range in Vieques, Puerto Rico. Based in Washington, I spent much of my time at the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill, reporting about problems with submarine warfare and missile defense, the nation's plan to fight two wars at the same time and everything from pork in the defense budget to allegations of fraud among major contractors.  (January - December 1999)
 

Latin America Correspondent

Before being deported from Cuba on Christmas Eve, I covered dozens of stories there on everything from the 40th anniversary of the revolution to a crackdown on private businesses to the rise of rebel farmer movements. Among other stories in the region, I covered drug-trafficking issues and the last political-status referendum in Puerto Rico, the rise of Hugo Chavez in Venezuela, discrimination against Haitians and the spread of AIDS in the Dominican Republic, as well as the economic meltdown in Argentina and the effects of ozone depletion on Tierra del Fuego. As a stringer, I wrote for more than a dozen papers, including the Globe, Baltimore Sun, Christian Science Monitor, Dallas Morning News, Miami Herald, Newsday and San Francisco Chronicle. (May - December 1998)
 

The Palm Beach Post                                                                    

I covered shootings, fires, and other breaking news around West Palm Beach. I wrote a variety of features and computer-assisted stories on police issues. Occasionally, I reviewed books and music. (April 1997 to May 1998)
 

Mexico City Times                                                                          

From Mexico City, I traveled around the country, often writing several stories a day on subjects including political reform, corruption in the federal police force, environmental mismanagement, kidnappings and U.S.-Mexican relations. I also reviewed films and classical music. (June 1996 to February 1997)
 

The (Mexico City) News                                                                

Through Northwestern's internship program, I spent a semester as the paper's Washington correspondent, writing daily stories about immigration, U.S. drug policy and the State Department's certification process, NAFTA disputes and various pieces on culture. (January - March 1996)
 

TEACHING

Emerson College                                 

As an adjunct professor, I teach an advanced reporting class that requires students to cover beats, report a range of stories and post them on a website. (January 2007 to present)

 

Northeastern University                                                               

I taught Journalism 101 to fledgling majors. My class provided a comprehensive survey of the craft. Students delved into everything from AP style and news writing to the ethical implications of their work. (January 2004 to 2006)
Cardean University                                

I developed graduate and undergraduate courses for the national online university in investigative journalism, media history and online journalism. (November 2006 to present)

 

EDUCATION

Northwestern University                                                                

Medill School of Journalism, Evanston, Ill. Master of Science in journalism. (May 1996)

 

University of Michigan                                                                     

College of Literature, Sciences and the Arts, Ann Arbor, Mich. Bachelor of Arts in political science. I also wrote for The Michigan Daily. (May 1994)

 

Université Libre de Bruxelles                                                         

Spent junior year in Brussels, studying European history, French and beer, as a bartender. (January - August 1993)

 

LANGUAGES

Fluent in Spanish and conversational in French.