I am a feminist, Southern storyteller and reporter that doggedly looks at the world with a critical eye.
I am a Teaching Assistant Professor of Journalism and freelance multimedia journalist based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
Although news reporting is my first love, I have a passion for writing editorials, opinion pieces and first-person essays, a craft I’ve honed after years of reporting almost every beat, across media. Early in my career I was the only woman/person under 40 on an editorial board and it taught me how to thoughtfully be heard.
Journalism, Essays, & Reviews
My work, which has spanned print, online, TV, radio and podcasting – received awards from the National Society of News Columnists and National Federation of Press Women in 2024. I am a freelance contractor for various outlets including The New York Times, The Associated Press and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, where I write book reviews.
I believe in the nuances of stories; the gray area between the shouting sides that so often get attention. I explore those nuances through opinion columns and I was elected president of the National Society of News Columnists in 2024. To explore those gray areas in my own profession, I completed a one-year 10,000 mile journey to chronicle journalism in America, which earned awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the National Federation of Press Women, among others.
The Night the Sky Burned Bright (or A Southern Christmas: Fire, Feline Friends, and a Dollhouse)
When I was a child and my parents tried to ferret out which one of us was in trouble for a wrong, my dad always told me in his most stern voice not to “tell stories.” In the deep South that was a polite way of saying “don’t lie.”
A romcom delight (or dill-ight) in ‘Pickleballers’
In short, all you need to know is in the title, and if you didn’t like Pickleball before, you’ll either be repelled or tempted to try.