As I read the many tributes to this incredible man who the world recently lost, I am deeply grateful to have met him. I had the privilege of creating a story about his business accomplishments, philanthropy work and service as a United States naval officer. When speaking with Leonard, he made me feel like I was the only person in the room. His employees told me he was known for treating everyone with that level of respect. He grew up helping his mother develop her cosmetics business, Estée Lauder. It started as a small family company and, with Leonard’s expertise, blossomed into an international corporation with counters in every major U.S. department store. Leonard was the chief executive for nearly two decades.
He was one of the most gracious people I have met. When I spoke with him at his visit to a Nordstrom store, throngs of shoppers and employees applauded him as if a rock star had graced their presence. Leonard smiled and waved, taking the time to make eye contact with each person who approached him.
This news story features Ron Carter, the renowned bassist who overcame adversity to record over 2000 albums and perform in world tours. When I contacted him requesting an interview, I didn’t expect an immediate answer. After all, at that moment he was a time zone away headlining a tour. When we met, I didn’t expect to spend 30 minutes with him. He answered every question I had in thoughtful detail. I felt so fortunate to spend that time with this generous musician! My piece covers how the bassist succeeded despite setbacks and immense prejudice. He ends with his advice for aspiring artists.
The impetus for this report came from a class assignment through my journalism graduate program. You may have seen my professor, Dr. Wayne Marshall, as a guest on CNN discussing a copyright infringement lawsuit involving the world of reggaeton. This popular music genre fuses Puerto Rican and other Latin rhythms with hip hop, dancehall and rap. Dr. Marshall is a leading expert in that music style and has worked with its mega-stars, like Bad Bunny.
From the moment I learned about him, I wanted to take a class from Dr. Marshall. I have a background in music as a ballet dancer. I was fortunate to be classically-trained by some of the most acclaimed companies in the world. From the time I began my broadcast news career, I loved covering the arts as an enterprise reporter and strived to learn the most I could about a broad spectrum of art forms.
Here are some fond memories from my interviews with other musicians, including Texas chart-topping Casey Donahew.
Here are snapshots from my interview with award-winning up-and-coming artist Carin Mari.
Dr. Marshall taught me how to report on music and understand the intricacies of ethnomusicology, composition, sound design and podcast creation. Under his guidance, I felt like I learned enough in just one semester to fill an entire master’s degree. My classmates felt the same way. We formed strong bonds with him, each other, and his incredible teaching assistant, Claire Marie Lim, who is also a professional musician.
Even though the workload in this course was rigorous, and a single assignment could easily take 30 hours, what we learned was worth the effort. On the last day of class, some students fought back tears because they did not want the experience to end. Many of them asked Dr. Marshall to teach a follow-up class. He has taught at a variety of universities including Harvard, MIT and Berklee. If you are a student and have the opportunity to take a course from him, I highly recommend it.
As someone born in Los Angeles, I studied the fire maps while flames decimated buildings, including my first childhood home. My heart ached as people lost everything. Our church boundaries included many areas where fires scorched the land. Residents helped each other and those from other states came to their aid. Volunteers say they have not slept for days as they continue battling this nightmare. What touched me most was how, amidst the devastation, people uplifted each other.
For this story, I interviewed three Bills’ fans from three different countries. Altogether, they traveled a total of nearly 40 hours to meet up in Los Angeles and cheer on their favorite team as they suit-up against the Rams this Sunday. Such dedication is typical of these football devotees known as the “Bills Mafia.” Since 2005, one of these superfans has traveled a total of 184,929 miles to watch the Bills in person.
Beginning in 2019, I started reporting on Bills fanfare for television news. Since then, I have marveled at the enthusiasm of these football aficionados. Many fans wake up well before the sun rises, between the early hours of 2 and 4 a.m., to prepare their tailgating food, pick out their good luck jerseys and paint their faces in the team’s red, white, and blue colors. Despite sleep deprivation and, at times, inclement weather, the enthusiasm of Bills’ fans never wanes. Every moment spent covering Bills tailgating parties is exciting!
Each story has been unique. Once I reported on how the world-renowned Bills Mafia formed.
Some of my stories have featured families who started supporting the Bills in 1959, when the team formed. Even when Halloween fell on game day, fans found creative ways to combine their costumes with jerseys.
When the pandemic hit and fans could not attend games in person, they formed traditions at home. For example, I covered a story about one grandmother who welcomed three generations into her living room each game day. Following social distancing guidelines, each relative sat six feet apart. Sometimes, the group had to spill out into the kitchen to make that possible. There, the grandmother provided a second television. Everyone wore masks, except while eating. They cheered for the Bills just as exuberantly at home as when they could attend games in the stadium.
I am so grateful that covering Bills fanfare has been one of my news reporting beats.
As I drove into Western New York’s Treetop Acres, Christmas trees extended as far as the eye could see against a backdrop of puffy clouds. When I got out of my car and unloaded my camera equipment to film a story for the news, it felt like I had stepped inside a Hallmark movie. Shoppers have made Treetop Acres a tradition for over three decades, beginning when the family-run operation opened in 1990.
As a journalist, I love covering holiday stories. Treetop Acres’ founder, John Fuerch, says most trees get snapped up the weekend after Thanksgiving. The tradition continues this year with new owners, Patrick Barczys and Liz Chatterton. Here is a fresh edit of my report from when John and his wife, Vicki, owned the farm. The story got picked up nationally. A variety of states aired it, including Florida. There, the holiday forecast does not feature snow, but the state’s residents still love to buy Christmas trees!
Originally, I pitched an agricultural story to my news director about what it takes to become a tree farmer and how weather and soil conditions can make or break the business. When I arrived at Treetop Acres, however, I met Jim Hensel, who shared his heartwarming story with me. While he was growing up, Jim’s mother took him to Treetop Acres each holiday season to find the family tree. This tradition continued after he became an adult. When Jim’s mother entered hospice care, for the first time, she did not have the strength to visit the tree farm. Jim decided to surprise her by bringing a tree to her assisted living home.
Jim and his wife agreed to let me film them while they searched for just the right tree. I also filmed the agricultural story and presented both versions to my news director, who chose the one about family. I am so glad that I met Jim and his wife, and that they invited me and viewers to join in their Christmas tradition!
Once you purchase your favorite tree, if you would like decorating ideas, here are some from professional holiday designers.
Here is a picture from the first time I covered a Comic-Con as a broadcast journalist. To get into character, I dressed up as news reporter April O’Neil in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise. Now this outfit lives in the Halloween costume section of my wardrobe. At this time every year, I remember that fun experience.
In my news career, I love covering small businesses. In the fall, town volunteers bring out their cornstalks and decorate city centers as was done here. According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, “Small businesses employ nearly half of the American workforce and represent 43.5% of America’s GDP.” I have found that every small business owner has a unique story. This was recently reinforced in my journalism graduate program. I was honored to moderate a discussion with Alissa J. Rubin, senior Middle East correspondent for The New York Times. Alissa said, “There is always a story behind everything. Get into the details. Keep digging.” This applies to every aspect of journalism. Alissa is not only a Pulitzer Prize winner, but a very caring person, who graciously met with us at midnight, her time, a few hours before catching a flight to Iraq!
Watching Vanderbilt football defeat an AP No. 1 ranked team for the first time in Vandy history brought back fond memories. I loved attending the University and being on the Vanderbilt dance team for all four years. We were on the field cheering and dancing throughout every single game from the moment the players first ran out of the tunnel until the last fans left the stadium.
This is the story of a man who was wrongfully convicted of murder and spent 27 years at the notorious Attica Prison. While behind bars, he built a relationship with his daughter, who was just a baby when he was incarcerated, and became a famous artist. Today marks six years since Valentino Dixon was freed. His story is so complex that in preparation for creating this piece, I read hundreds of pages of court documents, journal entries and articles, and interviewed more people than I could quote. I am thankful for each of them. They all gave me valuable background on this story.
Thank you to Valentino and his daughter, Valentina, for sharing pictures with me to use in this report.
I am excited to be earning my master’s degree in journalism! Since this industry is rapidly changing and I am a television news anchor and reporter, I want to maintain up-to-the-minute skills. Media forms are merging. Many television news stations host podcasts and share written web articles to accompany on-air reports, while newspapers feature audio and video versions of their written stories. I realize that a journalist should be adept at all forms of media. So far in my master’s program, I have been taught by amazing experts, including four Pulitzer Prize winners, an assistant editor for USA Today, and a lifestyle expert appearing regularly on the TODAY Show! This program is akin to earning an MBA in terms of length and depth. I will keep you all updated on the process.
Before even unpacking from her Olympic trip, silver medalist Anita Alvarez spoke with me. In this interview, she opens up about team rituals, stepping onto the podium in Paris, watching her USA artistic swimming team’s underwater moonwalk explode online, the time she almost drowned, and how that setback inspired others to persevere through challenges. Alvarez fell in love with artistic swimming while growing up in Western New York. This is her story.
Thank you to USA Artistic Swimming for providing me with photos. Courtesies: Anita Alvarez, Liz Corman, JH Exposures and James Rokop.
This report contains candid images a United Nations ambassador gave me from footage that she swiftly tossed in her handbag as she fled from invading troops seeking her life. An Indonesian army was attacking Timor-Leste, a small Southeast Asian country, while she was overseeing the Timorese’ vote on independence after over 400 years of captivity. On May 20, Timor-Leste celebrates 22 years of sovereignty.
In 2018, I first studied this island nation while preparing to interview young Timor-Leste delegates for a CBS story covering their visit to the United States. That report went viral in their country, and the Timorese invited me to cover last year’s historic parliamentary election between two leaders considered resistance-era heroes. That time, my report trended internationally. This would not have been possible without the help of the Timorese and Debra Lee, the ambassador who risked her life in their vote for independence, and said, “They are the bravest people I’ve worked with.”
It has been nearly two years since the horrific, racially-driven mass shooting took the lives of loved ones at a Tops supermarket in Buffalo, New York. Residents continue to honor them and enrich their city. On that sad day, Lieutenant Aaron Salter Jr. gave his life to save the lives of others. Creating this story about the victims and how Western New Yorkers are keeping their memories alive, was very personal for me. I had covered stories for the news in the neighborhood where this tragedy occurred many times and the people there were always so welcoming. Lieutenant Salter even went out of his way to make sure I stayed safe as I filmed a story on a busy street. Starting this weekend, through June 24, there will be a 5K race, a celebrity golf tournament, and a gala to raise funds for a charity which honors the victims by helping Buffalo’s rising generation.
For this story, I followed the restoration of a century-old Buffalo building that has attracted travelers from around the world! Watching the work of these skilled preservationists felt like going on a treasure hunt, as they chipped away old drywall and discovered elaborate artifacts hidden underneath. Supplemental photos in my report came from The Buffalo History Museum, Jason Yots, Tom Yots and Preservation Studios.
This is the first time I have animated an entire news report! For years, this Buffalo building, steeped in history, has been hidden underneath a plain façade. Few realized that it was a treasure designed by the first-know female architect and used to help lead the Black Arts Movement. In this report, I bring the building to life by combining my own animation with current footage and archival images from Preservation Studios. Restoration experts from that company are collaborating with Common Bond Real Estate and Urban Vantage to bring the building back to its original state. Recently, motion graphics have become more prominent in newscasts, and although every station I have worked at has had animators, I wanted to learn these skills for myself to help my news team when needed. I loved interviewing the talented preservationists and artists showcased in this piece!
