March 1996 - June 1997

The brevity of most radio reports had often frustrated me because it is difficult to thoroughly tell a story in 30 to 40 seconds. So I tried my hand at print reporting, which I found to be quite challenging, but extremely rewarding. I also shot most of the photos for my stories. In later years I would get a chance to again write for print while working for the radio department at the Miami Herald.

I approached the Little Rock Free Press because I enjoyed reading the bi-weekly newspaper and the kind of stories it reported. It seemed to be the edgiest of Little Rock's publications. It was quite an adjustment from radio, but I had taken several print-related journalism classes at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock by that time. Also, then-editor Stephen Koch was patient, offering suggestions and advice. I also tried writing CD, concert and book reviews. Actually offering opinions instead of just straight facts was a lot of fun and a whole different challenge.

Below are many of the stories I wrote during that time. To see a full-sized, readable version of any of the stories, click on the image. The quality isn't great because most of these are scans of photocopies.