DISCLAIMER -- THIS IS NOT AN OFFICIAL SITE FOR THE MIAMI HERALD OR WLRN, BUT IS A COLLECTION OF MY REPORTS, NEWSCASTS AND ARTICLES WHILE WORKING FOR THE HERALD'S RADIO DEPARTMENT BETWEEN AUGUST 2003 AND APRIL 2009.

At a time when the Israeli military was launching an assault in the Gaza Strip, more than a thousand protestors, supporters of either the Israelis or Palestinians, took part in a raucous demonstration on January 4, 2009 outside the Israeli Consulate in downtown Miami. Police struggled to keep the two sides apart, as demonstrators yelled at each other, threw rocks or bottles and stomped on each others flags. About a dozen people ended up being arrested. Download an MP3 of my report Israeli Protest, runs 2:48 (3.21 mb).

A Miami Herald investigation revealed that lax oversight by the state allowed thousands of convicted swindlers to become licensed to work in Florida's mortgage industry. They then victimized thousands of people who were trying to buy homes. The newspaper's series prompted a state investigation and led to the resignation of a top Florida official. This report is an example of how we would incorporate debriefs with Herald reporters into our radio reports. Download an MP3 of my report Mortgage Fraud, aired 7/24/08, runs 3:49 (3.58 mb).

WLRN-MIAMI HERALD NEWS HITS THE AIR:

The photo to the right shows Rhonda Victor Sibilia and I while doing practice runs of our morning newscasts on Friday, August 29, 2003, before going on the air for the first time the following Monday. Rhonda and I were the first two employees hired by radio news director Irina Lallemand, who had herself just been hired a few weeks before that. Rhonda and I started on August 11, 2003 and the three of us had three weeks before hitting the air to decide on formatics and how to best incorporate the Herald’s stories into our radio reports. We were not limited to only reporting what was in the paper. We certainly had the freedom to cover anything else that seemed interesting to us. But we took our access to the Herald and knowing what was going to be in the newspaper well ahead of time as a great advantage. In Miami, like most news markets, newspapers by far had the largest newsrooms and generated the most stories, especially unique enterprise or investigative pieces. In most radio newsrooms I had worked in before that, when the paper arrived in the morning it would be ripped open and we would see what stories we could incorporate. Often several of the stories that would be covered that day came from the morning newspaper. We took advantage of knowing what was going to be in the next day's newspaper by pursuing sound and having it ready so that when a story appeared in that day's paper we also had a version of it on the air that morning.

Lionel Tate became the youngest person in Florida ever sentenced to life in prison after he was convicted of beating a six-year-old playmate to death when he was 12. His mother had turned down a plea agreement that would have allowed juvenile detention and Tate's release when he turned 18. His attorney argued that the young man was trying to imitate wrestling moves he had seen on TV when he inflicted the fatal injuries. Tate was convicted at trial and given the mandatory life sentence. But on December 10, 2003 an appeals court threw out the conviction and ordered a new trial. Download an MP3 of Lionel Tate Wins Appeal, runs 2:14 (2.04 mb). He was released January 29, 2004, a day before his 17th birthday. Download Lionel Tate's Release, MP3 runs 2:16 (2.08 mb). But Tate ended up violating probation with a conviction of robbing a pizza deliveryman and is now back in prison.

In 2003 the Palm Beach County State Attorney's office launched an investigation to determine if conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh was illegally obtaining powerful prescription pain killers. In an effort to keep medical records from being turned over to investigators, his attorney argued that would violate Limbaugh's privacy rights. You can download an MP3 of my report on a Rush Limbaugh Court Hearing which I covered on December 11, 2003 where both sides made arguments to a judge in West Palm Beach. MP3 runs 2:29 (2.28 mb). A month later Limbaugh got an unlikely supporter when the ACLU of Florida backed his claim of a right to privacy. Download Limbaugh and the ACLU, MP3 runs 1:35 (652 kb).

Touch screen voting machines were supposed to restore faith in the voting process in Florida after the embarrassment caused by punch cards in the 2000 presidential election. But the new equipment didn't inspire confidence. Here's a collection of my reports from 2004 looking at the problematic computerized equipment. This montage would win a 2005 Florida Associated Press second place award for Best Continuing Coverage. The year started off with a Florida House election that was won by just 12 votes. As it got closer to 2004's presidential election, concerns about the lack of a paper trail prompted U.S. Senator Bill Nelson and civil rights groups to call for an investigation. The controversy got even hotter as filmmaker Michael Moore rallied crowds in Fort Lauderdale on the eve of the Presidential election. In the end there would indeed be some problems, but not like those seen in 2000. Florida Governor Charlie Crist would eventually scrap the computerized touch screen voting machines in favor of optical scan equipment, in which voters fill in their choices on paper ballots that are scanned. You can download an MP3 of my montage 2004 Election Woes, runs 11:15 (4.50 mb).

The enduring popularity of reggae legend Bob Marley was evident when a survey in 2004 showed that more than two decades after his death in Miami, he was the ninth most lucrative dead celebrity, ahead of the likes of Frank Sinatra and Marilyn Monroe. In this report I spoke with a Herald reporter who wrote a Business story looking at how his estate had so effectively managed to expand and diversify his legend. You can download an MP3 of my report, runs 2:32 (1.36 mb).

THE IMPACT OF WAR IN IRAQ:

Military Chaplains play an important role in helping soldiers deal with horrors of war. They also have the difficult tasks of leading funeral services for those who have died and assisting grieving loved ones. But that can take quite a toll on them. Several dozen chaplains from across the country who had served in Iraq and Afghanistan gathered in January 2004 for a Chaplains Conference in Fort Lauderdale to discuss the best ways they can offer assistance while also helping each other through what they called a spiritual renewal. MP3 runs 1:56 (796 kb).

More than a hundred citizen soldiers from South Florida got a heroes welcome upon their return from active duty in Iraq. It was an emotional reunion for family members at Fort Lauderdale Stadium, who were glad to see that all members of the 724th military police battalion made it back home safely. Their primary mission had been to set up a detention camp near the Persian Gulf. Download an MP3 of Iraqi Homecoming, which included interviews with family members and soldiers, aired February 20, 2004, runs 2:23 (2.18 mb).

A Fort Lauderdale high school student created quite a stir after traveling to Iraq by himself. Farris Hassan said he wanted to experience the lives of Iraqi people first hand after being inspired by a school project on immersion journalism. His parents had moved to the U.S. from Iraq 35 years before, but Hassan spoke little Arabic and ended up being picked up by the U.S. military and sent back home. Hear an MP3 of my reports from January 2006 on Hassan's Trip To Iraq, runs 2:32 (4.64 mb). This montage would win an award for Best Spot News in 2007 from the Florida Associated Press.

Gambling in South Florida reached a new level with the opening of the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood. I covered the grand opening of the massive Indian gaming facility, which local leaders said would give a major boost to the economy, employing 6,000 people, while drawing a different breed of tourist to the area. Download an MP3 of my report from May 12, 2004, Seminole Hard Rock Casino, runs 1:16 (520 kb).

But the owners of South Florida racetracks and Jai Alai frontons compared the expansion of Indian gambling to a final nail in the coffin, saying they needed to be able to add Las Vegas-style slot machines to compete. Voters in Broward and Miami-Dade Counties went to the polls March 8, 2005 to decide whether to allow the expansion. Download an MP3 of my Slots Election Day reports, runs 3:01 (1.20 mb). The measure ended up being approved in Broward County, but rejected in Miami-Dade. However Miami-Dade voters eventually got a chance to reconsider their decision with a later vote and ended up also approving slots machines at racetracks and Jai Alai frontons.

TRI-RAIL:

To allow an increase in the number of commuter trains it could run, Tri-Rail embarked on a long and expensive project to lay a second set of rails alongside its existing line between West Palm Beach and Miami. Click on my article from November 26, 2004 to view it as a PDF or download an MP3 of the radio version of Tri-Rail Double Tracking, runs 2:08 (876 kb). Completing the $334-million project was the only way to offer more frequent commuter trains on tracks that also had to be shared Amtrak and CSX freight trains. But while the work was underway, there were massive delays. In the summer of 2004 only 20 to 30 percent of Tri-Rail's trains ran on time. Drivers needing to cross over the tracks were also severely impacted, as several major roadways had to be closed for days at a time while a second track was installed in the road. Stations had to be reconstructed and 12 new bridges, including one major project over the New River, had to be built along the 72-mile corridor. But once completed, Tri-Rail was finally able to begin offering much more frequent service.

By October 2008, Tri-Rail had more than doubled the number of daily riders from three years earlier and was the third fastest growing commuter rail line in the country. It was running 50 trains a day and its executive director Joe Giuileti said the biggest complaint from riders was that they weren't’t running trains frequently enough. But because of the economic downturn, it was struggling to maintain funding, with counties and the state considering cuts. Another issue addressed in my report was safety. This was shortly after a commuter train in Los Angeles had collided head-on with a freight train killing 26 people. It was immediately determined that one of the engineers had apparently run through a red signal because he was distracted by sending text messages. A retired railroad union leader in South Florida felt that a device that would automatically stop a train if it ran through a red signal should be mandatory on all commuter trains, including Tri-Rail. But the problem is it’s extremely expensive, prompting former UTU president Carl Cochran to speculate that “maybe it’s dollars over safety.” Tri-Rail countered that it had a tremendous safety record. Download an MP3 of Tri-Rail Funding and Safety, aired October 13, 2008, runs 4:16 (3.90 mb).

In 2000, Florida voters approved a constitutional amendment mandating that the state build a High-Speed Rail network linking its five largest cities. But four years later, a proposal that it be repealed went back to voters. One month before the election, I put together this report looking at both sides of the debate, which aired on October 4, 2004. Voters would end up deciding to cancel plans for so-called bullet trains. MP3 runs 1:39 (681 kb).

Hundreds of independent truckers who haul containers in and out of South Florida ports took part in a demonstration outside the Port of Miami on June 29, 2004. It was part of a nationwide protest by independent drivers. The key complaint from those I spoke with was that they get paid by the load, but spend more than half their time inside ports waiting for their next shipment. They were also upset that officials there were refusing to recognize independent truckers as a group. Download an MP3 for Truckers Strike, runs 1:38 (2.98 mb).

WLRN-MIAMI HERALD NEWS EXPANDS:

The first few months were very trying for our department because we were working out of WLRN while two radio studios were being constructed in the Miami Herald’s newsroom. The radio station didn’t really have much of a news environment and each day we were constantly shuttling back and forth between it and the newspaper. But within nine months we finally moved into our new facilities at the Herald, which made it a lot easier to stay on top of what was happening. We were also able to slowly expand our department, adding two additional reporters by the time the photo to the right was taken after a staff meeting in January 2005. From left to right are Joshua Johnson, Michael Hibblen (me), Rhonda Victor Sibilia, Patricia Nazario and Irina Lallemand (seated). The only staffer from this period not included was part-timer Shannon Novak. With the growth in the staff we were also able to expand the number of newscasts we were airing each day. Initially we were only doing local newscasts during Morning Edition. But we soon began doing afternoon newscasts during All Things Considered and eventually added midday casts as well.

Shaquille O'Neal was given a heroes welcome as he arrived in Miami to become part of the Miami Heat. He promised on that hot summer day to bring the team a national championship. Download an MP3 of my report Shaq Arrives from July 21, 2004, runs 1:04 (442 kb). He would deliver on that promise within two years, with the Miami Heat winning the NBA championship in 2006. Hear my newscast as the Heat returned to Miami as National Champions, aired June 21, 2006, MP3 runs 2:00 (1.83 mb).

At a time when stem cell research had emerged as a controversial topic and President George W. Bush had put firm limits in place, actor Michael J. Fox visited South Florida in advance of the 2004 presidential election. Fox, who suffers from Parkinson's disease, was showing his support for Democratic candidate John Kerry and his desire for expanding Stem Cell Research, which Fox said could advance research into the condition he was afflicted with. The report aired September 29, 2004, MP3 runs 1:17 (530 kb).

In advance of a NASCAR finale that drew about 100,000 people to the town of Homestead, south of Miami, I spent an afternoon at Homestead Miami Speedway speaking with fans who were already in place for the event. Hear an MP3 of my report on the NASCAR Festivities, aired November 18, 2004, runs 1:20 (552 kb).

Le Tub, a funky old cash-only restaurant along the Intracoastal Waterway in Hollywood, Florida, was named by GQ magazine in June 2005 as having the nation's best burger. With the announcement I visited the restaurant, speaking with regulars about what makes its fat burger so damn good. Download an MP3 of my report for Le Tub, Aired June 30, 2005, runs 1:33 (1.42 mb).

Two years later residents finally got their wish, as the so-called whistle ban went into effect. It came as the number of passenger and freight trains running on the tracks had reached nearly 60 a day. I wrote this follow up for the Miami Herald, speaking again with nearby homeowners, as well as a former union leader who had worked for decades as an engineer on that stretch of tracks. Former United Transportation Union president Carl Cochran called train horns "one of the biggest safety items we've got," and was vehemently opposed to the change. Click on the image to the right to read a PDF of my follow up story from October 2, 2006. You can also download an MP3 of my radio report Whistle Ban Goes Into Effect, which runs 2:14 (2.05 mb).

MIAMI'S COLORED ONLY BEACH:

In the days of segregation, when Miami was not the diverse place it is now, but part of the deep south, African-Americans were not allowed on the beaches. The only exception was Virginia Key Beach, which was designated in the 1940's as Miami's "Colored Only" beach. As color barriers eventually came down, the area, which always had rough, choppy waters, was essentially abandoned. But decades later it was restored, with a museum built to tell the history of race relations in South Florida. A year after work began, I visited the park, speaking with Park Trust Chairwoman M. Athalie Range. Download an MP3 of my report looking at the Virginia Key Horse Carousel, which aired November 11, 2004, runs 1:31 (625 mb). Nearly two years later I again visited with Mrs. Range at the park to discuss a restored miniature train they had received, which was identical to one that carried people around the park in the 1950's. Download an MP3 of Virginia Key Train, broadcast August 17, 2006, runs 1:53 (1.73 mb).

Sadly, three months after I had last spoken with her, M. Athalie Range died on November 14, 2006 at the age of 91. In that final interview she had done such a good job of telling the history of Virginia Key Beach and of segregation in South Florida, that we opted to include the whole interview on the Miami Herald's web site to go with her obituary. I've also included the Athalie Range Interview here as an MP3 (runs 13:19, 12.2 mb). It was recorded August 16, 2006. She was an incredible woman who had been the first African-American to serve on the Miami City Commission in 1966 and was also the first woman to head a state agency in Florida when she was appointed Secretary of the Department of Community Affairs. President Carter would later appoint her to a two year term on the passenger rail service Amtrak's governing board.

I co-wrote a front page story for the Miami Herald on the dramatic tale of a Coral Gables man who nearly died trying to recover a cell phone he had dropped over the side of a bridge. David Estigarribia had ventured onto an old, unused bridge to the Port of Miami after an evening at nearby Bayside Marketplace. At some point he dropped the phone, which fell a few feet onto a nearby ledge. He climbed over a guard rail and tried to reach it, but lost his balance and fell 40 feet into a concrete shaft. He remained there injured for three days before anyone noticed. I spoke with a port worker who finally heard his cries for help. You can click on the image to the left to download a PDF of the article, or download an MP3 of my report Man Falls From Bridge, aired March 2, 2005, runs 1:38 (676 kb).

ART TEELE SUICIDE:

You'll notice another big story on that front page from March 3, 2005 concerned the conviction of Miami City Commissioner Art Teele. It was part of a dramatic downfall for the longtime public official who had become an icon for Miami’s black community. But he also became the subject of several corruption probes, one of which involved an undercover Miami-Dade detective following Teele’s wife. She noticed the unmarked police car following her car and called her husband, who then caught up to the two, chased and eventually stopped the detective. The news on the front page to the left was that he was convicted of threatening that detective. He was also awaiting a federal trial, set for October 2005, for allegedly taking kickbacks in the awarding of contracts at Miami International Airport. If convicted, Teele could have faced up to 20-years in prison. On July 27, 2005 the Miami New Times, an alternative weekly that was not connected to the Herald, published a cover story based on details included in a police report that was part of the corruption investigation. Among the sensational allegations were claims about relations with a transvestite prostitute and illegal drugs. That afternoon he walked over to the Miami Herald, which was across the street from his apartment building, left a package from columnist Jim DeFede, then pulled a gun, shooting himself in the head in newspaper’s lobby. It's unclear exactly why he choose to do that in our lobby.

I was anchoring afternoon newscasts that day and had the difficult task of going on the air a short time later to report what had happened five floors below me. Fortunately I had help from Miami Herald business writer Matt Haggman who joined me live on the air during that first newscast. He had been returning to the office when he saw seven police cars charging up to the front of the building. He then looked inside the glass entrance to the Herald and immediately recognized Art Teele laying in "a large pool of blood." His vivid description of that most unpleasant event said more than I ever could have said alone. As we were on the air, an ambulance was carrying Teele to a nearby hospital where he would die a short time later. In subsequent newscasts we would learn more details about what had happened and got more dramatic sound from witnesses and police. It was one of the hardest stories I’ve ever had to report, mainly because of the sensitivity when you're talking about someone who has just committed suicide. My reports that afternoon would be awarded first place in Deadline Reporting by the Society of Professional Journalists in Florida. You can download an MP3 of those reports for Art Teele Suicide, runs 14:24 (13.1 mb).

Miami Herald art critic Elisa Turner was involved in a violent car crash that left her in a coma for several days. This was a profile of what happened and her recovery, in which she slowly had to relearn how to do things she had long taken for granted. She awoke from the coma in a state of confusion, with a friend washing her hair in a shower at a hospital. The accident had severely impacted her sense of balance, with her slowly having to relearn how to write, walk, even tie her shoes. But after making slow, steady progress, she was finally able to get back to her job at the Herald. Download an MP3 of my report Art Critic Coma, aired April 18, 2005, runs 2:44 (5 mb).

Miami’s historic Freedom Tower has sometimes been called the city’s Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island rolled into one. Built in 1925, it's where millions of Cubans were processed after fleeing their homeland after Fidel Castro took power. So many were upset when a developer sought approval to build a 62-story condo building behind the structure, which they felt was dwarf the historic structure. Download an MP3 of my report on a heated public meeting by Miami’s Planning Advisory Board, which eventually recommended against the Freedom Tower Condo Project, runs 1:55 (3.5 mb).

TERRORISM:

Authorities arrested U.S. citizens in Florida and New York , charging them with providing support to terrorist group al-Qaeda. Prosecutors alleged an emergency room doctor from Boca Raton , Florida had agreed to provide medical treatment to jihadists in Saudi Arabia . He was arrested at his home in Boca Raton as he was supposedly preparing to fly to the country. Authorities also arrested a marshal arts expert in New York , claiming he had agreed to give training on hand-to-hand combat to terrorists. Download an MP3 of my report for NPR News on the alleged Terrorist Supporters, aired May 30, 2005, runs 0:58 (1.77 mb).

On the fourth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Miami Herald humor columnist Dave Berry discussed the difficulty of doing his job in the aftermath of such national tragedies. I produced a piece with he and executive editor Tom Fiedler, in which Berry talked about how “anxiety is a good source of humor. People love that release that comes from being able to laugh about how bad things are.” He discussed the series of columns he wrote in the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew, which seemed to come very easily to him, compared with trying to write after the terrorist attacks. Download an MP3 of Dave Berry on the 9/11 Anniversary, aired September 11, 2005, runs 3:00 ( 5.48 mb).

Federal Air Marshals on an American Airlines flight boarding at Miami International Airport shot and killed a man on December 7, 2005 who threatened to have a bomb. He didn't. His wife said he was bi-polar and had not taken his medication. The federal marshals were undercover as part of an anti-terrorism effort, with many discretely riding on various flights. Download an MP3 of my report Airline Shooting, runs 1:32 (1.41 mb).

Two consecutive days in January 2007 brought Terrorism Scares at the Port of Miami. One was caused when an Iraqi-born truck driver was found to have two additional people hiding inside the cab of his truck at an entrance to the port. The other happened when an explosive detecting sensor went off. The first is a report for WLRN-Miami Herald News, while the second is a quick live report on an hourly CBS newscast. MP3 runs 3:14 (2.96 mb).

New security screening equipment at Miami International Airport and a few others across the country is raising concerns about privacy. While so-called "whole body imaging" can reveal non-metallic weapons or explosives that would not be discovered by metal detectors, the technology essentially allows screeners to see travelers nude. As the equipment was being unveiled on two concourses at MIA, the ACLU questioned whether the first line of security for passengers should also be the most intrusive. Download an MP3 of my radio report Whole Body Imaging, aired July 22, 2008, runs 3:11 (2.91 mb).

HURRICANE WILMA STRIKES SOUTH FLORIDA:

Hurricane Wilma wasn't expected to be as bad as it ended up being, hitting South Florida with a surprise punch of strong sustained winds on October 24, 2005. It brought down a lot of trees, causing widespread damage and power outages. Because it hit just weeks after Hurricane Katrina had decimated New Orleans, the storm got little national attention. But it took an incredible toll on residents, with me reporting on this for weeks. In the 12 years I lived in South Florida, this was the worst storm I went through. The photo to the right is one I took of the street in front of my home in Hollywood. It may not look too dramatic, but shows how a certain percentage of all trees were damaged or destroyed. For two weeks I was without power. But if there was a bright side, it was that I became extremely good friends with my neighbors during that time. Here is a montage of my reports on Hurricane Wilma and its aftermath, MP3 runs 21:59 (20.1 mb).

After heading the National Hurricane Center for several tumultuous years, director Max Mayfield retired on August 25, 2006, citing the toll of so many big storms. Because of his high profile in guiding South Florida through one hurricane after another, he had become a pretty major public figure. He was also someone I had grown to greatly respect after years of talking with him while reporting on storms from the hurricane center. With his retirement, I interviewed him during one of my afternoon newscasts. MP3 runs 3:34 (3.27 mb).

In January 2006 I visited Miami Jai Alai on the facility’s 80th birthday. But the sport, which allows people to bet on players, has been on the decline in recent years. On that day only a few dozen people were in the stands. Its owners said they needed to be allowed to expand the kinds of gambling they could offer in order to stay competitive and were wanting Miami-Dade County to get another chance to vote on slot machines. Another vote did eventually occur and this time voters said yes. Download an MP3 of my report, runs 2:01 (3.7 mb).

Playing dominoes is certainly a key pastime in many Latin American cultures and for many in South Florida. It also drew the attention of ESPN, which filmed a Domino Tournament held in a park in Miami's Little Havana. This report, aired March 9, 2006, would win second place award for Best Sports Feature in the 2007 Florida Associated Press awards . Download an MP3, runs 1:30 (1.38 mb).

LOST LANDMARKS:

For much of 2006 I was among Miami Herald staffers who would prepare a weekly feature that ran each Monday called Last Landmarks. As the name implies, it focused on significant places in South Florida that no longer exist. This was really fun to work on because I really enjoy local history and this gave me an excuse to dig into the Herald's archives. I would ask for files in the newspaper's library on specific topics and then go through folders filled with great old vintage Herald photos or of clips of old articles. Below are five of my favorite Lost Landmark features, which you can click on to view as a PDF. Also, for the feature on Miami’s Marine Stadium, I created an additional page that includes 31 photos that I look of the crumbling site.

BROADCASTING:

Longtime television meteorologist Bob Soper retired in July of 2005 after more than three decades on camera. But the week he retired, the 62-year-old spoke with me about one key regret: not being on camera for the biggest storm of his career. Hurricane Andrew devastated South Florida in August 1992. But shortly before the storm hit, WSVN, channel 7, fired Soper for “not being flashy enough.” They replaced him with “a sexy chick doing the weather and it kind of hurt them during Hurricane Andrew because she really didn't’t know anything,” Soper said. He would later be hired by the CBS station in Miami, WFOR. Download an MP3 of my report Bob Soper Retires, aired July 25, 2005, runs 1:47 (3.5 mb).

Charles Zink had an influence on generations of people who grew up in South Florida as “Skipper Chuck,” the host of a massively popular children’s program that aired on WTVJ from 1957 to 1979. He died on January 5, 2006 at the age of 80, a month after suffering a stroke. I produced this obituary using sound from an interview Zink had recorded a decade before with Miami-Dade Television, in which he said “nobody could have had a better life than I’ve had.” Download an MP3 of Chuck Zink Obit, runs 1:40 (3.06 mb).

Having first learned radio in a class in high school, I've always had a soft spot in my heart for other such programs. I had been sent to Piper High School in Sunrise, Florida to get sound for a different story, but before leaving, because I had long heard about the school and its radio station WKPX, I asked where the radio facilities were. I was taken to the class and after learning the program would soon be leaving Piper to become part of a district-wide program for Broward schools, thought it would make an interesting story. I wrote a print story for the Miami Herald, while also producing a radio version. Hear an MP3 on my report from February 27, 2006 on WKPX High School Radio, runs 1:46 (1.62 mb).

RIDING AMTRAK CROSS-COUNTRY:

I was able to share my love of riding trains with a large story for the Miami Herald's Sunday Travel section. The focus was on how difficult it is to get from some parts of the country to other areas because of the limitations of Amtrak's routes. In particular, I looked at how I enjoyed riding the Texas Eagle, because it is the only Amtrak train that cuts through my home state of Arkansas. I would love to take Amtrak from Miami to Little Rock, but as I point out, that would require nearly three days of traveling because I'd have to first take a train up to Washington, DC, transfer to a train bound for Chicago, then take a third train south to Little Rock.

Since that takes a bit too long, I've instead twice flown to different points along the Texas Eagle, then taken the train to my hometown. In the travel story I write about flying to San Antonio to begin one of the trips. I quoted many of the passengers I met and took several photos that were included in the piece. You can click on either of the images here to read the story, while I've also created a separate page on my Travel Story, which includes many more photos from my trip. The Arkansas Times also posted a link to my story and hosted a blog that got quite a bit of feedback, which you can read by clicking the link above. The last time I checked it was still available online.

I produced this fun piece with Miami Herald music writer Evelyn McDonnell to coincide with her print story on South Florida hip hop group Mayday. She borrowed equipment from us and recorded her interviews. Then she and I sat down in the studio, pulled our bites and worked out a script, which she voiced. This is a good example of how we often worked with print reporters to have them do radio pieces for us. McDonnell's report, aired May 29, 2006, ended up winning a second place award in the 2007 Florida Associated Press awards for Best Short Light Feature. The MP3 runs 1:29 (1.36 mb).

As final work was being done on Miami’s Performing Arts Center, the acoustics of the Knight Concert Hall were tested on August 20, 2006, two months before its grand opening. An invited audience of about a thousand people sat through a rehearsal by the Cleveland Orchestra, which played a wide range of sounds and styles to get a feel for how the place sounded. Acoustics experts walked through the hall, listening from every location and considering what variables could be changed to improve its quality. Download an MP3 of PAC Acoustics, runs 1:38 (1.5 mb).

The downfall of once powerful Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff extended into Miami, where he pleaded guilty to two criminal felony counts related to his fraudulent purchase of SunCruz Casinos, a fleet of gambling ships that would travel into international waters. Abramoff’s court appearance on January 5, 2006, came one day after he pleaded guilty to three other federal charges that stemmed from a wide-ranging investigation into corruption in Congress. Download an MP3 of Jack Abramoff Hearing, runs 1:26 (2.5 mb).

A maverick third party candidate and an irreverent moderator made the final debate for governor of Florida in 2006 more lively than most. 20 minutes before the debate was to begin, a federal judge issued an order that Reform Party candidate Max Lynn should be allowed to take part. The debate, which was being aired live on MSNBC, was hosted by Chris Mathews, who certainly wasn’t afraid to take shots at Republican Charlie Crist or Democrat Jim Davis. Download an MP3 of my report on the Gubernatorial Debate, runs 3:42 (3.39 mb). Crist would go on to win the election.

LOOKING AT THE LIFE OF CHARLES SCHULTZ:

Being a lifelong fan of the Peanuts comic strip, I was fascinated to learn more about the life of cartoonist Charles M. Schultz, as presented in a book and PBS documentary that came out independent of one another in October 2007. In advance of their release, I wrote this feature for the Miami Herald, published on Sunday, October 14, 2007. Click on the image to the left to read the full article as a PDF. I also provided audio of the interviews I recorded with the author and filmmaker for the Herald's web site and have included them here.

I spoke by phone with David Michaelis, author of "Schulz and Peanuts: A Biography." His extensive research, mixed with the cooperation from the Schulz family, made for a very compelling and detailed account of Schulz's life. However his family would eventually have reservations about some of the conclusions reached in the book. You can download an MP3 of my interview with David Michaelis, which runs 30:37 (28 mb). I also recorded an interview with filmmaker David Van Taylor who wrote and directed the American Masters episode "Good Ol' Charles Schulz." The telephone interview was recorded as he rode a Long Island Railroad train. MP3 runs 17:04 (15.16 mb).

The 108-year-old Miami Women’s Club took the rare step of apologizing for its past “shameful discrimination against people of color.” The philanthropic organization had allowed African-American members for several decades, but its president said they felt its past was something that needed to be formally addressed. On November 10, 2008, a proclamation was presented at the club’s ornate building, which once had prohibited blacks. Download an MP3 of my report Apology, runs 3:07 (2.85 mb).

AGING BARBER SHARES HIS STORY:

I had been getting my hair cut by 82-year-old Anthony Maniglia for a couple of years by the time I finally asked if he would mind me writing a profile about him for the Herald. The barber in Hollywood, Florida had a fascinating life story, which I had slowly learned new details of each time I went for a trim.

Maniglia was born and lived his first five years in Sicily, Italy, before his family moved to Tunisia in North Africa. It was there that he first learned to cut hair as a teenager. In 1953, at the age of 27, the search for better opportunities led him to board a ship bound for the United States. It was a rough voyage that caused him to be terribly sea sick and barely able to eat anything during the two week trip. He first settled in Cleveland before the need for warmer weather prompted him to move to Florida. He worked for a decade in Fort Lauderdale before wandering into a barber shop near his home in Hollywood, where by chance he ran into someone he had known decades before as a child in Tunisia. That's how he came to work at Vinnie's, the shop off Hollywood Boulevard, where he had been working for nearly 30 years by the time I interviewed him. At the age of 82, he said he has no plans to retire anytime soon, telling me that "when I quit the hair, I'll be dead." In addition to the article, which ran as the display on the front of the Broward Sunday section on September 28, 2008, I produced a long radio piece for WLRN. In includes interviews with Maniglia, his customers and the grown children of the his former employer, Vito Lucchese and Sylvia Salerno, who today work alongside Maniglia in the shop. You can click on the image to the left to read the full story or download an MP3 of the report Barber, which aired on September 29, 2008. It runs 4:05 (3.74 mb).

As President Barack Obama announced he was lifting a ban on embryonic stem cell research, doctors at the University of Miami were celebrating. The facility had been using adult stem cells in its research, but doctors said they would immediately begin using the more controversial embryonic stem cells. The researchers said they offered much greater potential for finding better treatments to a broad range of ailments. Download an MP3 of Stem Cells, aired March 10, 2009, runs 4:05 (5.61 mb).

In an effort to keep exotic pets from being released into the wild, where they can disrupt the balance of nature, a Pet Amnesty Day was held in Miami. It allowed the owners of creatures that had gotten to be too much for their owners to handle, to surrender them at Miami MetroZoo. Organizers cited the Burmese Python as one example of what can happen when exotic pets are released. The snakes had been causing problems in the Florida Everglades for several years and likely originated from one being set free. Download an MP3 of Pet Amnesty Day, aired March 19, 2009, runs 3:45 (4.3 mb).

Finally, here's a photo of me on the second floor terrace of the Miami Herald in October 2006, with the downtown skyline in the background. You can see from the construction cranes that the housing boom was still active then, as a trio of 60-story condo towers were being completed. But that boom would lead to a major bust in South Florida and a downturn in the economy. The photo was taken by an old childhood buddy from Arkansas, David Scolli, who was visiting Florida when he came by the Herald.

After spending nearly six years at the paper, in April 2009 I submitted my resignation to the Miami Herald. It had been a fascinating place to work, where I was given tremendous opportunities to branch out and try new things. It was also the first place that promoted me into management positions. I’m incredibly grateful to the newspaper and WLRN. I know the 12 years I spent in South Florida will be a fond chapter in my life when I look back years later. And I know I’ll miss the warm weather on those cold days of winter. But at the time I felt it was the right moment for me to return to my hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas, in large part to be closer to my parents as they get older. I was also happy to return to a former employer, KUAR-FM 89.1, which is also an NPR member station.