Category: Iraq

Step One: New Boots

I finished with the paperwork side of things a few weeks ago, but I’ve got a long way to go before I leave for Iraq. Two weeks — that’s how long I’ve got before I leave. I stopped by a store today to get a pair of hiking boots, my first real provisioning for the trip.

It’s the 31st, and I leave on the 15th. I’ve got two weeks to get the following (from the USF–Iraq embed checklist):

As an embedded journalist, you must provide:
1. Hygiene items
• Soap/shampoo
• Toothbrush/toothpaste
• Shower shoes
• Towels
• Feminine hygiene products
• Toilet paper (optional for when you are away from the compound)
• Baby wipes (optional)
2. Sleeping Bag
3. Waterproof sunscreen
4. Flashlights (include red lenses)
5. Climate appropriate clothing – Mid Oct-Mid May nights are cooling down and it gets very cold in the desert. By the end of NOV temps can drop to below 30 degrees Fahrenheit and vary by 50 degrees during the day. Dress in layers and pack a rain- resistant shell or jacket during this time frame. In the summer months the heat is extreme. Bring light, loose clothing and a hat for protection from the sun when not wearing your protective gear.
6. Phone (optional)
7. Equipment needed for filing/transmitting media products
8. Hand carry all prescription medication and a full supply to last throughout your embed.
9. Bug repellent (with Deet)
10. Cash and/or Debit Card (PX accepts debit/credit cards but card system may not always be functioning)
11. Ballistic Equipment (protective vest* & helmet) (LEVEL IV recommended), ballistic eye protection, long sleeves required for transportation on military aircraft.

Most of it I’ve got or can get pretty quickly. The ballistic equipment I’m renting, except for the eye protection, which I ordered and should be arriving soon.

It’s still surreal, but it’s getting more real quickly. Two weeks isn’t long. I better get ready…

T-Minus…

…something like 25 days.

I got confirmation from USF–Iraq my paperwork is complete on their end. I still have one more thing to do, get my visa from the Iraqi government, but otherwise I’m good on that end. At least, that is, as far as paperwork is concerned.

My ballistic goggles are supposedly on their way, along with some ballistic sunglasses. I’ve made arrangements to rent a bulletproof vest for two weeks for something around $200. With that comes rifle plates and a kevlar helmet. The $200 figure may be wrong, but regardless its significantly less than the $2,000 buying that stuff would cost me.

I’m starting to realize I’m actually going. I am looking at dates for meetings I’m supposed to cover and realizing I won’t be here for them (tonight it was a public hearing about the transfer station). I am looking forward to having some time to dedicate to improving my radio reporting and how I tell stories with sound, which this period should allow me.

I was interviewing someone for a follow up piece about long-term pass holders at Wildcat today, and they mentioned they’d heard my piece on NHPR on the Cascade mill. And yesterday I got a comment on Facebook from a friend and former Memorial Hospital board member about how much they liked my article on health care in the Sun. I’ve been busy lately, and it’s had an impact. People are noticing stories.

But at the same time I’m trying to squeeze stories like that of the Cascade mill into a day of reporting, and then further squeeze it into four minutes. That’s tough. I colleague commented that they expected more from my mill story, because of the depth and severity of the situation. I can see that perspective. I talked with someone today who was instrumental in getting Fraser involved the last time the mills were in trouble, and he didn’t think this proposal has a chance. That’s a hard story to tell, though it may be true, and yet at this point it’s only one person’s opinion. I’ve said before I think the North Country needs a documentary, not a sound byte, because the interwoven future, past and present are so complex.

But that’s hard to do with a full time job. That’s hard to do with a daily deadline. That’s why I’m looking forward to a different kind of daily deadline—the kind connected to a radio deadline. The breadth of the stories waiting to be told both here and elsewhere are breathtaking. This trip will be a good “boot camp” for that work.

NHPR News

I just finished my latest piece on the Gorham mill for NHPR. One of the most challenging things with audio stories is capturing all the sounds, to make the listener really feel like they are there. I went to the Berlin indoor farmer’s market yesterday, where there was a fantastic band (Shelburne Addition) playing, lots of people shopping and all types of sounds and noises. It made interviewing harder, but it gave me the opportunity to work a little harder at capturing the atmosphere of the place.

Again, I can’t over emphasize how nice it was to catch up with so many people over the course of the day reporting that story. It was a little hard to get my work done because so much of my time was spent saying hello to people I hadn’t seen in three months.

But I was able to capture enough sound and talk to enough people to get a good idea of how people are feeling about the mill. It is nice to report something positive happening up there, even if there are serious concerns about where it will go.

And it was nice to get to practice using sound a little more creatively (and surgically). Shelburne Addition did a great job of covering up some of the more difficult edits and making things sound good. Their music helped me bring the feeling of the market into people’s homes and cars. Or, at least, I hope it did. I think it did. I’d love to hear if anyone disagrees.

Sound is a hard thing to capture, but I’m getting better. Two weeks in Iraq should give me a real opportunity to test myself, without any distractions. And the story I just finished should give me the money to get a new microphone before I go. It all works out sometimes.

Oh, by the way, I took this photo yesterday off East Mason Street. It was a stunningly beautiful morning, although my fingers were so cold I could hardly work the camera.

Listen tomorrow morning for my story on NHPR. Probably around 7:15 a.m. I’ll post it on here when I’m finished as well.

Picking Up Speed…

It’s a little more than a month before I head to Iraq, and I’m reasonably well entrenched in my new job, so it’s time to get back to LPJ. The last two months, between the job transition, classes at Plymouth State (fulfilling prerequisites for the masters in economics I hope to someday chase down), and freelance projects for the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation and Northern Community Investment Corporation have had me to the wire for weeks. In the next several weeks, however, things will start to slow down, just in time to grab some bulletproof and head east.

I’ve been overwhelmed by the number of stories out there lately. There are more than I can handle. I’ve had a great time reporting on the Mount Washington Hotel’s effort to trademark “Mount Washington,” and the struggle over the privileges long-term pass-holders at Wildcat believe they deserve, but at the same time the Gorham mill has kept flipping turbulently toward an uncertain future.

I’ve been putting feelers out in the North Country for ways I can stay connected, because of the sense of community there, but at the same time I’m looking further abroad as well. I’m trying to get a story together on the Southern Sudanese in New Hampshire, and how they feel about that election, and possibly make the connections to go report there when the referendum happens in January. But that’s six days before I head to Iraq, so I have a hard time seeing that happen.

It’s all storytelling in my eyes: print, radio, photography, etc. And I am a far cry from getting enough of it. There are two compelling stories I want to cover—the rural American one, and the international one. Sometimes it’s hard to choose. But right now, with classes and projects and work, it’s been neither. I’ve been consumed by the day in front of me, barely able to put the plans together for the bigger, more profound stories.

But now that pace should be slowing down. Now it’s time to look for the stories first, and the outlets second, instead of finding the outlets that tell me what the stories will be. My projects may be slowing down, but I’ll be picking up speed, working on those things I have a passion for.

Iraq is step one. That trip, while obviously a work trip, will be a chance to test out one aspect of these two possibilities. As long as I come home safely I will have learned something about what direction to go.

And with this “slowing down” hopefully I’ll be able to polish off some of the stories that have been sitting for months. I have a Peru piece to finish, and a woman in western Maine to interview about how it feels to be the epicenter of the foreclosure scandal. I’ve got stories I’ve been trying to chase down, about immigrants, about industrialization and about energy, that have had to sit because I can’t hold on to all of them. Now, as things slow down, I’ll be speeding up…

Southern Sudan

So I’ve got two months until I go to Iraq, and here already there is somewhere else I want to go. The January 9 referendum in Southern Sudan on whether they will form their own country or not would be an amazing story, just the kind of thing I’d love to cover. But it’s six days before I get on a plane for Kuwait.

My solution? Portland, Maine, has a large Sudanese population. While talking to them won’t be the same as going there, it would make for a great story. I also need to check to see what the Sudanese population is in Manchester, because it could be a good story for NHPR as well.

It’s an interesting thing, trying to figure out just how to launch into international reporting. But with international cities close by, I can do some if not all.

First Week

What a week! My first week is over, and it was great.

Granted, some of the stories I covered weren’t all that uplifting, but several others were important discussions about the direction the state should go. I’ll have an interesting piece in Tuesday’s paper about what impact Senate Bill 500 has on the state (it’s not what you think.)

And the daily deadline, the daily pressure, is great. It motivates me and pushes me in ways I need. The office environment is great as well, with interesting discussions and perspectives that push my reporting.

I also get to cover a lot of the hard news. Whether it’s accidents or legislation, it lands on my desk. That’s how I prefer it.

And I’ve got the time and the resources to do more verification than I ever had before. The office helps out so much in that respect, because it’s a place where people can count on reaching me.

I am looking forward to when a few of my freelance projects settle down, so I can get caught up and stop running around like crazy. In time, I guess.

Most importantly, however, I resubmitted my Iraq application with new dates (I didn’t realize I wouldn’t hear until rather late in the game, and so I held off on buying tickets.) And I bought a plane ticket to Kuwait. I found out I can rent bulletproof gear, so I won’t have to spend $2,000 on equipment. It’s a January journey that should be both challenging and exhilarating. I am looking forward to doing justice to the stories of the troops so far from home, in the conflict that is now second priority.

So things are taking off, and I’ll have no rest until February.

Eats, shoots,…

…and leaves.

I’ve been offered a new job. Actually, this is the third or fourth job I’ve been offered since beginning my shift in Berlin, but this is the one I said yes to.

I’m not moving, I’m going to work for the Conway Daily Sun. The paper is about 10 minutes from my house, is a daily instead of a weekly, and, most importantly, it has an office.

This was a difficult decision for me, but it really hit home today when I saw my current job on Craigslist. I probably talked to a dozen people who’s opinions I trust before I decided to say yes, but ultimately I think it was the best decision.

That after a day that was one of my busiest in recent weeks chasing great stories all over the Androscoggin Valley.

Two key conditions of the new job were that I would be able to continue working with NHPR and that I could continue with my plan to go to Iraq. Neither was an issue, so I couldn’t think of a good reason to say no.

What I need is an office environment, where I can collaborate and bounce ideas off other reporters, in order to improve as a reporter. Berlin deserves excellent reporting, beyond the caliber I’m currently able to offer. Hopefully by making this step I can get closer to that level of professionalism.

But I won’t be leaving the area. I’ve come to care about the North Country, and I’ve made connections and commitments that will keep me there. I have two projects now that will keep me in northern New Hampshire, and I’m developing plans for two more.

I’m interested to continue to watch development in the North Country, particularly the biomass projects and the federal prison. There are possibilities for the future, and I intend to stay involved, to watch what happens. Who knows, perhaps after I get the experience I crave now I’ll return. But not now. For now the role I played in the Berlin discussion for over the past year and a half is coming to an end.

Raining

Both figuratively and literally.

If bad things come in threes, how many good things come at once?

I’m working on a NHPR project, a Charitable Fund project, a New Hampshire Grand project and my Reporter work. Several other interesting offers have come up, and USF–Iraq got back to me to explain what I need to do to make the Iraq trip happen. It’s so much I’ve barely got time to write.

But the NHPR piece, which is about the fate of the Cascade mill, makes me take pause. The operation is in limbo, and the solution needs to come quick for the 237 jobs to remain. What will that mean for this area? It means the federal prison needs to hurry up and open.

It’s interesting that the debate is how to keep this facility open. The workers would be in trouble if the jobs go away, but the long term viability of paper-making in the United States is by no means given, even with the proposed improvements. It again comes back to the large scale retooling of the workforce.

But what does that mean for the people left behind? Nothing good, as far as I can tell. For them it’s raining too, but in an entirely different way.

New Tools

I got a new lens the other day, a 35 f1.8. I took it out for a spin briefly while on my porch today, and I’m pleased with the result:

The tools of reporting are changing, and trying to keep up with the times is a big part of 21st century journalism. I tote a camera with me everywhere I go, but I also take an audio recorder, a microphone and the ability to shoot video. Not much else will fit in my little bag.

I sent a followup email to the U.S. Forces—Iraq media office to see where I am with my embed request. They responded everything looked good, but they will be back to me shortly. That has got me thinking once again about what tools I’d shove in a bag to the Middle East.

I’m going primarily for radio, but there isn’t a chance I’d leave behind a camera. But on top of my reporting gear, the list includes a bulletproof vest, a helmet, ballistic goggles and armor piercing plates—that’s a bit more kit than I’m accustomed to.

How do you get the story home? What is the best way tell it? That’s a question I’ve been asking myself for a while now. With the Reporter, I’m primarily a writer. I shoot photos as well, but most of my time is spent researching and writing stories, only one of the mediums I love to work in.

Some of the freelance work I’ve been doing recently is audio production, one of the best mediums to tell stories. I’d love to be doing more of that. Much of the motivation for the Iraq trip is to build my radio resume, because reporting from the Middle East is exactly what I’d love to be doing.

But a huge chunk of my recent work has been video, a fuller medium to work in. I just put together my first piece for a new northern New Hampshire client, something that will hopefully help raise the region’s profile in the long run.

It’s great to work in so many mediums—I’m not sure I could choose just one. The way of the future for reporters is to be able to handle it all, as new software and better equipment makes it possible for anyone to create.

But I spend thousands of dollars, on microphones, computers, lenses, cameras, cables and memory cards. I’m ordering new software: $170 and $450; new lens: $550; new audio recorder: $600. It’s a race to keep the equipment ahead of the curve, and at the same time keep my credit card below the limit.

But the results! I just shot a video with one of my cameras and edited it all in a day. I’ll post the results as soon as I’ve given it to the client, but it’s great, particularly how it got used. Running through the woods, jumping over rocks, splashing through rivers, it performed throughout.

But getting shot at in Iraq? That’s a bit more testing. I took $4,000 in camera equipment to Peru, and it made it back fine, but that wasn’t a war zone, literally. Expensive tools plus desert sand sounds like a perfect storm for their demise.

An opportunity like this, however, should it arrive is not something to be passed over lightly. There will always be new tools.

Iraq?

It’s been more than a month since I put my application in to the United States Forces–Iraq to embed with a New Hampshire reserve unit near Baghdad, and I’m still waiting. I’m still hoping.

It’s a weird feeling, to be hoping to see war. I’m not someone who is wrapped up in the romanticized vision of war reporting, but I do see a value in having people there. In this contentious political climate, with candidates vying for votes based on their positions on the Afghanistan War, it’s worth remembering there are New Hampshire soldiers in Iraq, our new “forgotten war.”

How quickly the perspective shifts. Several years ago Afghanistan was ignored, and Iraq was melting. Now it’s flipped, with fewer than 50,000 troops in Iraq and mounting casualties in Afghanistan. How do you focus a nation’s attention on a war with multiple fronts? Ask Truman, I guess.

I want to go there. I want to catch people up on what it means to be a soldier, what it means to still have troops there, even if it’s “only 50,000.” They do not deserve to be forgotten, even if the other war is more pressing.

If I get the go-ahead I’ll have to push the dates back. I had planned on going in November, but then things got hectic. Now I’m looking for somewhere in January.

Why? Because I need $2,000 in body armor, plus shatterproof goggles, Nomex gloves and a helmet. That’s a big portion of my annual income, but as I told my wife, “Don’t worry, I’ll be able to use it to go to Afghanistan.” That didn’t go over well.

I’m still waiting, but I’m no longer on the edge of my seat. I imagine I’ll hear sometime soon, at which point I can toss a bunch of money out the window and get on a plane. Who knows, I just might like it. But most importantly, whether you like it or not, you’ll hear about what is going on there. That’s the most important thing, lest we forget.