I had an idea a long time ago now, almost 10 years at this point… to shift over from photojournalism to just straight up journalism. I battled with how to accomplish that goal for many years, with most of the problem figuring out what my place in the world should be. Activist? Journalist? Photographer again? None of it? Which platform? All of them? Am I skilled enough? Do I deserve this (this one is for my therapist)? An ungodly amount of questions, discovery, and battling myself and what I wanted my future to look like, even if it was just outside of work hours (I have a 9-5 these days outside of journalism).

Two years ago I decided on Dispatch. It’s taken awhile to get it going, and I am still working on the kinks… but suffice to say, here we are. In the background, I’ve been working on some explainers, some of which have been published, and am working on my first story. I am extremely proud of this, but understand that this is a slow burn and a big task that lies ahead of me.

I started reading newspapers when I was around 12-13 years old, and slowly migrated over to focusing on the photographs shortly thereafter. I knew the names of all of the local reporters and photographers and followed their stories and photographs at nauseum. My father was involved in local politics so it was pretty cool to see him end up in the paper fairly often, and for reporters to call the house asking for quotes. This was sort of where it all started for me. Being in the know, seeing behind the scenes how local government operates and how it in many ways directly impacts and shapes peoples lives, for better or worse. I was asked what I wanted for Christmas when I was 14 years old, and I said I wanted a Nikon film camera (N75 for any camera nerds). That camera, to my knowledge, was the last consumer film camera they ever made. I shot with it for many years and eventually switched to digital. By that time, around 19 years old, I was reading multiple papers every day, shooting for the local town newspaper, and I had just quit college and applied to New England School of Photography (now defunct) for their photojournalism program. I ended up graduating with honors in photojournalism and shortly after I retained my first staff gig at Foster’s Daily Democrat.

Growing up being exposed to all of this and feeling that passion grow into a career, was one of the coolest things I’ve ever experienced. Accomplishing those goals I had set out was very fulfilling in a way not many things are.

I say all this so you get a sense, albeit extremely briefly, of who I am and where this passion comes from. Journalism, news, and current events are my jam and I love being able to exercise that passion and skill.

The other aspect of this is that, let’s be real with each other, the world feels like, and IS burning (metaphorically and literally speaking). We are in the midst of a Constitutional Crisis, we have a new president who’s creating that, and we have an alarming environmental crisis on our hands as well. Democracy and the world’s environment deteriorating around is overwhelming. It’s also dangerous, life-threatening, and for some, actually does result in loss of life. Protections of peoples rights and freedoms are at stake. Our health is at stake. Democracy is at stake. I take this 11th hour energy as the moment to push forward. We all need to. Whether you’re performing mutual aid locally, a journalist, activist, or a local resident running for local office, there needs to be an effort to combat and resist in a way most of us haven’t seen in our lifetimes, at home.

This is the foundation on which Dispatch. is grounded. My hope is that with what little power I have, I at least try to do my damndest. I hope you’ll join Dispatch. as I continue to try and grow this.

I won’t babble on any further, but with one more thing. I’ve always wanted community. We all do, I think that’s fair to say. My hope is that in some small way, we can create that here as well. Thank you for listening.

P.S - This takes a lot of time and energy (and money). Equipment purchases, memberships to publications, software and such, stacks up quickly. If you’re able to, please feel free to support my passion. I have a Patreon, and will be working on a way to offer subscriptions to this as we move forward. Link is below. All of the content I produce will always be free and there WILL not be a pay wall to any of it. But my hope is that if you can, please help push this forward. Again, thank you.

Linktree