Twenty years as the administrative coordinator for The San Diego Union-Tribune business department trained Sandra Young to follow the money, question authority and keep a watchful eye on motive.
She provided a layer of filters and structure that was dependable and forward thinking—in the end, helping to create a highly functioning team.
Five years in the bankruptcy legal community have verified everything she learned in the newsroom.
Angie Vorhies is an independent radio producer based in San Diego and Los Angeles, who believes in the power of connecting people through stories.
Through her studies at The Center for Documentary Studies at Duke and UnionDocs in Brooklyn, she is producing a podcast that explores the individual citizen’s role in modern democracy.
A poet, translator, and co-founder of San Diego Roots, an educational, sustainable agriculture non-profit, her work has appeared in Poetry International, Orion Magazine, About Place Journal, and The Conversations Across Borders Project.
Eileen Truax is a journalist and writer. She was born in Mexico City, where she was a political reporter and a Congress correspondent for five years. In 2004 she moved to Los Angeles and for seven years worked for La Opinión, the largest Spanish-Language newspaper in the United States, covering immigration, politics and Mexico-U.S. relationships. She contributes to several Spanish-language publications in Mexico and the U.S., including Hoy Los Angeles and El Universal newspapers, and Proceso, Gatopardo and Newsweek en Español magazines. She also co-founded Malaespina Producciones, a documentary and short films video production company based in Los Angeles.
Eileen holds degrees in Social Communication and Communication and Politics and has been a fellow with the Scripps Howard Immigration Program (ICFJ), the Immigration in the Heartland program (Institute for Justice and Journalism), and the Inter-American Development Bank training program for Latin-American journalists (FNPI). She was an English-Spanish translator of the Latino Immigrant Civic Engagement report series for the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C. She has twice received the José Martí Publishing Award from the National Association of Hispanic Publications (NAHP), and in 2010 she received the Media Woman of the Year Award from the California State Legislature. Currently, she is a member of the board of directors of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ). She is also the founder of Cuadernos Colectivo de Cronistas Latinoamericanos, a journalist network with members in eight countries.
Eileen is the author of “Dreamers, an Immigrant Generation’s fight for their American Dream” (Océano, 2013; Beacon Press, 2015), which sheds light on the complex situation of undocumented students in the U.S. She is co-author of “72 Migrantes,” a book with stories about Central American immigrants murdered in northern Mexico, and “Tú y yo coincidimos en la noche terrible,” a memoir on murdered Mexican journalists. Her first novel, “Fecha de Caducidad,” co-authored with Beatriz Rivas and Armando Vega-Gil (Alfaguara, 2015) is a love story marked by the disappearance of the 43 missing students of Ayotzinapa, Mexico. Eileen is now working on her second non-fiction book on the exile and asylum process from Mexico to the U.S.
“Dreamers, an Immigrant Generation’s fight for their American Dream”
“To let the Dreamers speak for themselves” is the goal veteran journalist Truax sets for herself in this account of 10 undocumented young immigrants brought to the U.S. as children. She puts a human face on the debate around the proposed DREAM (Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors) Act. Publishers Weekly
“Fecha de Caducidad”
By Eileen Truax, Beatriz Rivas and Armando Vega-Gil
A love story marked by the disappearance of the 43 missing students of Ayotzinapa, Mexico.
“De aquí y de allá”: The other Dreamers
Close to 500,000 young people from Mexican families have been deported from the United States during the last 10 years. Whether their deportation was forceful or voluntary, they return to Mexico to find that in their native country they are also, in more than one sense, foreigners. They do not speak the language, they do not know anyone, and they receive neither guidance nor assistance from the authorities. What is the history of these “Other Dreamers” who are trying to remake their lives in a land that is theirs in name only? What challenges do they face? How do they reconcile their binational status? The Trans-Border Institute’s Freedom of Expression Project and the Division of International Studies and the Masters Program in Journalism and Public Affairs at Mexico’s Center for Investigation and Economic Education (CIDE) present, with support from the Ford Foundation, this investigation of a problem that demands the attention of both the Mexican and U.S. governments.
“Forced Labor” in “Jails” for Migrants Denounced
Detention centers oblige inmates to labor as cleaners for one dollar a day; former prisoners complain about “illicit enrichment” by U.S. companies that earn 3 billion.
Families: The Migra’s Latest Target
Arguing that they don’t want to split up families, migrant parents and children are held in US detention centers awaiting word on their fate.
Migrant children denounce torture
Complaints of abuse and torture by agents of the U.S. Border Patrol and other law enforcement agencies have increased in recent months. In Spanish.
One family, two worlds (Presentation in English, piece in Spanish).
In the Romero family, children learned that all siblings are equal. They all practice respect for their elders, they’re proud of being Mexican, and they love the United States, the country that has been their home for the last 18 years. But deep down, everyone knows that there is a difference between them. In households where some children are undocumented and other are citizens, tension can grow but ties can also become stronger. Presented with support from the Institute of Justice and Journalism.
“La frontera entre la vida y la muerte” (Spanish)
Desde 2008, cerca de cien mil mexicanos se han visto obligados a dejar su residencia en Juárez y se han mudado al área de El Paso, en Estados Unidos. Allí se encuentran con una realidad inhóspita. En medio de este exilio involuntario, un hombre, Carlos Spector, se ha dedicado a guiarlos y protegerlos. Ésta es la historia del abogado que lleva sobre sus hombros el peso de la tragedia de familias enteras y para quien cada día es una lucha contra el drama de la migración. Pero también es la historia de miles de víctimas que han encontrado una esperanza en el asilo político.
En México no podíamos vivir (Spanish)
En algún punto del desierto entre las ciudades de Phoenix y Tucson, en el estado de Arizona, se localiza el Centro de Detención de Eloy, una prisión que no es prisión y que alberga a personas que no cuentan con papeles de estadía en Estados Unidos. Ahí, un hombre llamado Yamil, oriundo del estado mexicano de Durango, se entregó voluntariamente a la espera de recibir asilo político y poder así reunirse con su esposa e hijo. Han transcurrido dieciséis meses y Yamil sigue esperando.
In his 40-year journalism career, Ken Stone excelled at fact checking and copy editing at 10 newspapers (ending with The San Diego Union-Tribune for 24 years) and several websites (including three years with the Patch hyperlocal network).
His 20-year-old hobby site, masterstrack.com, won the Track and Field Writers of America’s inaugural prize for online excellence in 2009.
Kersey faces carpetbagger claim in District 5: Incumbent city councilmember now has two Democratic opponents
Published February 10, 2016 San Diego City Beat
Mark Kersey attended Northwestern University in the 1990s along with future Late Night host Seth Meyers. Kersey is no TV funnyman but did win his seat on the San Diego City Council in a laugher. The video-tech researcher ran unopposed in 2012—the first time a non-incumbent did that since World War II, he’ll tell you.
The Case of the Missing Alpine High School
Published May 12, 2015 Voice of San Diego.org
Tiny Alpine has begged for its own high school since the late 1990s. It thought it would finally get one when a campus was mentioned in two winning school bond measures. It still hasn’t, and the culprits blocking the school range from various district officials to President Ronald Reagan.
What I Learned Covering San Diego at the Hyperlocal Level
Published August 27, 2013 Voice of San Diego
Was I invading privacy? Or was I exposing a legitimate news story? By revealing in July 2011 that “a member of a longtime La Mesa pizza family” faced charges of assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer, I revived the age-old debate: What should media report?
Alex Roth has been a reporter at the Wall Street Journal, The San Diego Union-Tribune and the Detroit Free Press, among other newspapers.
He has written extensively about the criminal-justice system as well as business and politics and was named the Union-Tribune’s Writer of the Year in 2005. Roth lives in San Diego with his wife, three dogs and a cat.
After the Bubble, Ghost Towns Across America
Published August 2, 2008 in The Wall Street Journal.
Half-built Subdivisions Are Lonesome Places; ‘There’s Just No Noise.’
Miles of Idled Boxcars Leave Towns Singing the Freight-Train Blues
Published February 23, 2009 in The Wall Street Journal.
The side effects of the post-recession collapse in railroad traffic.
Bob Filner and the Monster Within
Published August 23, 2013 by inewsource/KPBS.
Searching for answers about the sex scandal that took down former San Diego Mayor and former U.S. Rep. Bob Filner.
Shots in the Dark
Published July 15, 2007 in The San Diego Union-Tribune.A shooting incident at a back country general store changed lives forever.
Shooting down Cunningham’s legend
Published January 15, 2006 in The San Diego Union-Tribune.
A profile of Congressman Randy Cunningham, convicted in one of the biggest bribery scandals in Congressional history.
Hero or villain?
Published October 30, 2005 in The San Diego Union-Tribune.
Profile of Mike Aguirre, San Diego’s city attorney.
Vanished: Vito Goes to Sea
Published May 15, 2005 in The San Diego Union-Tribune.
The Mystery of the Gina Lisa. A series on missing fishing boat.
Photojournalist John Nelson has had a lifelong interest in shooting images—whimsical, sad, or thought-provoking—that reflect all facets of the human condition.
He has worked for decades as a staff photographer at a number of news organizations and, now based in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, works on documentary projects. You can see some of his work on his Instagram feed, and on his website.
“Plastic Pollution in the Chesapeake Bay”
Published March 20, 2015.
Executive director of Trash Free Maryland, Julie Lawson, organized a four-day expedition of Chesapeake Bay. Lawson brought together plastic pollution experts, educators, policy advocates, environmentalists and journalists to collect water and sediment samples and study the Chesapeake Bay waterway.
“Bread for the City”
Published February 3, 2015.
Bread for the City and Jen Vaupel are bringing quality healthcare to thousands of needy in the District of Columbia.
“Early Morning Mariachi”
Published January 28, 2015.
A mariachi entertains early morning workers at a taqueria in Los Angeles, California.
“The Center for Health and Gender Equity (CHANGE)”
PublishedTuesday, December 9, 2014.
The Center for Health and Gender Equity (CHANGE), joined by 21 U.S. and international organizations, to hold a rally at the White House to stand with women and girls raped in conflict.
“Ben Bradlee Tribute”
Published October 23, 2014.
Washington Post staffers gather to celebrate legendary publisher Don Graham and editor Ben Bradlee
“D.C.’s Coal-Burning Plants”
Published December 29, 2013.
“Trayvon Martin Vigil”
Published July 15, 2013.
Howard University.
“Chinese New Year in Chinatown, D.C.”
Published February 11, 2013.
Nancee E. Lewis is a photojournalist based in San Diego, Ca. She began her career as a freelancer in her home town of New Orleans and has been a staff photojournalist at the Shreveport Times, the Chicago Tribune and The San Diego Union-Tribune.
Documentary photography and photojournalism are her passion but recently she has been documenting weddings in the gay and lesbian community and working with various clients to build a visually and image-intensive presence on their websites.
Robert P. Laurence covered city hall, politics and rock ‘n’ roll music for The San Diego Union (later the Union-Tribune) for 35 years. He found his nirvana as the paper’s TV critic, a job he approached in the spirit of the rude kid sitting in the back of the class.
It was sometime in high school that Bob discovered he had a knack for writing. He soon decided this was a skill that could be used for earning a living as a newspaper reporter. It was certainly more enjoyable than most other forms of work.
Bob has a B.A. degree in journalism from San Francisco State University and an M.A. in political science from San Jose State. His first reporting job was at the weekly Milpitas Post in what is now known as Silicon Valley; he later covered California’s nascent environmental movement for United Press International. When his wife, Susan White, was hired as an editor for ProPublica in New York City, the couple moved to Brooklyn for a three-year stay.
While Susan worked in Manhattan, Bob spent his days exploring the city and reporting what he found in 86 lengthy emails to friends that he later collected in an ebook, “Letters From Brooklyn: A Slightly Irregular Memoir of Everyday Life in New York City with a Tour Guide Thrown in.”
Jamie Gold is a writer and editor who has worked in several news organizations since starting her journalism career at the Washington Post decades ago. She was the readers’ representative at the Los Angeles Times from 2000 to 2011; being a liaison between the readers and the newsroom as the public was becoming a force gave her a distinctive perspective on the enormous shifts happening in the news industry. Earlier, while living in San Diego, Jamie was founding executive director of San Diego Cares, a volunteer corps designed to make it easier for busy professionals to learn directly about social issues by directly working with those in need. She continues to be fascinated by how (and if, and why) Americans stay informed, studying the ways in which reporting has been transformed by digital journalism and the social Web while still holding dear the principles of journalism.
“UCLA student and illegal immigration”
Published February 8, 2009 in the Los Angeles Times.
“In tough times, praise for writing and investigations”
Published March 18, 2009 in the Los Angeles Times.
“Same-sex marriage: How much coverage is too much?”
Published June 20, 2008 in the Los Angeles Times.
Elizabeth Douglass is a veteran journalist whose work in print and online has received national recognition. She was a finalist for the Gerald Loeb Award, and her stories have led to appearances on The Rachel Maddow Show, Public Radio International, Chicago public radio, and local radio and television stations, as well as in a PBS documentary about turmoil in the defense industry.
Most recently, she covered energy companies, pipelines and the nexus between energy and climate change for InsideClimate News. Her work there included widely-cited stories about vulnerable oil pipelines that cross through Yellowstone and other rivers; how energy projects across the country lock in decades of harmful carbon emissions; and how a culture of fear permeated a nuclear power plant.
Prior to InsideClimate News, she spent 10 years at the Los Angeles Times, where she covered energy, telecommunications and aerospace, and 10 years at the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Exxon Knew Its Ruptured Pipeline Was Old, Defective and Brittle, and Still Added New Stresses
Published Aug 12, 2013 InsideClimate News
Industry experts say vulnerable pipelines like the one that failed in Arkansas can operate safely—but only if they’re carefully monitored and maintained. Read more…
Is the Oil Industry Off a Cliff or Just in a Down Cycle?
Published Aug 6, 2015 InsideClimate News
Low prices are forcing companies to curtail exploration and borrow to sustain dividends and stock value as the world looks to curtail emissions. Read more…
Ruptured Yellowstone Oil Pipeline Was Built With Faulty Welding in 1950s
Published Jan 22, 2015 InsideClimate News
Poor safety, defects may have added risks to pipeline that spilled up to 40,000 gallons of oil into the Yellowstone River. Read more…
In Keystone Fight and Beyond, Infrastructure Is Energy Policy
Published Jan 8, 2015 InsideClimate News
New pipelines, power plants and export facilities would lock in carbon emissions for another generation and continue the dominance of fossil fuels. Read more…
Workers at San Onofre Nuclear Plant Report Culture of Fear, Deep Mistrust
Published Oct 4, 2012 InsideClimate News
Edison, the utility that runs San Onofre, is in upheaval as it digests new evidence that many of its employees are working in an environment of fear. Read more…
The Oil Industry’s Fight to Kill Renewable Fuels—and Why It May Win
Published Feb 10, 2014 InsideClimate News
For all its faults, the Renewable Fuels Standard is the only federal policy that is steadily eroding the oil industry’s de facto monopoly on motor fuels. Read more…
Wall Street Demands Answers From Fossil Fuel Producers on ‘Unburnable’ Carbon
Published Oct 24, 2013 InsideClimate News
Groundbreaking initiative is forcing an investor rethink: What’s the value of fossil fuel stocks if companies must leave reserves in the ground? Read more…
San Onofre’s Problems Continue
Published February 26, 2009 Voice of San Diego
Mistakes and management problems continue to mount at the San Onofre nuclear plant, despite an unprecedented executive shake-up and a year-long effort to convince federal regulators and an industry ratings group that things are improving. Read more…