Welcome to my website. I am a journalist, author, and musician. The best way to stay up-to-date with all of my work is by subscribing to my newsletter, American Doom.
You can also order my award-winning book from the University of Georgia Press. If I am Coming to Your Town, Something Terrible Has Happened -The Life and Times of a Domestic War Correspondent details my journey into American violence and chaos while descending into a dark battle of my own—and the path to recovery for both the nation and myself.
You can find more of my work at The Guardian, Rolling Stone, Zeteo, Mother Jones, The Bulwark, The New Republic and Public Notice. Over the last decade, I’ve covered American unrest and upheaval for scores of publications, including The New York Times, the Washington Post, Esquire, VICE, the Daily Beast and more.
To support my work, please choose a paid subscription to American Doom or consider a one-time contribution.
Background
I began my career in journalism in 2010 at my hometown newspaper, the Peoria Journal Star, writing about crime and daily life. From there I moved to the Bemidji Pioneer in Northern Minnesota, where I continued to report on crime as well as issues affecting the Native American community, primarily homelessness. After a brief stint in North Dakota, I set out as a freelancer in 2013.
I was in Ferguson for weeks following the death of Michael Brown and continued writing about police shootings across the country for the next two years before switching to covering national news events for The Daily Beast, VICE, Esquire and others. In 2014, I moved to Chicago and covered violence and police shootings — in addition to writing about my beloved Chicago Cubs — before moving to Texas in 2016, where I covered immigration and the border extensively, often reporting from Juárez and El Paso.
I currently live in Savannah, Georgia, where I continue to report on immigration, efforts to interfere in U.S. elections, and other issues related to democratic backsliding, as well as the issue of Gullah-Geechee land loss.
In my spare time, I lead my band, the Savannah Morning Blues.
Recent work
Inside a controversial auction of Gullah-Geechee homes: ‘This land needs to be protected’ - The Guardian
More
‘Nothing changed, just the players’: anger after vote threatens Gullah Geechee community - The Guardian
Promoters of election fraud falsehoods approve ballot hand-counts - The Guardian
A Black prosecutor was elected in Georgia – so white Republicans made their own district - The Guardian
The killing of Ahmaud Arbery served as a horrific backdrop to the Black Lives Matter protests that have consumed the nation. I drove to the small, coastal town of Brunswick to look into the case for The Daily Beast.
In September 2020, I travelled back to Juárez to pay homage to my friend and colleague, the longtime photographer and journalist Julián Cardona. You can read my remembrance of Julián at InsideHook.
Following the spring killings of spa workers in Atlanta, I went there to speak to the women and men who work in these quiet and often overlooked places. “America is getting worse,” one told me for my story in New York.
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In Minneapolis for The Daily Beast, I found tension between Black protesters and White rioters.
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I also found residents who said they’d been threatened for supporting the Black Lives Matter movement.
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Through it all, I tried to get to the bottom of rumors — since partly proven correct — that white supremacists and other agents provocateurs were behind some of the destruction.
Peoria Is a Pizza Destination
Take a pizza pilgrimage to Illinois, and see how my tough Midwestern hometown keeps cranking out the good stuff. Read it at Heated Mag.
High Times' New Owner Has a Plan. Or Does He?
Adam Levin wants to turn the iconic magazine into the world's biggest cannabis brand. Whether he can pull it off is the question. Read it at InsideHook.
Why I love this city where Americans aren’t always welcome
It involves Taquito Mexicano’s al pastor, a secret beverage called chucho, and the Wise Man of Juárez. Read it at Heated Mag.
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