Turn The Page

It was the perfect ending to the perfect story of my summer.

After multiple triple-digit days accompanying Wichita's finest reporters and photographers around south-central Kansas, it is time for me to return to school in Lawrence.

From crime to crops, and from the aviation industry to tornado victims, this summer has been quite an adventure. I've gone to all corners of the city on stories, including many of the small suburb towns. But, as far as 'long-distance' travel goes, I went to stories in:

• McPherson
• Hutchinson
• Newton
• Augusta/Towanda
• Wellington
• Sun City
• Lucas

This summer has been memorable for multiple reasons, but the days I spent at KAKE were always exciting and educational. It will be hard, I think, to leave it and go back to school. But, if I didn't go back, how would I ever use the knowledge I accumulated this summer?

And today's adventure in storytelling was no different... In fact, it was probably the best day so far.

Today was last day interning at KAKE-TV, and I got another great opportunity to work alongside Larry Hatteberg as he filmed his latest "Hatteberg's People" story.

As we left Wichita this morning, the clouds seemed to follow us all the way up I-135 to Concordia and Cloud County. There was a notable difference in the landscape between the two counties: Sedgwick was brown and dry; Cloud, green and lush. The stalks of corn and milo waved in the gentle wind as we drove by on the blacktop to St. Joseph, Kansas.

This small community of 15 or so residents (not to be confused with St. Joe's Ost in Sedgwick County), resides a few miles outside of Clyde, near Concordia.

Even as we were still a few miles away from the town, we could already see the towering church steeples. As the town was a French community, it appeared that they had modeled their church, St. Joseph Parish, after Notre Dame Cathedral.

And, like many older, farming communities, the town was centered around the church, which was no longer being used by the diocese.

The other main attraction was our story: The St. Joseph Store, owned by the Girard family. Originally built in 1888, the Girard family took over the store a few years ago after it had been closed for nearly 20 years. They opened it up as a part-time restaurant in May, and said they enjoy seeing the community come together at the store -- just like it used to before it closed down.

The whole time we were working on the story, I couldn't help but think of the fact that it was my last day. But, as I talked to Larry on our way to and from Cloud County, I became more reassured -- about the future and about the past.

Of all the things I contemplated about or had the opportunity to do this summer, I am satisfied in my choice to intern at KAKE-TV. As I go back to school, my classmates will tell me about their internship experiences -- some at local TV stations or newspapers; others, at national affiliates like USA Today or ESPN.

But, KAKE will always be my home. I watched it as a child, fascinated with the stories they told, the people they encountered, and the community they effected. I wouldn't have wanted to intern anywhere else this summer.

It was an amazing experience, but it's time to turn the page in my story. This chapter has already been written.

Did I learn a lot? Yes, as I hope you readers have witnessed first-hand.

Did I have fun? Yes, as much as you can have when you cover both inspiring, indifferent, and depressing news stories.

As I said my goodbyes to the reporters, photographers, producers, anchors, directors, and editors, I felt relief and satisfaction -- relief in knowing that the summer (and the heat) was mostly over; satisfaction in knowing that I had done my best and absorbed all the knowledge that I could.

I also take pride in the fact that I worked with some of the best in the business, and I hope that my own work demonstrates all of the great lessons that they have taught me.

As I go forward in my journalism and story-telling career, all I can do is persevere through all obstacles and always do what I think is right.

At least, that's what my teachers taught me this summer at KAKE-TV.

Things Fall Apart & Things Come Together

During the last few weeks, my days interning at KAKE-TV have not been as frequent as before.

Nevertheless, they have still been interesting and worthwhile.

One day, I followed a story about high energy bills because of the scorching heat and what Westar was doing to help people make payments. That day, though, the reporter-photographer team had been following different story leads. All three or four story ideas had fallen through, and energy bills were the only viable option for the day.

On another occasion, Larry Hatteberg was also having trouble finding a "Hatteberg's People" story. He had called multiple people, but wasn't able to get a hold of anyone. He was almost to deadline, and was tempted to cancel the segment for the week, when he finally got a call back.

A different evening, a photographer and I were going on a string of stories to shoot. Each of them were close enough and at different time intervals, we figured we'd be able to make it to all three. As we were driving to the first assignment, our assignment editor called: there was a change of plans.

We had to scratch our first assignment (which probably wasn't that important anyway), and went down to Derby, where a tree had fallen onto a house. It was a much better story, but it ended up changing our scheduled stops, and we had to ad lib.

Clearly, journalists don't like their stories like they like their eggs: scrambled.

And, I agree. Sometimes stories need momentum, research, and depth to really be successful. Something that just happens on the fly could work, but it's certainly not ideal.

But, in the news industry, those long-term, well-researched stories almost never happen. Everyday, there's a new story, and most of the time you don't know about them in advance.

On the other hand, sometimes stories that come together last minute can actually turn out quite well.

Last week, as a photographer and I were en-route to a routine bus inspection, we got a call that a woman's roof had been partially peeled off from the previous night's storm.

Even though she was not especially welcoming to us, I think she got some reassurance and comfort in knowing that her story would be shared with the city. It was depressing to see the damage that had been done to her home, but both of us were very sensitive and grateful for her willingness to talk to us.

And, today, one of our reporters was having difficulty finding a worthwhile story. As he was calling possible sources, the police scanners rang out: "Bank Robbery. Sunflower Bank. 2073 Webb Road."

From that time on, my ears were glued to the radios, to hear any developments or updates in the story. We got a detailed description of the robbery suspect (a much better description than any of our competitors). The police found the get-away abandoned in a nearby neighborhood.

But, in a Batman-type move, the bank had put a tracking device on the money, and officers were able to locate the three suspects in an Northeast Wichita home. No one was injured in the robbery or the search afterward.

So, in a seemingly fortunate twist of fate, our reporter had a story--and a good one at that.

Ultimately, as one of our anchors wisely said: "Every day is different."

Sometimes your stories fall apart; sometimes your stories come together; and sometimes, both of those things happen on the same day.

If I've learned anything about journalism, it's that this business is unpredictable. Plans and outlines can last five minutes before they get changed. I can't imagine how many times a news director calls a reporter or photographer and vice versa -- simply because a story didn't work out... or because it worked out better than expected.

I know that it's cliche to say "predict the unpredictable," but I would rather say, "Don't predict the unpredictable. Predict that things will fall apart and that things will come together. And then, take your chances on which it will be."

A Tale of Two Artists

Imagine an SUV flowing along the Kansas highways in the early morning sunlight -- on its way to a distant county, a small town, and an unforgettable experience.

Well, as I hoped, I got another opportunity to work with the well-known visual storyteller Larry Hatteberg. And this week our story was in Lucas, Kansas -- the quiet monument to several different forms of artistry. This sanctuary of creativity is peacefully snuggled in the heart of Kansas' Rolling Hills and the famous "Post Rock" country.

Larry had been in touch with an artist who was originally from California, but had come to Lucas, Kansas to sculpt faces, figures, and other designs into the limestones used as post rocks (which are limestone rocks that are used for fence posts, since they're so abundant).

Our artist was Fred Whitman of Ojai, California. He had been a dentist for several years, and it was actually in dentistry school when he first began carving and sculpting. He loved it so much, he left his practice at one point to work full-time as a sculpting artist, carving images of women, flowers, and children into stone for garden-type decor. A few years ago, he was introduced to the Kansas limestone, and loved the fluidity of the stone and how easy it was to work with it.

So, he decided, he had to come and see the Kansas limestone and "Post Rock" Country for himself. He said he came last summer and carved the images of people and sunflowers into two separate limestone post rocks.

Every day, he told us, when he was working on the projects, he would drive from Lucas a few miles south and set his "studio" up right there on the side of the highway, as he carved his artwork into the timeless stone fence posts. He said he hoped his art would last forever. And, he enjoyed the natural landscape as his workspace.

During the 2.5 hour drive to Lucas, which is northwest of Russell, Larry and I talked about everything from storm-chasing to film and from the landmarks of Kansas to general life lessons. When we arrived in Lucas, which is a typical Rolling Hills small town, Mr. Whitman was hard at work on his latest experience with Kansas limestone.

He was commissioned to sculpt an image of Sen. Bob Dole, a Russell native, which (when completed) will be displayed in the Russell Country courthouse. I could see in the sketch that it would feature his signature hair, his pearly-white smile, and his purple heart medal.

After Larry filmed him chiseling away at Bob Dole's figure in the stone, which -- like all of his art -- he was making by hand, he took us a few miles south of Lucas and showed us his the two post rock masterpieces he had carved away last summer.

If you were to simply drive by one of them, unless you knew what you were looking for and you were looking sharp, you can see the outline of a beautiful female face, with flowing hair and a decor of Kansas sunflowers framing her distinct features.

"I called it a 'she,'" Mr. Whitman said at one point, referring to the rock. "It's not an 'it' anymore."

And he was right. The carvings had a certain ebb and flow to them, just like the ebb and flow of the gliding hills they stood upon. He worked with the stone, he said, not against it. And sometimes he tried to envision what or who the stone was supposed to be -- almost as if the stone had a destiny, a shape that it was meant to become.

As Larry and I discussed later, Mr. Whitman had many wonderful things to say. I know that Larry will have a full array of amazing "sound bites" (as they are called in the industry) to choose from for the story.

My favorite soundbite that Mr. Whitman gave us was when Larry asked him about the differences between the landscapes of California and Kansas.

Mr. Whitman said he loved the "softness" of the Kansas prairie, the way the wind moved the grasses along the plains and how it was a nice change from the jaggedness and rocky terrain of California's beaches and mountains.

After saying our goodbyes, we left Mr. Whitman, Bob Dole, Lucas, and Russell County behind and turned toward the wind-mill spotted route back to Wichita.

As we drove back, I asked Larry more about his time at the station, his stories on "Hatteberg's People," and how he decided on which stories he wanted to cover.

"I like to be around people with great talent," he said, "because I feel like I can learn from them."

Well, I suppose today's story was just what Larry had envisioned then: a talented artist who had an interesting story doing visually attractive things.

But the best part of the story was Mr. Whitman's passion for his art.

"I'm always happiest whenever I'm doing this," he said as he was chipping away at Bob Dole's face.

And that was something that I think Larry, and all artists in general, would agree with.

Of course, it's work. It's hard sometimes. There are obstacles to overcome, budgets to meet, people to impress, and many more demands.

But, it's art.

It's what they both love doing, in their own respective ways.

And, that's my story of the two artists. I hope that I learned something today, because I was around two very talented people.

You Learn Something New Every Day

Throughout the last week and a half at KAKE-TV, I have learned a lot of useful things... and not just about the broadcasting business. Last Tuesday, I followed two 4th of July-related stories; last Thursday, I learned about weather and the aircraft industry; and today, I learned about the usefulness of CPR and how its important to learn to swim.

Here are some general things I learned over the last week:

1. Firework stands do not shoot off all of the left-over fireworks. They box up the un-opened packages and send them back to the distributors. The large packages that have been opened are stored for next year.
2. Do not call 911 to submit lame firecracker complaints. It clogs up the system, and real emergencies can't get through.
3. If you are calling 911 for a legitimate emergency, but you get a busy signal, flag down or get a hold of a cop to call in dispatch for you.
4. Dual-polarization RADAR systems are amazing! They are able to scan clouds, tornado, etc. more accurately because they scan both horizontally and vertically. They can even tell what is debris being blown around by a tornado... or a flock of birds. Compared to our Doppler RADAR, this is going to be infinitely better. Wichita's going to be one of the first cities in the U.S. to get one, because we have such weird weather.
5. When aircraft companies have contract negotiations, they have to have "opening statements," where both the employment company and the union representatives detail publicly what exactly they want to put in the contract. But, even though they have differences, they can be brought together by a bad economy and a certain politician's remarks about their industry.
6. People do use CPR in real life. Swimming is also generally important; and it's best to learn it young. So, if you were ever to learn two things in life: learn to swim and learn CPR.

Also, a general announcement, this will be my last regular post until July 26, as I will be on vacation. However, I hope to have a special post tomorrow night! Keep looking for more updates.

Stay cool, everyone!

The Storyteller Behind "Hatteberg's People"

KAKE-TV's Larry Hatteberg.

Ever since I began my internship at KAKE-TV, I have looked forward to working with one of the best journalists in the Midwest: Larry Hatteberg.

As a child, I loved watching his program "Hatteberg's People" on the Sunday evening news.

He told stories, and he showed them. Through the camera lens, you could see the uniqueness of Kansas and its people.

His success and the success of the entire station was the primary reason I wanted to intern for them in the first place.

And, today, I got a chance to work with this amazing storyteller.

As you can imagine, I was so excited when I went to bed last night, I could hardly sleep. When I did, I had dreams that I was driving around in a storm, running late, forgetting things -- afraid that Larry would leave me behind.

Fortunately, none of those dreams came true. I got to the station on time (actually a little bit early), and was more than ready to go when we hopped into the pale green Chevy Tahoe and took off down the highway toward Sun City, Kansas.

On the drive down we talked about all sorts of things: TV, movies, books, radio, and of course -- news.

I asked him questions about his career as a photojournalist and some of the people that he had interviewed for "Hatteberg's People."





It's no surprise to say that journalists (and Larry Hatteberg, especially) have the best stories -- stories about crazy people, humble people, unusual people, nice people, and the down-right amazing people of the world.

As the red hills rolled beside us along K-42 and Highway 160 -- driving through Harper, Attica, and Medicine Lodge -- the time just seemed to fly by! When two journalists get together, it's a lot of question-asking and story-swapping. But, it was fun.

When we starting driving through the Gypsum Hills, Larry pulled over and got video of the surrounding landscape. He said he wanted to give his story setting, so that the audience could visualize where exactly Sun City was.

Driving into Sun City, there wasn't much to see: a few houses here and there, an old post office, a nice white church complete with a steeple and bell, and -- of course -- Buster's.

As I found out doing research and talking to the people there, Buster's was a restaurant that once was owned by Buster Hathaway --  and Larry had done a story on him several year ago.

Buster, as many people said, was an old curmudgeon who never liked to make more than one trip to the kitchen. If your order wasn't right, didn't matter. He wasn't making a second trip just for you.

Buster and his wife Alma took over the place back in the 1940's after they got married, and (as I heard it) Alma kept her husband in line. And, legend has it, Buster's was the first place in Kansas to serve ice-cold beer on tap.

Now, Buster and Alma passed away a few years ago, and for a while, Buster's restaurant was unoccupied... until recently.

Last year, a Florida couple took over the restaurant and adopted it as their new home.

"(Sun City) has gotten to be home to where we look forward to coming back," Sally Goldman said, as she sat alongside her co-manager and husband Gary Goldman during Larry's interview.

Odd as it was, they left their home in Florida to manage Buster's restaurant, having never lived in Kansas and only visiting it on the occasional hunting trip. They expanded the restaurant and made several renovations (including some indoor restrooms), but Buster's still continues to be the sanctuary for the weary traveller or tired cowboy or hungry oil-field worker that it always was.

"We might be a younger generation of Buster and Alma," Sally said.

From the moment we stepped in the door, the Goldmans were all politeness and hospitality. They graciously showed us around, pointing out all of the remodeling that they had done. They told us of the stories that they had heard of Buster, Alma, and Sun City.

And of course what would Buster's be without a little barbecue? After they pulled it out of the smoker, we got the chance to sample some of the famous brisket that keeps people coming in for miles around.

I was captivated not only by the Goldman's story, but by the story of the town itself. Yet, what interested me the most was the way that Larry seemed to direct it.

Already, he said, he had a vision of what he wanted it to be like. He picked out his shots very precisely. He knew exactly what he wanted to be seen and heard in the story.

As he sat Sally and Gary down to interview them, he positioned them just as he wanted. He had the light fixtures already set up. Now, all he needed was their story... how they heard about Buster's, why they decided to move from Florida to Kansas (of all places!), how the business was going so far, what was their favorite part about managing Buster's, etc.

We talked to patrons who had been coming there for many years, and they told us stories of Buster. One man even remembered the last time Larry had been in Sun City, when he interviewed Buster all those years ago.

The whole time we were there, the ambiance of the place never faded. In fact, as more and more people came in for lunch (but there weren't too many), it made the place come alive even more so. People sat down at the bar, enjoying their ice-cold beer and smoked brisket, and simply shared stories. The walls were decorated with hunting trophies -- bear, deer, bobcat, cougar, and turkey -- cowboy paintings and photographs, and neon signs displaying different brands of beer.

On the outside, it didn't look like much; but inside, it was a treasure trove of country wisdom and small-town atmosphere... all in all, good food and good company.

Saying our goodbyes and thank yous, I felt as though we had spent the whole day there (and not merely 3.5 hours) because so much had gone on.

As we drove back to Wichita, Larry and I talked about our experiences at Buster's and all that I had learned (most notably was learning what a "dead cat" was). I asked him more about "Hatteberg's People" and his career at KAKE.

Between the actual story and the travel time to and fro, I feel like I approach journalism with a different vision now.

As Larry was telling me, he chooses stories based on what he thinks will be visually interesting. Now, I hope to see the story through the lens the way he does... But, I'm still learning.

I hope to go out on a "Hatteberg's People" story with Larry again this summer, but only time will tell.

Until then, I will be content to watch the 10 o'clock news on Sunday night and see how our "Hatteberg's People" story about Buster's, the Goldmans, and Sun City turned out....

Just as I have for most of my life... and just as I plan to do for years to come...


Larry asked to borrow my still camera. This is the picture he took.

**For more "Hatteberg's People" stories, check out http://www.kansaspeople.com/ or http://www.kake.com/hattebergpeople
And tune in to KAKE-TV (Channel 10 in Wichita) on Sunday night's 10 p.m. newscast to see this week's "Hatteberg's People" story. It will be featured during the second segment, after the first commercial break.

And check out this video-slideshow of some of the pictures I took on our trip!

Rivalry: "Life of the Trade, Death of the Trader"

(Writer's note: The first portion of this blog, including its stories, were written on Tuesday. Its conclusion was written this evening. My apologies for not putting it up sooner.)

As I accompanied the KAKE photographers today, I got to see firsthand how the relationships between the Wichita stations stand.

While covering a sentencing at the Federal Courthouse, all of the news stations were standing outside, since cameras were not allowed in the building. As we were waiting, the photographer and I began chatting with one of the other station's reporters. He told us about his new business that he was trying to start up, and how he was only working part-time for the TV station now.

After a while, the reporters who were there (both from our station and from theirs) had to leave to go to a press conference, leaving only one photographer from each station at the courthouse. The way the courthouse is set up, there are two exits. No one was sure which exit the defendant would come out.

So, the stations agreed that each photographer would cover a different door, and which ever station got the footage would simply send it to the other -- thus, splitting the coverage.

Almost as soon as our reporters left, the defendant came out of the courthouse -- at the end opposite the one KAKE was covering. Fortunately, one of the other news station's photographers got the shot of him walking out of the courthouse; and they did end up sharing the video with us.

When we got back to the station, and I was talking to the news director about it, he said that they often did that whenever coverage was overlapped: shared helicopter rides over blocked off areas, shared video, shared stories, shared sources. Granted, it wasn't on a day-to-day basis, but perhaps every once in a while, he said, the Wichita TV stations would join their forces together for the sake of efficiency, decency, or (perhaps) simplicity.

Then, on our way back from a different assignment, which we were not giving too much attention to (since there weren't too many updates), we ran into a different news station on their way to the same story. Both the photographer and I were interested as to why they had decided to cover the story so in-depth since there weren't many changes in the story.

But, I suppose that -- at the end of the day -- competition can make the news better, or it can make it worse. Ultimately, if one station isn't getting people the information they need, then another station always has that opportunity.

Competition is better for the people and better for the industry, as a whole. Competition allows people more choices, more access to the latest technology, updates, etc. If the news industry were monopolized (especially by the government), there is good chance that the owners/directors/"big cats" would "brain wash" their audience into believing whatever they wanted them to. When you only hear certain stories, or certain sides of the story, or certain voices in a vast crowd, is that news? Monopolized news industries are sure to have their bias, and without any competition to keep them in check, they will persuade their audience into their manner of thinking.

Nevertheless, just as the quote in the title says: "Rivalry is the life of the trade, and the death of the trader."

Be All You Can Be

"It's time to get this show on the road."

As I was going up to the production room during tonight's 5:00 p.m. broadcast, I thought about the wording of that common phrase.

"Ha! We really are working on a show!"

The last two days of interning at KAKE-TV have encouraged me to really get my head in the game about the broadcasting business.

So what if the package isn't always perfect? So what if you get scooped by a competing station? So what if the background sound ruins your soundbite? So what if the board-runners mess up the order of the supers? (Supers are the little labels at the bottom of the screen.)

Things happen. Problems arise.

But, for every road under construction, there is a detour. For every door, there is a window. For every obstacle that comes your way, there's a way around it, or over it, or under it... most of the time.

Talking to some of the anchors, reporters, and producers, I have found out that there are so many things to this business.

Things aren't always perfect, but that can't be said in any job, really.

There is a lot of investigation. There is a lot of interacting with people, interviewing them about their reactions. There are so many opportunities to get to know the community, the state, the nation, and the international community so much better. (And maybe the space community, if you're into NASA news?)

There is some kind of a label that people carry around when they work at a TV station (especially the reporters and anchors). People recognize them at the grocery store. Organizers ask them to judge their events. Even police officers sometimes remember them, as one photographer told me, when they get pulled over for speeding.

But, even more so, they get the opportunity to -- in some cases -- change people's lives... to inspire people with others' stories of courage, honor... to inform people with stories of their neighborhood's dealings (whether good or bad)... to interact with people and hear out their stories.

As someone once told me, "Every person has a story. News is not just about telling their story... it's about showing it, too."

So, in the meantime, as I continue to dive more and more into this crazy business of broadcast and journalism in general, I will keep things like a "one-man-band," "storyteller," and "the people you invite into your living room every night at 6 o'clock" in mind.

Until then, I will just borrow a line from that famous U.S. Army slogan -- "Be All You Can Be... A Journalist."