Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Ferguson, revisited.

By now you’ve seen a million photos from Ferguson. Most of them are more dramatic, emotive, profound, or better-toned than these. Many of us rushed to Florissant Ave. with our body armor, gas masks, and kevlar helmets…but none of us had all the facts. Yes, this is the nature of breaking news, but the story in Ferguson fit the narrative perfectly. It affirmed the presuppositions of so many. I sometimes fear the media horde that descended upon Ferguson did more harm than good. But at the end of the day, I’m just a lowly freelancer, and I don’t have the answer. Hopefully it can be said that I didn’t take sides, I took pictures.

Ferguson Protests

Surrounded by dozens and dozens of media, Officers from the St. Louis County Police tactical unit detain an unruly demonstrator during a protest over the police shooting death of teenager Michael Brown earlier in the week in Ferguson, Missouri, U.S. on Tuesday, August 19, 2014. Despite making several arrests police forces did not deploy tear gas as in nights past. Luke Sharrett for Bloomberg News


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Thursday, January 8, 2015

States In Play for The New York Times

As a freelancer, I don't usually travel too far beyond the borders of my beloved home state of Kentucky. However, this fall The New York Times enlisted me to work on a project called States In Play. From August through October I was able to travel to six states in four timezones. The midterm races in these state were too close to call, making them battlegrounds in the year-long struggle for political control of the U.S. Senate. Instead of focusing on the individual candidates and their campaigns, each story examined a long-term cultural or economic issue that influenced local voters in 2014. Thank you to The New York Times for the assignment and sincerest gratitude to my dear wife Elizabeth for caring for our infant son during my absence.

ALASKA:  

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An old Alaska Railroad car sits on a stub track in Anchorage, Ak. on Friday, September 26, 2014. Luke Sharrett for The New York Times.


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