See his work

I work as a reporter, albeit a somewhat unconventional one. My job calls on me to specialize in what is often called computer-assisted reporting. That’s a funny phrase — have you ever heard of a computer-assisted photographer or a computer-assisted architect? — but what it means is that I use computers to collect, organize, analyze and present large amounts of information. Databases. Maps. Web Toys. Scripts. That stuff.

While I’m excited by the journalistic potential of new technology, I have an abiding admiration for the virtues of traditional reporting techniques, which I plan to continue using wherever I work.

I’m employed at the Los Angeles Times, a daily newspaper and 24-hour Web site based in Southern California. Nothing I write here should be interpreted as the opinion of that organization.

Before working at the Times, I worked on data projects at The Center for Public Integrity, covered state politics and elections in Jefferson City, Missouri, helped produce long-form documentaries for cable channels like CNN and Discovery Times, and pitched in on some television and newspaper reporting in Chicago. I earned a master’s degree from the Missouri School of Journalism — where I worked at the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting (NICAR) — after receiving my undergraduate training at DePaul University.

Portfolio

Resumé

Resumé (.doc)
Resumé (hResume)

Selected Data Analysis and Presentation

California’s War Dead
The Los Angeles Times (Memorial Day 2008)

Hear No Evil, Smell No Evil
Fort Worth Weekly (June 11, 2008)

California Schools Guide
The Los Angeles Times (Sept. 4 2008)

LA’s Top Dogs
The Los Angeles Times (June 2008)

The 700 (MHz) Club: When Lobbying the FCC, Sometimes Less is More
The Center for Public Integrity (August 10, 2007)

Collateral Damage: Human Rights and U.S. Military Aid after 9/11
The Center for Public Integrity (May-June 2007)

Charity Fundraising Database
The Los Angeles Times (July 6, 2008)

Who Owns Your Media? Get the Facts from CPI’s Media Tracker.
The Center for Public Integrity (Autumn 2006)

Wasting Away: Superfund’s Toxic Legacy
The Center for Public Integrity (April-May 2007)

Passing the Buck: How the House majority leader exploited a campaign cash loophole
The Center for Public Integrity (March 16, 2007)

Selected Bylines

Only 48% of California high schools meet federal standards, even with easier measure
The Los Angeles Times (Sept. 4 2008)

Federal loans go for risky business
The Columbia Missourian (Dec. 27, 2005)

Pakistan’s $4.2 Billion “Blank Check” for U.S. Military Aid
The Center for Public Integrity (March 27, 2007)

Clear Channel gives Tate Talking Points Against XM-Sirius Merger
The Center for Public Integrity (April 14, 2007)

Searching for John Swenson: Recluse, Luddite, Candidate for Governor
The Columbia Missourian (Oct. 20, 2004)

Selected Video Production Credits

Nobody Told Me The Road Would Be Easy
WMAQ/WTTW (Winter 2006)

Keeping The Faith: Becoming a Priest in Today’s Catholic Church
Discovery Times (Feb. 1, 2005)

The Fight Over Faith
CNN Presents (Oct. 24, 2004)

Selected Side Projects

Shawington.com: An online hub for DC’s bloggiest neighborhood.
Summer 2007

AnyaLitvak.org: A journalist’s portfolio.
Autumn 2007

Awards

2007 IRE Certificate, Online Category
Collateral Damage: Human Rights and U.S. Military Aid after 9/11

2007 AHCJ Award Winner, Trade/Online Journals/Newsletters Category
Wasting Away: Superfund’s Toxic Legacy

2007 SPJ Sigma Delta Chi Award, Online Investigative Reporting (Independent) Category
Collateral Damage: Human Rights and U.S. Military Aid after 9/11

2007 SPJ Sigma Delta Chi Award, Online Non-Deadline Reporting (Independent) Category
Wasting Away: Superfund’s Toxic Legacy