On this episode of the Sword and Pen, host Caron LeNoir-Kelly discusses women veterans issues and considerations with Ginger Baine Miller, the CEO of Women Veterans Interactive Foundation. Listen in as the two talk about WVIF's efforts to build community for women veterans. Sword and Pen is a Military Veterans in Journalism production.
On this episode of the Sword and Pen, MVJ Partnerships Director Devon Lancia sits down with Sara Samora, MVJ Advisory Board member, Manufacturing Dive journalist and Marine Corps veteran. Tune in to learn about Sara's journey to get to where she is today and her advice for fellow vets looking to get started in business coverage. Sword and Pen is a Military Veterans in Journalism production.
On this episode of the Sword and Pen, host Caron LeNoir-Kelly sits down with Dr. Kortni Alston Lemon, journalist, happiness scholar and co-chair of NABJ's Wellness Task Force, to discuss her efforts to support mental health in newsrooms. Listen in as the two discuss the value of journalists and newsrooms seeking ways to maintain stability and seek happiness in the churn of the news cycle. Sword and Pen is a Military Veterans in Journalism production....
On this episode of the Sword and Pen, host Caron LeNoir-Kelly honors Black history and Black military history while looking back at the Military Veterans in Journalism community in 2024. Listen in as LeNoir-Kelly and MVJ Board Member Zack Baddorf talk about what MVJ accomplished over the past year, what the future holds, and the importance of including veteran voices in journalism. Sword and Pen is a Military Veterans in Journalism production....
Military Veterans in Journalism board members Lucy Bustamante and Zack Baddorf start off the year talking about the value of vets in covering the new administration, plus some tips on how to jumpstart your career in media. Sword and Pen is a Military Veterans in Journalism production.
On this episode of the Sword and Pen , host Lori King speaks with navy veteran, MVJ member and NPR radio producer Jason Burrows . Burrows broke into radio onboard the USS Abraham Lincoln by volunteering for the ship's radio station, KRUZ-FM. After ETSing from the navy, he landed his first radio gig as the "Jack of all Trades" at 96.5 Jack-FM, where he served for 15 years. Burrows, a Seattle resident, is part of the production team for KUOW's Soundside. KUOW is an NPR affiliate. Listen as Burrows...
On this episode of Sword and Pen , host Lori King speaks with army broadcast journalist Lance Milsted, a former Defense Information School instructor. Milsted, the chief of production services at DoD's Defense Media Activity (DMA) talks about his belief that everyone has a story to tell, and an important part of journalism is to tell those stories, to make people feel something, to get to know the subjects of our stories and ensure we stay out of the way and let them tell stories. Listen as Mils...
On this episode of Sword and Pen , host Lori King speaks with investigative reporter and former marine infantryman James LaPorta, who, after exiting the military, broke into journalism by cold calling editors and agreeing to work for bylines. You are about to hear an inspiring story of how LaPorta, with no journalism experience or degree, tenaciously built a journalism career working for multiple mainstream news outlets, the first being the Washington Post. LaPorta, who was recently laid off fro...
On this episode of Sword and Pen , host Lori King speaks with journalism tool extraordinaire Mike Reilley , who just published his second book, The Journalist's Toolbox: A Guide to Digital Reporting and AI. Reilley has made it his mission since 1996 to continuously stock his trademarked online Journalism Toolbox with every kind of tool, resource and training you can imagine, including AI-driven tools, video training and links. If there's a tool out there, he's found it, or seeks to find it. List...
On this episode of Sword and Pen , host Lori King speaks with Air Force officer and filmmaker Allie Delury , who is celebrating her one-year anniversary of her production company, Work Our Way, on Dec. 30, 2023. Allie, who began her journalism and military career at the University of Minnesota, talks about her journey from tv reporter to business owner; what it was like going from social media manager to disconnecting from it; how a controversial documentary about abortion led her to start her L...
On this special episode of Sword and Pen , host Lori King spoke with four attendees during the 2023 MVJ Convention held Oct. 5-7 in New York City. First up at the mic was Dan Clare , a Marine Corps and Air National Guard veteran. He was a military public affairs officer for 17 years, and is now the director of communications for DAV, Disabled American Veterans, who sponsored the MVJ Career Fair. Dan talked about his experience as the burn pit whistleblower, the value of having veteran voices in ...
On this episode of Sword and Pen , host Lori King speaks with army veteran and freelance journalist Cyrus Norcross , one of MVJ's 2023 Top 10 Journalists of the Year. Cyrus, who was an army ranger for six years before pursuing journalism, talks about his Navajo Nation heritage, his winning entry that earned him the journalist of the year award, and his passion for telling stories about the Indigenous community. Cyrus, who now freelances for Indian Country Today, has been published in the Native ...
On this episode of Sword and Pen , we bring back MVJ president and co-founder Russell Midori to promote the MVJ 2023 Convention in New York City in October. We also chat with MVJ Mentorship Program manager Simone Doroski and mentorship alumni Jordan Sartor-Francis about a powerful program that pairs our members with journalism experts in the field. Listen as the guests > talk about the what's happening at the convention this year ... and there's a lot! tout the skills mentees learn from their...
On this episode of Sword and Pen , we highlight the missions and roles of an Ohio Air National Guard public affairs office and its staff. The podcast was recorded out of 180th Fighter Wing Public Affairs Office during their monthly drill in June 2023. Representing the wing's PA office: Public Affairs Officer Maj. Matt Eck; Senior Master Sgt. Beth Holliker; and two public affairs specialists, Staff Sgt. Kregg York and Airman First Class Sarah Stalder-Lundren. They are all Defense Information Scho...
On this episode of Sword and Pen , guest Anthony Vazquez talks about his transition from being a landing support specialist in the marine corps to a visual journalist at the Chicago Sun-Times , a newspaper that canned its entire photo staff for journalists using smartphones in 2013. If you are a photojournalist, a journalist who takes their own images, a student who wants to be a visualist storyteller, or a military veteran who wants to break into visual journalism, this episode is for you. List...
On this episode of Sword and Pen, navy and army veteran Caron LeNoir talks about her vast experience in journalism, business and activism. Baltimore native Caron comes from a family with deep artistic and political roots. She first takes us back to her childhood, and how her family of accomplished artists directly influenced her ability to tell stories through multiple formats. She started performing on stage at age 3, was on the radio in the second grade, and literally grew up in the darkroom. ...
On this episode of Sword and Pen, MVJ member and retired Marine Corps officer Riccoh Player and acclaimed Oscar and Emmy nominated director and writer Frederick Marx talk about their passion for filmmaker and storytelling, and how they both share a mission to tell the stories of military veterans. They zero in on veterans transitioning into successful civilian lives, so this podcast is dedicated to veterans making that transition. Listen as they also talk about how MJV can help reignite the crea...
On this episode of Sword and Pen, guest Ben Kesling talks about his quick transition from being a marine corps combat veteran to a reporter at the Wall Street Journal and a published author. Listen in as Ben also reads a passage from his new book, Bravo Company: An Afghanistan Deployment and its Aftermath , a story of the war in Afghanistan through the eyes of the men of one unit, part of a combat-hardened parachute infantry regiment in the 82nd Airborne Division. Ben, an MJV member and one of o...
In this special Veterans's Day episode of Sword and Pen, listen to nine one-on-one interviews featuring MVJ members who attended our first in-person 2nd annual MVJ Convention and Career Fair in Washington D.C. in October. The interviews were conducted by Jeff Pierce , director of broadcast and media partnerships for that radio station. Jeff set up his remote radio station booth on the first floor of our venue at the Reserve Organization of America building. We each told our own stories: Why we j...
On this episode of Sword and Pen, Allison P. Erickson of The Texas Tribune and Tim Lenard of The Nevada Independent talk local news, transitioning from serving to reporting, and how veterans can make themselves an asset to their newsrooms. Take a listen as Tim and Allison take us through working in state-focused newsrooms and how they act as the responsible arbiters of information between their community and national issues. Co-host Drew F. Lawrence speaks with both reporters about the challenge...
On this episode of Sword and Pen, Military in Journalism president and co-founder Russell Midori highlights a few keynote speakers, journalism panels and job fair vendors featured at the 2nd annual MVJ Convention and Job Fair on Oct. 6-8 in Washington, D.C. The #MVJ2022 Convention and Career Fair is the preeminent experience for the journalism world to put more veterans in newsrooms. This year’s annual gathering will be the organization's first ever in-person convention. Journalists, non-profit ...
On this episode of Sword and Pen, Zachary Fryer-Biggs, the managing editor of Military.com, talks about the defense reporting industry, his experience with hiring veterans and offers tips on freelance pitches and working in a newsroom. Take a listen as Zach takes us through his decade-plus of experience in national security reporting in various newsrooms -- from investigations to managing a newsroom and what Military.com does. Co-host Drew F. Lawrence -- who works in Military.com's newsroom as a...
On this episode of Sword and Pen, guest Kyle Rempfer takes us on his amazing journey from being an Air Force combat controller to his current position as editor of the Army Times , a branch of the independent Military Times . Listen in as Kyle chats about the myth of needing a journalism degree to break into journalism; the importance of seeking paid or unpaid internships at news organizations; the need to have tough skin when being told no by opaque military and DoD officials; and the art of fi...
For this month's Sword and Pen podcast, MVJ is re-airing our Extremism in the Military Webinar that originally aired June 16. Join host Drew Lawrence as he addresses a very timely topic of domestic and foreign extremism with Andrew Mines, a research fellow for George Washington University's Program on Extremism, and Dr. Daniel Milton, director of research at the Combating Terrorism Center at the United States Military Academy. Both researchers co-authored "This is War": Examining Military Experi...
In this episode of Military Veterans in Journalism podcast show Sword and Pen , Army veteran and journalist Noelle Wiehe recalls the moment she first realized she wanted to tell military stories for a living, and how joining the army eventually led her to that perfect reporting job. Noelle is a Military Veterans in Journalism member and credits an MVJ fellowship for her current job at Black Rifle Coffee Company 's Coffee or Die Magazine. The University of Cincinnati journalism graduate also give...
In this episode of Sword and Pen, host Lori King checks in with Navy veteran Tony Mobley, one of the Top 10 Military Veterans in Journalism of 2020 . Tony's entry, Photo Series: Black Lives Matter Protests , earned him that recognition. Tony talks about how he documented life on the biggest warship in the U.S. Navy; his covid coverage during the height of the pandemic in 2020; and why a photo of his baby sister inspired him to become a photographer at nine years old. We also have a real conversa...
In this episode of Sword and Pen, Washington Post national security reporter Dan Lamothe talks about the path that led him to cover the WaPo's military beat; expresses his love for journalism and advices on how to break into it; and reveals why he thinks there's a need for journalists to have conversations dealing with emotional turmoil after covering intense embed patrols. Washington Post Bio / Twitter @DanLamothe This episode is hosted by Drew Lawrence. Sword and Pen is brought to you by co-ho...
In this episode of Sword and Pen, guest Roy Peter Clark , of the Poynter Institute, discusses the almighty lead sentence. Clark, a journalist, author and educator, also breaks down the writing process into a series of steps; advises how to break out of a writer's block; begrudgingly shares his favorite lead sentence he's ever written; and fills us in on what the Poynter Institute is all about, which is "arguably one of the most important and influential schools for journalists and democracy in t...
In this episode of Sword and Pen, host Drew Lawrence asks Army Times staff reporter Davis Winkie to break down his investigation into Operation Lone Star. Winkie shares his inside story on the Texas National Guard's border mission, talks about taking risks to land a journalism job as a military historian, and admits how he [hopefully ] helped a female boy scout earn a merit badge, despite her criticism of one of his articles. Operation Lone Star Article | Headline: Suicide attempts, delayed pay ...
In this episode of Sword and Pen, host Lori King converses with MVJ member Lucretia Cunningham, a former U.S. Air Force medic who traded in her medical kit for cameras, microphones and the almighty pen. Listen as Cunningham shares her story of being an active duty medic for a decade, then doing an about face and transferring into Public Affairs in the Air National Guard; gives valuable advice to veterans who are facing that transition; and tells us how she secured media jobs with the help of the...
