James Call Email & Phone Number

Tallahassee, Florida

The position requires me to be a key player in the ongoing competition for an audience interested in state government, public policy and politics. The Tallahassee Democrat also entertains efforts to deliver a hyper-local focus for policy issues emerging from legislative debates.

Tallahassee, Florida Area

When the Florida Current ceased publication I created the Tallahassee Observer, a one man media company producing Tallahassee-based reports with the motto:When ideas clash I examine the debris and explain what it means to people's lives by providing concise reports, analysis and investigations of politics, policy making, the environment and sports. June 2014, the Tallahassee Observer joined FloridaPolitcs.com and affiliated sites, SaintPetersblog, Politics of Pot and ContextFlorida., . As the company's Tallahassee-based writer, • Established FloridaPolitics and Politics of Pot state capitol presence.• Built a community of patient advocates, lobbyists, industry experts and politicians to cover the rule-making process for the medicinal marijuana law• Covered Gwen Graham’s upset victory in the 2014 2nd Congressional District race.

Tallahassee, Florida Area

The Florida Current documented on a daily basis the ever-evolving debate over public policy in the state of Florida. I supervised a staff of four writers and two research analysts and coordinated newsroom activities with the various departments within LobbyTools in the production of two publications, a news service known as The Florida Current, and research marketed under a Legis IQ, banner. • Launched the Legis IQ initiative• Recruited writers and analysts to work on Legis IQ• Integrated analysts and writers into a cohesive team• Created a working relationship between the newsroom and other LobbyTools departments

Tallahassee, Florida Area

I provided audio pictures of the development of public policy. My legislative approach was to focus on Senate committee meetings and the initiatives of governors Jeb Bush and Charlie Crist, two men who appeared to be able to bend the legislative process to their goals. And an inclination to experiment with a putting "people-first"​ approach to reporting meshed well with Crist's populism and produced interesting and award-winning reports. Various Florida Public Radio member stations would invite me as a guest to discuss the Florida Legislature on their listener call-in programs. I also provided reports on Florida State University football and basketball games for FPR stations, AP Broadcast, Yahoo Sports Radio and FOX Sports Radio.• Set coverage agenda for annual legislative session• Promoted FPR programming on member stations’ political and talk shows• Hosted a statewide listener call-in program• Provided coverage of Florida State sports for interested member stations and other networks• Promoted FPR with public speaking at civic clubs and other organizations

Tallahassee, Florida

The Tortoise was a John Dewey-inspired experiment to see if journalism could be a tool to encourage citizen involvement in local government. The turtle crossing on U.S. 27 north of Tallahassee was first proposed in an Apalachee Tortoise article. The Tortoise reached a circulation of 8,000 and was an early victim of the Great Recession.

Tallahassee, Florida

Research in Review was the most interesting magazine ever published in Florida. In many ways, it was the Sunshine State version of The Atlantic. RnR used literary journalism to tell stories based on science. Cover stories ranged from features on the development of a cancer-fighting drug, the construct of self-esteem and whether the first Americans arrived from the south, by boat. RnR had a distribution agreement with Florida Trend and a circulation of more than 70,000.• Produced long-form feature stories of 5,000 words or more for each issue• Produced short-form stories, 500-words or less, for recurring sections of the magazine and feature sidebars• Produced meetings of the Tallahassee chapter of the Florida Magazine Association• Conducted preliminary investigations of potential long-form features• Recruited free-lance writers• Promote magazine with public speaking at civic clubs and other opportunities

Tallahassee, Florida

Florida Wildlife allowed me to change its voice and implement civic journalism principles while writing about wildlife and nature. I coordinated a group of freelance writers, encouraged reader feedback and highlighted citizen involvement in preserving natural resources with regular features, a "Wildlife Friend"​ and "Ask the Lt." During my tenure circulation increased by 50-percent to 18,000.• Recruited free-lance writers statewide• Developed re-occurring features to engage readers and recruit new subscribers• Wrote cover story for each issue• Promoted magazine with public speaking at civic clubs and before other organizations

We had a staff of 20 and produced three hours of news programs five days a week. I chaired editorial meetings, approved content for newscasts and produced the "First News at Five"​ program, which won its time period in the November 1997 ratings. The Pew Center and Columbia School of Journalism Excellence in Journalism Project rated WTXL News a B+ and cited WTXL for "unusually strong" coverage of state politics for a small market station.• Chaired editorial meetings• Served as the liaison with ABC, CNN and Conus networks• Mentored and coached reporters• Promoted stations with public speaking before civic clubs and other organizations

Earned a master's degree in public affairs journalism at The Ohio State University.

Ma, Journalism

Activities and Societies: Kiplinger Fellow in Public Affairs JournalismKiplinger Fellow in Public Affairs Journalism. WOSU reporter

Ba, Speech Communication And Rhetoric

Activities and Societies: Alpha Epsilon Rho, The Underground Sound, Paint da Rock