Stephanie Levy

First Place

Mon, 21 May 2012 14:08:19 -0400

If you’re reading this, I’m probably on a stuffy plane somewhere over the Mountain West on my way to San Francisco with my family. This will be my first trip to California, and it happens to fall on my birthday. This made me realize the other “firsts” I’ve experienced personally and professionally over the past year:

I rode on a motorcycle for the first time
I saw my favorite band play live for the first time
I made it through my first year of work with AUVSI
I launched my first comprehensive personal website.

I realize that in the grand scheme of the journalism business, these firsts may seem small. But one of the important things to remember about developing your career is to keep pushing the envelope and creating your own firsts. There’s is always going to be someone smarter, more talented and more adept at keeping their hair just so for that last-minute live shot. But so long as you’re constantly challenging yourself to try new things, you’ll develop the skills that make you a better journalist and that ideal first choice of a candidate in the job market.

My job is trying to destroy me (kind of)

Wed, 16 May 2012 16:10:46 -0400

My job is trying to destroy me (kind of):

The Atlantic an interesting read about the prediction that robots may take over most news writing in the near future. This got a good laugh at the office: How do you write about a technology designed to put you out of a job?

The answer is deceptively simple: While you could argue that there is an algorithm for writing news (Any Journalism 101 class will teach you the five W’s), there is no formula for truly writing a great story. It always contains a human element, and it becomes the job of a good journalist to pull that element out and communicate it to an audience.

Grateful (Thanksgiving stream of consciousness)

Thu, 24 Nov 2011 07:14:47 -0500

Dancing grandparents. Robots. Mizzou watch parties. Book club Sundays. Impromptu happy hour. The sculpture garden. Tammy Baldwin. Tom Brokaw. Books that don’t fit on my shelf. Stoop parties. Mentors. New albums from Feist and Florence + the Machine. Keurig cups. Honesty. Solid family. Amazing friends.

Perfect sentiment from my high school...

Thu, 06 Oct 2011 10:33:44 -0400

Perfect sentiment from my high school classmate.

samsparks:

Like most who are flocking to their iObjects to share their feelings, I never came close to knowing or even meeting Steve Jobs. Yet I sit here distinctly upset. In fact, I have not had this sort of reaction since the death of Meet The Press host, Tim Russet.

Both men existed and died atop and removed from their respective fields. Jobs’ took daily use devices that large corporations fucked up on purpose to make more money (see bloatware on PCs and carrier crippled phones) and made them a joy to see and use. Russert was one of the few journalists capable of confronting politicians with their lies on live national tv. Russert-era Meet the Press was the most watched Sunday news show and Apple recently passed Exon as the most valuable company in the world.

With the passing of Jobs and Russert the world has lost two Great Men. Men who were unhindered by the rules of “the way things are normally done.” Men who were able to take two of the most aggressively frustrating parts of the modern world, politics and tech, and do their part to make them quite a bit more bearable.

For me, the saddest part is that they were not done. No one has been held accountable for the collapse of the American economy and it is still regularly painful to navigate the computers that we are forced to live and work on. They still had work to do. Now it is our responsibility to put down our Plants and Zombies game, continue their quests and think up new solutions for the struggles to come.

Thank you Steve and Tim. Thank you for your work and the standards that you set.

I’ve made a point of looking at today in an optimistic...

Sun, 11 Sep 2011 17:11:59 -0400

I’ve made a point of looking at today in an optimistic light. I’m excited for my brother’s 22nd birthday, and jealous that he’s walking to a home-cooked meal at my grandparents’ apartment as we speak. I’m grateful that my cousin, who worked in the WTC complex in 2001, got caught in traffic in Passaic, NJ. I’m thrilled for such a beautiful sunny day in DC. But count on Paul to give me pause on a day that’s almost been too good for remembrance of something this bad.

We shouldn’t forget to mourn, but we also shouldn’t forget to be kind.

Paul Simon - The Sound of Silence 9-11 Ground Zero (by nsotd4)

Why I'm Unfriending Jane Cunningham

Wed, 03 Aug 2011 14:07:39 -0400

Jane Cunningham is the worst thing to happen to Missouri schools since KU pulled ahead in the Border Showdown.

The Republican State Senator made national news Monday when Senate Bill 54, which she sponsored, became law. The new law, popularly called “the Facebook law,” would bar many interactions between teachers and students on social networking sites. Specifically, teachers would not be allowed to “friend” students on the popular website. The law aims to protect students from predatory teachers online.

Obviously, any appropriate steps that can be taken to keep kids safe online and in the classroom is a good thing. Kids should go to school and be safe, period. But this new law eschews the appropriate and goes straight for the ridiculous.

This isn’t the first time I’ve taken issue with Cunningham’s educational policies. One of my first stories as a radio reporter at the Missouri capitol (Oh, how far we’ve come…) was about a bill, sponsored by Cunningham, protecting “intellectual diversity” on college campuses. They layman’s definition of the bill was that professors could not discredit a student for using his/her “personal beliefs” as an argument in class. This being Missouri, what that usually translated to was Christian conservative students now being allowed to use the Bible to argue their points in science class. And in my interview with Cunningham, she basically admitted outright that the purpose of her bill was to protect like-minded conservative students from the “liberal bias” of college professors and courses. The bill ultimately became law, and Cunningham won her first victory in bringing the culture war to the classroom.

Cunningham does it again with the Facebook bill. Instead of focusing on some of the damning issues with Missouri public schools (Last time I checked, St. Louis public schools still had lost accreditation), she takes on a niche social issue that plays politics with legislators’ votes. Of course nobody’s going to vote against child safety on the internet, lest they look pro-online predator! But in this Nancy Grace moment, Cunningham and Missouri legislators completely overlook the benefit of student/teacher interaction on social media sites. Sites like Facebook and Twitter offer a free platform for students to receive help with schoolwork and for teachers to create a one-on-one learning experience. With teacher salaries as abysmal as they are, the fact that these sites are free cannot be stated enough. And one-on-one learning is a growing classroom trend that actually improves student performance and achievement, while making teachers better at their jobs. On the technology side, Facebook already has an incredibly strong and diligent security team with a knack for recognizing and stopping predatory behavior on the site almost instantly. It seems incongruous then, with the conservative dogma of letting businesses regulate themselves, to have this law in place.

The Facebook bill is a misguided attempt at child safety that sacrifices a valuable resource for teachers. And the cynic in me believes Jane Cunningham knows that, but just does not care.

imgfavepopular: ★ discovered on imgfave.com (social image...

Mon, 06 Jun 2011 09:53:30 -0400

imgfavepopular:

★ discovered on imgfave.com (social image bookmarking)

My thought process this morning. My feature on the use of robotics after the Japan earthquake and nuclear disaster is on its way; I should be done within the next two weeks. So excited!

Osama bin Laden Killed: The View From Patch (via TBD)

Tue, 03 May 2011 12:18:03 -0400

Osama bin Laden Killed: The View From Patch (via TBD):

Looks like TBD, a local Washington news site (that underwent an extreme hemorrhaging of personnel a few months ago, but that’s another story) has the same idea I do about looking at the Patch experience of covering a national news event like Osama bin Laden’s death. It’s a great article, and definitely something to keep in mind when doing news analysis of this new hyper-local business/Arianna Huffington’s pet project. From the content to the communities, there really is a tale of two Patches. More coming soon.

My Opinion Gets Patched

Tue, 03 May 2011 09:14:34 -0400

My Opinion Gets Patched:

An edited version of yesterday’s post about the Washington reaction to Osama bin Laden’s death has made its way to my hometown Patch site. What a blast from the past! There a few, admittedly obvious, localized tweaks, but the overall story and message stays the same. Expect a post in the coming days about my experiences working with a new editor, especially because I’ve had previous Patch experience in the D.C. area. And boy do I have stories.

Reaction to bin Laden Death Celebrations in Washington

Mon, 02 May 2011 21:41:18 -0400

WASHINGTON – By now the nation has begun to amass and process the details of Sunday night’s military attack that killed Osama bin Laden. Feelings of joy and catharsis led thousands in Washington, New York and other cities to take to the streets and express their excitement. In the nation’s capital, a crowd of mostly college students cheered “U-S-A!” “Thank you troops!” and “Obama!” while waving American flags, using them as clothing or both.

But even as I shoved through the crowd, reaching my camera high to get that coveted shot, one thought kept crossing my mind.

I really need to text my brother back.

My younger brother David was born on September 11. The Twin Towers fell, the Pentagon was attacked and United 93 crashed in the Pennsylvania countryside on his 12^th birthday. I remember my mom bringing home carefully catered plates from the fancy steakhouse we were supposed to eat at that night. We felt too scared to go out and too glued to the TV to go anywhere or do anything. So beyond the deadly, trillion dollar wars that have left 5,885 dead, the tumultuous changes in national security and the heated and often polarizing rhetoric that rose from the terrorist attacks, 9/11–and bin Laden by proxy–had a personal meaning: It really gave David’s day a bad rap.

Sunday night seemed a turning point in that narrative. Strategically, U.S. forces reached an incredible milestone in the international war against al Qaeda. Families, friends and loved ones of 9/11 victims saw an opportunity for some closure. And maybe, just maybe, my family got back a spark of happiness or justice in a day undoubtedly marred in national tragedy.

I finally talked to David on Monday. We talked about our surprise when we heard the news, cracked a few jokes and talked about seeing each other when he graduates college in two weeks. The conversation seemed to encapsulate a lot of what may befall America in the months and years ahead. In a word, no–the war on terror is not over. But we were able to experience a brief, positive unifying moment that can push us forward. The death of bin Laden offers a rare, fleeting opportunity for life without a culture of fear or constant barrage of punditry. It’s a time we can get more valuable work done to enhance our national security, strengthen our image abroad and build a more engaged citizenry.

That’s what I saw in Washington Sunday night.

Now, let’s hope it lasts before the next news cycle starts.

Washington- Thousands of young people and revelers crowded the...

Mon, 02 May 2011 02:01:58 -0400

Washington- Thousands of young people and revelers crowded the square outside the White House early Monday morning after President Obama announced that U.S. troops had killed Osama bin Laden. Groups brought homemade signs, waved American flags, and chanted “U-S-A!” “Thank you troops!” and the National Anthem. White House police say they expect people to stay outside celebrating through most of the night.

Going home May 26. Is it wrong to feel just a little bit...

Thu, 28 Apr 2011 16:07:09 -0400

Going home May 26. Is it wrong to feel just a little bit homesick?

I Work for Our Robot Overlords

Thu, 24 Feb 2011 10:25:00 -0500

This week, I started a new job as Associate Editor at the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI). At the end of the interview process, another editor joked “Remember SkyNet from the Terminator movies? (Editor’s Note: Of course!) We’re basically like them.” Well, three days in I’m happy to say that real-life SkyNet is fantastic. I’m getting to write early and write often, a slew of new projects are coming down the pipeline, and I have advance knowledge about any possible robot apocalypse (Hint: It will happen in the skies first). Looks like the whole “uprooting from the midwest and going to D.C. to pursue my career” thing is turning out pretty well!

More updates from the front lines of the robot apocalypse to come. In the meantime, happy Thursday!

Snap Judgments: State of the Union

Wed, 26 Jan 2011 01:14:40 -0500

We are a generation that will simultaneously revive and reinvent competition. I think it’s safe to say that tonight’s speech was the death knell for any manufacturing economy people thought we once had. Ideas are our newest and greatest export, and hopefully with positive cultivation-through better schools, communities and economic policies-those ideas translate into the services and goods to keep the economy rolling.
Let’s go green already, America. There’s a market for it. And yes, Michele Bachmann, that market includes loyal consumers of those evil government-run twisty lightbulbs you lambasted in your off-kilter (in message and in videography) response. They currently sit in all of my lamps. Deal with it.
Education is a spectrum, across which every element is equally as important. I highly recommend you visit Education Week to get more in-depth coverage of this issue from my wonderful colleagues.
Sweeping reform is great, as long as it doesn’t hurt the anecdote-happy guests in the nosebleeds.
Five-year spending freezes shut politicians up.
This speech had the marks of Obama’s new advisors all over it. It’s a dramatic shift from his more progressive persona, and I’m interested in seeing how it plays out, albeit a little worried he’s compromising too much too soon.
Smoked salmon jokes will always get me on your good side. I really want a bagel.

Why I Don't Care About Tonight's BCS Game

Mon, 10 Jan 2011 21:36:50 -0500

Tonight’s showdown between Oregon and Auburn (currently underway) isn’t just an eerie foreshadowing of what sports manufacturer’s design team will reign supreme in the new year (Nike wins that one by a mile, but I digress). It’s an eerie foreshadowing of tomorrow’s news cycle. And I for one am not comfortable with the inevitable media swarm that will surround tonight’s game in the wake of the attempt on Rep. Gabrielle Giffords’, D-Ariz., life last Saturday.

This BCS Championship gives Americans a dumb excuse to take a too-soon, too-abrupt pause from the nascent civil discourse that surrounded this terrible tragedy: We finally seemed to be talking, as opposed to yelling, about political rhetoric, gun laws and the security of those we elect to serve. Now I worry we’ll go back to our selfish habits of superficial instant gratification with a focus on the outcome of tonight’s game.

I am in no way saying the BCS Championship should have been postponed, on the contrary. The coincidence that this event is taking place in the very state where Jared Loughner murdered innocent people is a testament to American resilience; tonight we fight bullets with beer brats. I just hope that in today’s ever-accelerating media cycle, the inevitability of the next big headline (Ducks Win! Tigers Win! Heisman Winner Cam Newton Says Something Stupid!) doesn’t deter from the story of this weekend: How one deplorable act may have caused America to start getting its collective act together.

Book Sale Breaks Records, Conventions - Germantown, MD Patch

Mon, 22 Nov 2010 19:45:16 -0500

Book Sale Breaks Records, Conventions - Germantown, MD Patch

As if you needed any other explanation for my being a dog...

Sun, 07 Nov 2010 22:57:30 -0500

As if you needed any other explanation for my being a dog person.

Post-Election Musings

Wed, 03 Nov 2010 20:14:55 -0400

The narrative of last night’s mid-term election is pretty resounding: Republicans Take Control. Republicans officially have a majority in the House of Representatives, which means the end of the first ever female House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (say what you want about her politics, but her rise was still historic); John Boehner is expected to fill the position. Democrats maintained a narrow majority in the Senate, but their numbers are nowhere near filibuster-proof.

Obviously things could be a lot better for Democrats.

Then again, they could be a lot worse, too.

In the end, many of the highly-publicized Tea Party candidates running for office failed to win their bids (I’m looking at you, Christine O’Donnell, Carl Paladino and Ken Buck). I’d like to give credit to the voters here; they knew that, in short, these candidates simply didn’t cut it.

But Rand Paul and Marco Rubio are now Senators. Think about that for a second. Paul disagrees with the Civil Rights Act and employs people who literally stomp on opponents. Many classify Rubio’s anti-abortion views as extreme. I have a feeling the economy will continue to be the paramount issue in Congress for years to come, and that these freshman Senators will spend most of their time working on economic issues. But it doesn’t bode well for the electorate if it prefers that its elected officials IGNORE a certain issue rather than ADDRESS it, out of fear that such an address would lead to extremist policies completely out of line with the “mainstream America” they purport to represent.

Sadly, my home state has delivered my greatest disappointment so far. I had a sinking feeling going into this election that Missourians were set up for very few races that wouldn’t be slashed down to the lowest common denominator of fear-mongering, name-dropping and sour vitriol. In the end, I think I was right. The Senate race between former Minority Whip Roy Blunt (the winner) and Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan turned into a battle royale between the two most recognizable names in Missouri politics. But the race became pundit fodder when Fox News sued the Carnahan campaign for using footage from one of its broadcasts in an attack ad against Blunt, drawing unnecessary attention away from their campaigns as a whole. In the end, Missourians were quick to forget the differences between the Blunt and Carnahan legacy in favor of siding with the bully shouting the loudest. I am not calling Carnahan or Blunt a literal bully; I only use the metaphor to underscore how many of their campaign messages relied on negative messages.

Missouri voters also ousted the chairman of a House committee responsible for the largest chunk of domestic spending in favor of the home ec teacher. Tea Party sweetheart Vicky Hartzler beat out Democratic incumbent Ike Skelton for his Senate seat. I have never been a huge fan of Skelton; I take issue with many homophobic statements he has made in the past, especially in regards to Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. But he was good for Missouri and overall national governance. On a local level, his high ranking in the House gave him an unprecedented opportunity to put Missouri’s needs on the national legislative agenda. Back home, he was unwaveringly dedicated to his constituents, reflecting his belief that Missourians voted him into office to speak for them through his largely moderate stance. On the national level, his 34 years of experience in the House meant he knew how to get things done. He had the experience to work with an admittedly slow system and move it forward, along with a policy expertise that only 34 years of experience can bring. He was also an unwavering supporter of the servicemen and women in our country’s military. Ike, I didn’t always agree with you, but I’m kind of going to miss you.

I’ll end this with my favorite slogan about election season: If you don’t vote, you can’t bitch. That includes if you decided not to vote as your own “statement.” I hope these election results, whether you like them or not, are a motivating force for the American people to do something with their political beliefs. For some, it may be something as small as picking up a book in order to educate themselves more in order to shape their political views; that’s great too. I really am a firm believer that higher efficacy leads to higher voting, and in turn, leads to a better government “of the people, by the people, for the people” and all that other sentimental stuff.

My (Belated,Off-Topic) September Issue

Wed, 03 Nov 2010 08:07:09 -0400

**I AM WORKING ON A POST-ELECTION BLOG NOW, SO STANDBY! SOMETHING WHIMSICAL FIRST!**

It never fails to hit me: fall rolls around and I get swept of in the same fashion rebirth every woman carrying a September issue feels. Some may call it superficial, I call it engrained in me since I was eleven:

On my first day of middle school, my father dropped me off in his white Chevy Suburban in front of the drooping oxidized green facade of Ladue Middle School. In a hunter green tee shirt and jeans, I was inexplicably terrified, unable to exit the car for a good fifteen minutes out of sheer panic. My dad’s attitude evolved from deprecating humor to loving comfort, and I eventually stepped down from the car and into the first day of that special adolescent he’ll (another story altogether).

The lesson: I swore to myself I’d never feel that insecure again. I’ve had my slips, but fashion has recently been a tool for confidence and creativity. It’s something for which I am grateful on more than a surface level.

So, on to the good stuff! I love this fall’s emphasis on ladylike style; investment pieces ruled, which is good for a post-grad like me, because I can’t afford to waste money on trends that I’d have to throw away within a year. And who on earth would WANT to throw away such sumptuous pieces! My wish-list currently consists of:

A full, longer skirt in a bold pattern

A FAUX fur vest

A jade cocktail ring/jade jewelry in general

A classic wool cable-knit sweater (Hello, Ralph Lauren outlet!)

Wedges

A navy jersey dress

Every jacket currently in stock at Zara (dream big!)

Longer cut, almost tunic-like button-down shirts

A small black quilted bag, a la Chanel

I’m also looking forward to a wardrobe full of navy, black, gray, camel, purple and jade. I think I could wear those colors exclusively all season and be a very happy camper. What are some of the fashions you’re loving to this fall?

Inglorious Crafters

Mon, 04 Oct 2010 08:29:56 -0400

Eve Vandalsen jumps from display to display at her tent for the annual Crafty Bastards fair in bustling Adam’s Morgan. Dressed in a light white t-shirt for the unusually warm and sunny October afternoon, she hawks her own handmade leather goods. One particular clutch in shades of rust and marigold catches a customer’s eye.

“That bag is so you!” Vandalsen, 35, squeals to a young, curly-haired customer. “I saw you looking at it and was like ‘Please let her get it! It matches her outfit!’”

Vandalsen keeps chatting with the customer as she fills out her receipt with a dark blue ballpoint pen, peering over the edge of her oversized retro tortoise-framed sunglasses.

Today is Vandalsen’s first time showing at the craft fair, or anywhere in Washington, D.C. She moved to the city in May from Detroit, where she worked as a dietician.

“I’ve been doing this for ten years, but the economy was so depressed out there it just made sense to move,” Vandalsen says. “My husband got a job here.”

Vandalsen is part of a growing trend in today’s economy where women are looking to second sources of income to make ends meet. But instead of waiting tables or logging hours in retail, some are using this new economic reality to flex their entrepreneurial and creative muscles. With the growing success of Internet businesses, many even wind up with financial and personal fulfillment from these endeavors.

In 2008, the National Women’s Business Council estimated that women made up 47% of the United States workforce. Furthermore, more than 3.5 million women were self-employed, which added up to more than one-third of all self-employed individuals. Susan Galbraite, 55, says it makes sense for these two groups to overlap. As the co-owner of Looped, a yarn store that opened in DuPont Circle six weeks ago, she says she’s a living example.

“I have a background in social work, and I used to run a rehabilitation program for women who were just released from prison,” Galbraite says. “I’ve done that for nearly 30 years, but I’ve always wanted a good local yarn store, and I love knitting and crocheting, so I just went for it. The public response in this economy has been very good. I think people really still want to support local businesses.”

But becoming an entrepreneur on top of a second job, or even getting a first job, has not always come easily to American women, regardless of economic times. For instance, at the start of the Great Depression, while professions like medicine and law still boasted the engorged salaries they do today, women only accounted for two percent of the workforce in each profession. In fact the jobs permissible for women had not changed much since the 19^th century; many women worked as servants or in forms of domestic work. It wasn’t until World War II broke out and American men went abroad to fight in Germany and Japan that women began joining the labor force in larger numbers. Someone had to be on hand to keep the boys fighting and the country running, why not the opposite sex?

Women gained more financial validation for their work with the Equal Pay Act of 1963. The law, aiming to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act, sought to eliminate gender-based wage differences. Unfortunately, what was signed into law on paper hasn’t always manifested in practice, as women still make an average of 76 cents to every dollar made by a man.

By the 1980s, the tide seemed to be turning for many women in the professional world. More than half of women with children were part of the work force, and women as a whole accounted for 45 percent of working Americans.

With the evolution of the Internet came the evolution of a new way for women to literally be their own bosses. For instance, etsy.com, which labels itself as “a community” of people buying and selling handmade products, boasts “hundreds of thousands of users” in more than 150 countries worldwide. And of the 145 people etsy.com currently employs, 51 of them are women. The majority of them work in “Support” or “Business Operations” (cleverly known as “Biz Ops” on the company website).

“Everyone has to have an etsy account these days,” vendor Minda Merinsky, 26, says. Her booth is filled with old-fashioned blenders, lamps and even a waffle iron from the 1950s, all of which she has remade into functioning lamps. “It’s how I’ve gotten the word out about my work, since it’s some of the more eclectic stuff in the bunch.”

In fact, etsy.com was how Vandelsen got the word out about her leather goods before she ever set foot in Washington. A growing business online has lead to a growing business in person.

“It’s actually been really good,” Vandelsen says. “I’ve been lucky enough to even raise my prices on a few of the items.”

As the afternoon wound on along a loud and crowded 18^th street, customers could treat themselves to a whole array of “eclectic stuff” in the bunch of Crafty Bastards vendors. A newly opened Halloween store featured its gory costume makeup by dressing all the workers to look like the undead: sallow white skin, bloodshot bags under the eyes and all. One tent offers “living jewelry” in which small plants actually grow out of wearable ceramic pendants.

But many of these vendors had a common thread. As people left their booths they heard farewell greetings of “Please take my card! It shows you how to get to my website and my etsy page!”

Vandelsen is no different; she has her cards in a business card carrier that she wrapped and decorated in teal and lavender leather herself. The card does not make any reference to her experience as a dietician and a long-time worker in public health. Instead, it simply reads: Eve Vandelsen’s Leather Goods.

“I started this business as a way to make ends meet from my other job,” Vandelsen says. “But if today, someone were to come up to me and say ‘Don’t quit your day job,’ I’d probably have to show them these bags and say ‘This is my day job!’”