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Member Spotlight: Adam Causey

Adam Causey, a reporter for The Times in Shereveport, La., kindly shared his personal account of covering the Gulf of Mexico oil spill last year. A little late, but a valuable experience nonetheless! Here goes:

I was a little late getting close to last year’s Gulf of Mexico oil spill. The disaster started in April, but my paper waited till June to dispatch me.

Some thought it was meaningless to go at that point, but I considered the experience an opportunity. It was appropriate, in a way. I knew consequences of the Deepwater Horizon explosion would be something the Gulf States had to deal with for a long time to come.

Plus, there’s always another story to tell.

Yes, I have personal anecdotes, including accommodations at a $70 hotel room that was more like a closet with one bed for a photographer and me. Fortunately for my coworker, being a reporter has taught me to keep an air mattress and sleeping bag handy.

But what was more fascinating than traveling for three days on a super-tight budget was the people we met. They welcomed unannounced strangers into their homes – set 10 feet high on stilts – to eat green beans and pot roast prepared for their families. We got free rides on shrimping and charter fishing boats. We talked to retirees who moved to the  beach town of Grand Isle, La., only to be barred from the water they so enjoyed.

Tying an international news event to folks at home was rewarding. Yes, I was reporting on most of readers' own state. But the gulf is hours away. (Shreveport is closer to Dallas thatn New Orleans, for instance.) I didn't want this story to turn into just another passing thought from the cable news.

Grande Isle is home to Louisiana’s only beachside state park. Last summer it was full of cleanup workers who were separated from journalists and a few tourists by orange booms. Rather than the usual breezy atmosphere, things in this hamlet were a bit rushed and, well, corporate. BP had a definite presence, taking over the town municipal complex to turn it into a resource center for financial help.

As a Louisiana native, I’d spent time there for fun as a high schooler and college student. I hope my work was a reminder of what used to be and, I hope, what will come back strong.

Adam Kealoha Causey covers local politics for The Times (at Shreveport, La.), where he's worked for about five years. He lives about 15 miles from the Texas state line.

Welcome back: Ruth Liao

Ruth Liao moved back to Houston last November to become a markets reporter at ICIS, a chemical trade publication. She was most recently a social services reporter at the Statesman Journal in Salem, Ore., where she served as president of the Portland AAJA chapter. She's glad to be closer to family and glad to be reconnecting with Texas AAJA. This year, she is involved with the Convention News Project so be sure to contact her if you're interested in participating. Congratulations on the new job and welcome back, Ruth!