Abby Hess
Verified
Small-town journalist. Unfettered optimist-skeptic. Nerd, mom, awkward award winner, wife. KU & Cubs fan 4 life.
R/Ts =/= endorsements. My opinions are mine.
Interview
What was your first job as a journalist?
I was the assistant online editor of the Emporia State University News Bulletin. Paid $5.35/hour! It was a fun gig. My job was to put the day's content up on the website. In those days that required extensive knowledge of HTML and usage of an FTP server. Much more work than it is now!
Have you ever used a typewriter?
I own two, both antique Royals, about 50 and 60 years old respectively. I love the way the keys feel and that satisfaction of resetting to the next line of text.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Two words: building bridges. My goal is to bring content to readers in a way that is not just accessible, but that enables them to find meaning and relevance to their own lives, regardless of subject matter.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
If we meet by chance in the community, give me your card and tell me the gist. I'll follow up in the office. If you're reaching out shoot me an email or text and let me know you've got something, and I'll call you to hear more about it. If you call, be prepared for the possibility that I may have to take your information and call you back.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
I'm old-fashioned and rely on books and pens most of all. I have a MacBook Pro with Photoshop and InDesign, and I use LibreOffice to write my stories. I take notes and audio on my phone, using Google docs and a free recording appi can't remember the name of. My camera is a Nikon D3200.
What's your favorite social network?
Facebook is the easiest way for me to connect with my readers, but I'm a big fan of Instagram, too.
Who do you wish followed you?
There was a guy who was mad at his neighbor whose septic tank was overflowing into his yard. He had a pond that was once filled with stock bass but when I dropped by to see, it was covered in green film and toilet paper pulp. It didn't smell like flowers, either.
Why did you become a journalist?
I took my job to build bridges within the community. I don't think I "became" a journalist so much as I happened to be given a life path that inevitably let to it. I've done a lot of things in my life. Aside from motherhood, journalism is the best use of my gifts and the most rewarding.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
I was an editor for my high school yearbook for three years. I laid out pages on Pagemaker and Quark and cropped photos by hand. I also sold advertisements. I decided editorial was the best place for me.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
Oh, that's a hard one. There are so many. Right now, I'm in the middle of a series that's close to my heart, about the opioid epidemic and it's impact on our local community. It's a lot of work, but I'm moving back and forth between the political angle, professional views and personal stories. Our county was rated number one in the state and 30th in the nation in prescription opioid saturation, which accounts not just for the number of prescriptions issued, but their strength. It impacts so many aspects of community, from families to the overloaded justice and foster care systems, from health care to economic development. I think what I like must about writing this series is that it really allows me to use all of my strengths as a writer to work toward my goal of engaging the reader to look at the issue in new ways.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
This job is 99% improv. You have to be ok with walking into a situation blind and -- you're a reporter! Make your ignorance work for you! Don't go in assuming you know what the story is going to be. Ask your source, "So, what's the story here?" and let them tell you. I can't tell you how many times I went in thinking I knew the story and came out with a completely different angle and lede.
When's the best time to pitch you?
In the morning between 9 and 10 when the coffee starts kicking in. I'm actually pretty receptive as long as I'm not working on a specific deadline right at that moment, or stuffing a hurried lunch into my mouth. If it's not a good time, I'll get the gist and the necessary contact information and follow up as soon as I can.
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
How about the grossest?
What's your favorite drink?
My spouse is a brewery at our local taproom (shout out to Wages Brewing Company!) so I have to at least name a favorite beer. That would be their lemongrass saison. Perfect spring/summer ale. But if I had my druthers, I'd be drinking Pinot Grigio more often.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Out with my camera or home with my family. Once in a blue moon, you might find be having drinks with my best girls.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
I always love to read the Washington Post, always. Lately I've been reading the New York Times more than usual because they've been doing some pretty big stories relating to my own. Here in Missouri, I follow the Kansas City Star and the Columbia Tribune and Columbia Missourian.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
The funny thing about small town journalism is that beats kind of bleed into one another. On the surface, it looks like I don't have a beat, I cover everything. And in a way, I do, in the sense that everything I write about concerns the heart of community. Other than that, I guess the biggest misperception would be that I actually know my material, haha.
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