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As part of the continuing “On the Porch” series, this afternoon Max McCoy spoke on investigative journalism – a perfect topic for discussion on the porch of famed newspaper editor, William Allen White.
Max McCoy is an assistant professor at Emporia State University and is adviser to the college paper “The Bulletin.”
A prolific writer, McCoy’s most recent book is “I, Quantrill,” a novel. “Hellfire Canyon” has won the Western Writers of America’s Spur Award and is a 2008 Kansas Notable Book.
“But the most important writing I’ve done is investigative reporting,” he said.
He began his journalistic career writing for the Pittsburg Morning Sun. For eight years he was an investigative reporter for the Joplin Globe.
At the Globe, he spent three months working on a 30,000-word piece “Church of Hate” about a Christian Identity church in southwestern Missouri.
And he interviewed murderers on death row in Tennessee and Texas, trying to learn what happened to two young girls who disappeared from a trailer house in Oklahoma on New Year’s Eve 1999. That lengthy piece was called “The Killing Season”
McCoy said he tries to instill in his students the importance of investigative journalism because the media acts as our watchdog.
“Investigative reporting is a centerpiece of democracy,” McCoy said. “You have to have an informed electorate.”
Visit www.maxmccoy.com for information on Max and his books. His blog is Backstory.