Kimberly Noel Chase

Experience

• Freelance Print and Video Journalist, Mexico City/ US (2007-10)
  
• Editorial Assistant, Associated Press, Mexico City (2006-7)
• Crime Reporter, The Salinas Californian, Salinas, CA (2005-6)
• Intern, The New York Times, San Francisco Bureau (2004)
• Intern, The Christian Science Monitor, New York Bureau (2003-4)

Education

• Masters in Journalism, Stanford University 
• Masters in Comparative Literature, City University of New York
  
• BA in Liberal Arts, New School for Social Research
  

Languages

• Spanish (speak/read/write)
• French (speak/read/write)
• Hebrew (speak)

Affiliations

• Radio-Television News Directors Association
• Society of Professional Journalists
  
• Society of Environmental Journalists
• National Writers Union

Visitors descending temple steps at Teotihuacan: Kimberly N. Chase

Reporting from Mexico

My work from 2006-2008 most often centered on social and environmental issues in Mexico, where society is on the brink of modern development. It's the land of some of the world's greatest poets and novelists, with its share of globally famous pop gods and goddesses. But in the areas of technology and environment, Mexico is struggling to catch up with its developed neighbors and trade partners. This was a fascinating time to watch the country change, as it navigated the tough choices presented by polluting industry, underground economies, and social problems like drugs and domestic violence, all of which fed the urge to cross the border to the north.

Reporting from a foreign country made me see things I might have overlooked in my native land. Once you step through the looking glass of the US-Mexico border, everything takes on an altered tint, from the dustiness of the midday air and the slower pace of walking, to the lower level of trust you give people in uniform or someone asking you the time. You see different clothes and hair styles, a more traditional view of gender, and vastly different concepts of family and interpersonal respect. All these things, along with the social stew of a modernizing country, provide very good grist for the journalistic mill.