When my alarm blasts me out of sleepy reverie at 6:30 a.m., I need precisely two things to start my day: coffee and National Public Radio’s Morning Edition.
The news show’s staff, however, has been up far longer than most listeners have, preparing the broadcast from the network’s studios in Washington, D.C. In fact, Alex Markels’ alarm goes off at 4:00 each weekday morning, just enough time for him to grab a coffee, orange juice and Odwalla energy bar before driving or roller-blading to his new job at Morning Edition by 5:00 – he can’t take public transportation because it doesn’t run that early.
Markels, who was a Ted Scripps Fellow in 2004-05, joined NPR in April, moving from his Boulder home and an active freelance career in print to his first major radio stint, in the hubbub of the nation’s capital.
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| Alex Markels |
When he arrives, he checks on breaking stories to include or update for the day’s broadcast. By 7 a.m., he’s working with the producer on the morning’s second feed, keeping track of the wire services and newspapers to make sure nothing is missed. Once noon rolls around, he’s ready to start working on future shows.
Markels, who has plenty of experience in daily newspaper journalism, finds the pace intense but gratifying.
“It’s been a huge transition, more from a process standpoint that a content standpoint. I’m supervising staff, working and negotiating with news desks, and turning stories around in as little as a few minutes. Even in daily news reporting, the news cycle wasn’t nearly so short.”
There’s a special satisfaction for Markels in “hearing a story on the air that we put together five minutes before.”
It hadn’t occurred to him to pursue openings he’d seen advertised at NPR previously, since he had little radio experience. But through contact with an editor Markels had worked with at U.S. News and World Report, NPR came looking for him.
“The fact that I founded a community radio station a while back seemed to be enough to demonstrate my interest in the medium,” he said. Markels launched Radio Free Minturn, a public FM station, from a small town in the Colorado Rockies in 1997.
So far, every story he has been involved with at Morning Edition has been an excursion into exciting new territory. As he arrived in Washington, Pope John Paul II had just died.
“I spent the next two weeks learning everything I could about papal succession,” he said.
His Ted Scripps Fellowship experience has already served Markels in his new role as an editor, giving him helpful perspective from which to evaluate the merit of particular stories.
“If a story breaks, such as the recent Bush administration decision on the ‘roadless rule’ [in national forests], I at least have some context to decide whether it’s worth covering,” he observed.
Markels is enjoying D.C.’s ethnic diversity, free museums and spring flowers.
The downside? Traffic. Oh, and he’s still trying to get some sleep. He’s had plenty of preparation for his taxing schedule, though, as the father of 16-month-old Moses. While Moses may now be sleeping through the night, however, it doesn’t appear that his dad will be doing so any time soon.
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| Moses Markels contemplates new mischief as mom Holly looks on (Photo/Alex Markels) |
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