Andi McDaniel is a journalist and multimedia producer with a special focus on agriculture and environmental reporting. Her print work has been featured in the New York Times Magazine, Washington Post, Orion, and Utne Reader. She has reported and produced multimedia work for FRONTLINE/World, Alaska Public Radio, KALW's Crosscurrents, PRI's The World, and CBS News in San Francisco.
When the New Zealand police force said they were open to suggestions about how to rewrite national policing laws, they meant it. In September, they posted the 1958 Police Act online and invited Kiwis and non-Kiwis alike to visit the site and type in their own revisions to the law — extending the concept of “Wiki” ... Continue Reading
I met Alyssa Ford back in the day, if someone my age can say that– at Utne Reader in Minneapolis. We were both interns, and now we’re both freelance journalists, happy, successful ones, you could probably say. Back then, I didn’t realize just how make-it-happen powerful Alyssa can be– which I le ... Continue Reading
I’m embarrassed to say that only in the last few weeks have I begun listening regularly to San Francisco’s smaller NPR affiliate station, KALW, 91.7. Out of towners may recognize those call letters as the ones connected to this cool new news site, which KALW launched recently. They’re really out front ... Continue Reading
Image by basheertome Today was a classic day for the modern journalist, as evidenced by the sore back from lugging around a laptop, external hard drive, Marantz recorder, microphone, a bunch of cables, and a video camera, along with backup batteries of all volts and sizes. Time for some post-journalistic yoga. What was ... Continue Reading
(In Common Ground magazine, February 2009) If you’d asked me in college whether I would consider wearing a traditional white gown with a train to my future wedding, I would have arched my brow, put my hands on my hips, and scoffed, “You have got to be kidding.” What planet- and self-respecting modern woman would ... Continue Reading
I confess. I’m one of those “thoughtful” eaters you’ve been hearing so much about — the ones interrogating the arugula in the produce section or scrutinizing the ingredients on each box of Annie’s mac and cheese. When there’s a traffic jam in Aisle 3, it’s usually us, com ... Continue Reading
My uncle Bill calls it “getting snarfed”—that unforgettable experience of being swept up by a huge wave, thrashed around like dirty laundry, and then spat onto the beach with a mouth full of saltwater and three pounds of sand in your pants. It’s one way to contemplate the power of the ocean. Me, I prefer to enj ... Continue Reading
Aside from Oscar the Grouch, few people would argue that trash is a good thing. In addition to being stinky, ugly and a pain to lug out to the curb, the detritus of modern life causes problems on a far grander scale. Landfills and incinerators have been linked to a host of human health issues, and as for the environmen ... Continue Reading
