Perspective on journalism: Morgan Loew
Courtesy: Morgan Loew, used with permission.
Morgan Loew is an investigative reporter at CBS 5 News and has reported on the invasion of Iraq, vigilantism and human trafficking along the U.S./Mexico border and Maricopa County's former Sheriff Joe Arpaio. Loew's work has been aired by CBS News, CNN, NBC News, MSNBC and NPR.
Loew is the recipient of 11 Rocky Mountain Emmy Awards, and two regional Edward R. Murrow Awards for investigative reporting.
April interviewed Loew in 2018 about a variety of topics including:
How he got started
Lessons he’s learned
The value of public records
How to find investigative stories
The importance of teamwork in investigations
His investigative story about a serial killer released by a parole board
““I started as an unpaid intern for two-and-a-half years, and I worked the overnight shift.”
”The interns, as you know, who ended up getting jobs, were the ones who took the shifts that nobody else wanted to take and that obviously gave them a little more opportunity.” ”
Here, Loew describes how he got his start in journalism.
““Give your bosses more than they want, more than they expect.”
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Loew has learned many valuable lessons from his years as a journalist, some of which he shares in this clip.
““Even if I know that this guy is doing something wrong, he can sue me and will sue me if it’s just an allegation. But if it’s in print in a public record, I have a right to report on that record and that protects me from being sued.””
In this clip, Loew describes how he uses public records and why they are invaluable to an investigative reporter.
““It’s tough to be a so-called ‘investigative reporter’ and feed the beast. I think being on the air every day is unrealistic if you want to do quality pieces . . .””
Here, Loew describes how he got started doing this investigative journalism and where he finds story ideas.
““There are many stories that we’ve done that, if we did not work as a team, we wouldn’t get the piece on the air.” ”
In this clip, Loew describes the importance of teamwork in researching and producing stories, and keeping everyone safe.
““It’s one of those tips where you think ‘this can’t be right? There’s no way.’ And it ended up being accurate and we ended up doing, gosh, probably 10 pieces on this.” ”
Next, Loew describes one of his most memorable stories about a serial killer who was released from prison and why no one in his new neighborhood knew about his past. One of the stories can be seen below.