About Guest Writers
M.R. Field has been playing in and working in politics and journalism for over thirty years. She came to Iowa in recent years to help promote women and women’s perspectives not only in presidential politics but also in presidential administrations. She found an even more basic need for ordinary reporting, what she calls “city hall” reporting. That means a person should be able to read a newspaper, listen to broadcast news, or read an Internet news site and find out not only what happened at a local-government meeting but why it happened.
Although interested in international affairs, Field has found most of her time over the past couple of decades dedicated to local issues. She knows from personal experience that being a journalist means spending time talking with people butchering cattle as well as with people whose offices are in the state Capitol. She does not believe it is possible to be a part-time journalist because of the time it takes to develop sources, follow-up leads that often go nowhere, and to learn enough background to know which questions need to be asked.
Her blogs on Around Des Moines range from the gentle to the practical. She wants readers to take time to look at their surroundings throughout the year, as well as to have information that will help them make decisions as citizens. She is happy if her writing makes somebody think. She is even happier when she gets paid for her writing. Around Des Moines is supported by advertising. Please visit the web sites of advertisers that appear on the blog pages. (Here’s a hint: If you click on the “Comments” section of a blog, you will sometimes see different advertisements. For example, in the blog about the Bridges of Madison County, there was an advertisement for a covered bridge festival in Indiana.)
M.R. Field is editor of Leading Voices: Iowa.
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Brenda Friedrich is a Des Moines-based writer and communications consultant. Her life in communications spans 20-some years and includes stints in radio, print, multimedia and Web.
Currently Friedrich focuses her commercial practice on writing and design where she specializes in techniques for engaging attention and enhancing message retention. Recently she has also added research services and search engine optimization (SEO) counseling to her product line-up.
Freelance writing rounds out Brenda’s communications efforts and over the past year, she has taken up blogging as the new frontier in communications. In addition to Around Des Moines, you can also find her writing for her own personal slice-of-life site, Enroute365, and a professional communications blog.
