Charlie Foxtrot was created by an investigative documentary team out of Atlanta, Georgia. To see their first digital documentary, The Triangle, click here. To meet the team and what drives them, keep reading.
Jeremy Campbell, Executive Storyteller
I spent my twenties making documentaries with a camcorder from Circuit City, hoping if I worked hard enough I could change the world with a good story.
The winds of change swept me on TV as a news reporter after a Hurricane devastated New Orleans (yes, it was the storm you’re thinking). My city was waterlogged, and I felt putting a documentary mindset on local news could make a difference.
Ten years, five Emmys and four cities later… and the winds of change blew again – hard. This time it wasn’t a storm. It was an opportunity.
I got the chance to try out a new way to tell the news. Instead of reporting, I was tasked with crafting documentaries one episode at a time as a founding member of the Atticus team. Part of the job description is “Do good work, try to change the world.”
As a TV reporter I had a front row seat to several moments that now live in history books. I told stories from three continents, and once I even reported from the commander’s chair of Space Shuttle Atlantis.
Somehow none it feels as right as ending up back where I started. Making documentaries… and trying to change the world.
I hope you’ll follow along @jeremycampbellnews Facebook and @atticusdocs Facebook.
Erin Gutierrez, Executive Producer
Twitterish version of @ErinKGutierrez:
Journalist. Chicago born. Texas Longhorn raised. Sorority Advisor. Yogi. Wife. Obsessed with my dog. Not necessarily in that order.
Beyond 140 characters:
I am the Atticus Executive Producer. And it's the best job in journalism.
Before Atticus, I worked at CNN and its sister network HLN. I got there by climbing the News StairMaster through local stations in Toledo, Flint, Houston and Atlanta. I have a few awards. But a decade after graduating from the University of Texas, I was light years away from being Woodward or Bernstein. So, I freelanced and got my yoga teacher certification while trying to find life after news.
In 2015, a former boss offered me a gig on a pilot project. Our goal was to use concrete data and compelling storytelling to create a digital series unlike anything you'd typically associate with "local news." That pilot project turned into "The Triangle." I suddenly remembered why I wanted to be a journalist in the first place.
Now I have the opportunity and privilege of telling stories that matter to me. This gig is better than being Woodward and Bernstein, and not just because I have the internet. I'm constantly challenged to push, uncover, explore, and innovate. I am supported by bosses and a company investing the future of news. Plus, I'm able to learn from the other incredible journalists on the Atticus team. Go ahead and roll your eyes. I would too. But this is a dream job, in real life.
Tell me about a story matters to you: egutierrez@tegna.com.
Lauren Rudeseal, Investigative Producer
I am an Atticus Investigative Producer, all because I’m nosey as hell.
I was that kid that asked ‘why?’ a zillion times and as I got older, I learned to love those ‘ah-ha!’ moments. You know what I’m talking about. It’s the moment when everything clicks. It’s the moment of consciousness when the heavens open, the light shines down and the angels sing the hallelujah chorus. It’s a major reason I chose to pursue a degree in Ethnic Studies at the University of Colorado-Boulder. There, my professors and classmates didn’t just demand me to think critically, they expected me to listen critically as well.
I started at 11Alive as essentially a glorified intern about three years ago. I worked my way up to associate producer, but quickly grew frustrated at the surface-level nature of local news. I needed to go deeper.
Then came "The Triangle," and everything changed. We pushed boundaries by broaching topics that make people uncomfortable. We lifted the veil on the stigma of heroin addiction, forcing a community to look in the mirror and see themselves in the faces of the dead. We went there, and you went there with us.
I'm surrounded by a team and by bosses that encourage me to tumble down the rabbit hole; to think freely and deeply; to explore and experiment. There are no limits. There are no labels. Nothing Atticus does is traditional, and that’s why I fit in.
Matt Livingston, Director of Photography
Matt Livingston is a photojournalist in Atlanta working as the Director of Photography for Atticus. Matt has been shooting video ever since his parents bought a VHS camera as a child. After landing his first news job in 2001 as a part-time weekend video editor, Matt worked his way up through various positions eventually landing with the Atticus team.
Matt is partial to using vintage lenses from the days of 35mm film combined with modern digital equipment to help achieve an interesting cinema aesthetic for Atticus stories. Matt also serves as the main video editor for the group.
In his spare time, Matt enjoys electronic music, personal computing and working on cars.
Blis Savidge, Multi-Platform Investigator
For as long as I can remember, I've wanted to be a storyteller.
Growing up with a journalist father, instead of fiction, in our home the stories were real. About people, places, events, our times... the news. I realized I most wanted to tell the stories of others, now I just needed to figure out HOW.
At the University of Georgia, I majored in journalism and minored in Anthropology. When you think about it, both are a study of who we are, one’s just more current.
I wrote for my school paper and magazine, reported and produced for Grady Newsource, and interned for CNN's AC360 in New York City.
By chance in my senior year I took an internship with an experimental investigative team at 11Alive. I had no way of knowing that the first professional story I would help tell would partially be my own.
"Inside the Triangle" focused on the harm and heartbreak of heroin in the lives of young people and their families in a town that could be many places - but it was actually my own town. My high school and my friends were featured, the living and the dead.
The story had an impact on me to say the least and as I walked away, I suddenly knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life.
Now I'm thrilled to be a full-fledged member of the team. I shoot, edit, write and occasionally you'll even see me.... always with a story to tell.
Do you have an idea for the next docu-series investigation? Email the team here.