By Eric Ruthford 
May 25, 2010 Mike Buchman Hi Eric: I'm enjoying reading your work and watching you struggle with some of the dynamics of reporting on efforts to end homelessness in King County. Its a subject that really has many story threads leading to bigger and bigger knots and very few easy answers. From my perspective as communications manager of a large service provider (Solid Ground), I am especially interested in today's post on your conversation with Bill Hobson of DESC. We've been struggling recently with an abundance of media interest in the subject of family homelessness, due in part to the Seattle U Fellowship program. While I see the importance of personifying this complex issue, I am also seeing the potential negative effects of journalists’ work on the lives of their subjects and ways in which some in-depth reporting can turn subjects into uncompensated collaborators. It’s a sticky wicket that I imagine you, with your feet firmly in both journalism and homeless services, can appreciate the subtleties of in ways folks who have only been journalists cannot. Those of us fighting to end homelessness understand the value of telling the stories of folks struggling to escape homelessness and get back on their feet. But we do not want the telling to be at the expense of the homeless people. Keep up the good work, I look forward to reading more. BTW, is there a way to subscribe to your posts? If so, I did not see it. Thanks! Mike Buchman Communications Manager, Solid Ground
Hi Mike, You're our first commenter on this blog. Thanks for your thoughtful comments. I do indeed know the difficulties of protecting those whom you serve. The interest I have is simply asking about the difference between being in an apartment that you can call "yours" vs. the chaos of moving from place to place. As for the subscription thing, I have sent a note to the site manager to figure that out. Thanks!
On the right side of these pages, there should be a "Watch this story" field where you can put in your e-mail address. It is to the right of the "Facebook F" and the "Twitter T." Hopefully that helps.
Hi Eric, A few readers -- one with the above opinion -- responded to your blog posts at Seattlepostglobe.org. Find their half-dozen comments here... http://seattlepostglobe.org/2010/05/16/what-will-it-look-like-when-homelessness-is-ended ... and here: http://seattlepostglobe.org/2010/05/18/compelling-stories-about-homelessness-dont-always-make-good-data - Sally Deneen
Hi Eric, A few more readers responded to your blog posts at Seattlepostglobe.org. Find their comments (including the one in the subject line above) here: http://bit.ly/cwj9Eb
Hi Eric, A few more readers responded to your blog posts at Seattlepostglobe.org. Find their comments (including the one in the subject line above) here: http://bit.ly/cwj9Eb
... at Seattlepostglobe.org: http://bit.ly/bAakzl
