https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/93948

I decided not to let this sit on my desktop and get some exposure. So, I posted it on the Smashwords e-book site. Enjoy!

The Beginning

I began my writing career as a journalist. While attending the University of Missouri School of Journalism, I learned the greatest stories are about people. My emphasis on science journalism would seem to focus my work on technology, but I learned the people behind the science were what fascinated me. I interviewed Dr. Leonard at the NIH in the mid 1980s. He publicly excoriated me because I asked him why he thought AIDS resembled a virus. Later, when it was proved HIV was indeed viral, I realized how the world of science revolves around reputation. Experiences like these made me realize even the sterile world of the scientist can be a seething beaker of stress, and to approach scientists as people, first.

My Ph.D. schoolo allowed me to create my own program in the effects of new media technology. The influence of media upon culture make fiction a paramount actor in bringing about awareness of ourselves. I have taught in two higher education settings as a professor of journalism and have learned the truth of the paraphrased quote most often attributed to Henry Kissinger: “The politics of Academia is so vicious precisely because the stakes are so small.” These experiences cause me to look beyond personality to the influence of culture, whether global, or local.