In addition to the three books listed on the Books page, here is a list of major writings that have kept me busy and happy over the four decades since I started pecking on a typewriter in high school. Narrative journalism never gets boring! For a short copy of my Curriculum Vitae, click  Atkins CV_2014

Major Investigative or Narrative Journalism Stories  or Academic Presentations

(2,000-7,500 words)

“Sustainable Male Sex — Revisiting the Three Faces of Love”, Conference on Anthropology and Sustainability in Asia, March 2014, Hiroshima, Japan

“Wen, Wu and Winckelman: The Poetics and Politics of Gay Manhood in a New Asian ‘Nation'”, First Asia Oceanic Conference of Sexology, Bangkok, November 2006

“My Man Fridae: Re-Producing Asian Masculinity,” Seattle Journal for Social Justice, Fall/Winter 2005, 4:1, 67-100.

B0ok Review of David Bergman, The Violet Hour, for Journal of American History (2004)

B0ok Review of Peter Boag, Same Sex Affairs: Constructing and Controlling Homosexuality in the Pacific Northwest, for Lambda Literary Journal, Fall 2003.

“From Pervert to Compassionate Citizen: Sexual Marginalization and Communicative Experiences of Belonging,” paper for the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities, summer 2003.

“I’m Not Trying To Be A Hero”   Seattle Weekly, March 8, 1989

Profile of Sgt. Perry Watkins’ struggle against the U.S. Army’s gay exclusion policy. The U.S. Supreme Court later upheld Watkins’ right to remain in the military

“Forced March in the Military”   The Nation, January 2, 1989

Review of the constitutional freedom of speech issues raised by the military’s gay policies

 “The Bishop and the Bomb”   Seattle Times Pacific Magazine,  June 20, 1982

Profile of Seattle’s controversial archbishop, Raymond Hunthausen, his refusal to pay taxes, and his opposition to military bases in the Puget Sound region. Also republished: Chicago Tribune Magazine, Fall 1982.

 “Colville’s Million-Dollar Mountain” Seattle Times Pacific Magazine, August 30,  1981

Environmental and social issues raised by plans to locate a molybdenum mine on a Northwest Indian reservation. Joint student/faculty project which also produced a special supplement to the university newspaper, The Spectator, entitled “The Colville Tribe: A Local Nation Faces Third World Choices.” The Spectator’s supplement won an award from the Washington Press Association for the Best Investigative Reporting by a Weekly Newspaper.

“The Death and Dying of Dewayne Baker”  Seattle Times Pacific Magazine, July 12, 1981

Profile of 22-year-old man fighting against leukemia. Article won second place award for Best Personality Story of the Year from Sigma Delta Chi, Western Washington Chapter.

 “Desert Rats”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, November 16, 1978

Profile of colorful, long-time California desert residents who were being moved aside to make room for tourists

“100 Years of News”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, June 29, 1978

Primary author of newspaper’s centennial supplement

 “Pollution Solution: Nice Clean Coal”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, October 2, 1978

5-part investigative series on the impact of energy developments in the California desert

“Wilderness: The Coming Struggle”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, April 30, 1978

Research story on Bureau of Land Management’s plans to create additional wilderness areas in the California Desert

“Destruction: The Heritage of Recreation”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, March 19, 1978

Research story on environmental impacts of recreation  and tourism in the California desert

“The California Desert: Into the 1980s”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, February 12, 1978

Investigation of Bureau of Land Management’s attempts to protect the California Desert

“Hotels of the Poor: Frail Shelters”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, January 22, 1978

Lives of elderly pensioners and transients living in run-down hotels in the California desert

 “The Great Burro Roundup”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, September 25, 1977

Environmental impacts from burros and wild horses in the California desert. Article won Twin Counties Press Club award for Best Environmental Story

“And Then To Dream”  Riverside Press-Enterprise,  July 24, 1977

Profile of environmentalist Harry James, 82, and his life in early Southern California

“Angry Miners”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, May 17, 1977

Profile of miners in the California desert and investigation of environmental effects

“The Jukebox Operators”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, March 20, 1977

Profile of father-son team who maintained jukeboxes in out-of-the-way desert cafes. Article won Twin Counties Press Club award for Best Feature Story of the Year.

 

 “Dusty Lonely Life of a Desert Ranger”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, February 13, 1977

Profile of the first California desert park rangers hired by the Bureau of Land Management

“Showdown in Sohio Oil Controversy”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, January 23, 1977

Environmental effects of planned oil pipeline through the California desert

 “In Search of New Objectivity”  in Mass Media Issues,  Prentice-Hall, 1977 

Historical/critical analysis of the rise of objectivity in the American press

 “High Death Rate along I-15”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, August 8, 1976

Investigation of dangerous highway conditions along I-15 route between Riverside and San Diego, causing unnecessary deaths

 “Graveyard Shift at Trucker’s Cafe”   Riverside Press-Enterprise,  July 30, 1976

Truckers’ and waitresses’ lives at a late-night desert truck stop

“Ramona’s Name Enriched, but Not Her Sons”   Riverside Press-Enterpise, July  18, 1976

“At Tribal Hall: Old Failures, New Programs”   Riverside Presss-Enterprise, July 19, 1976

“Sun, Salty Soil Leave Little Hope for Indians”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, July 20, 1976

3-part investigative series on the harsh conditions faced by the Torres-Martinez Indians.

Articles received Associated Press News Executives runner up award for Best Investigative Series.

“A Lonely Confused Way of Death”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, April 25, 1976

Investigation of dangers for the elderly in nursing homes; cases of walkaways killed

“Families Return to Harsh  Reservation”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, March 21, 1976

Difficulties faced by Cahuilla Indians returning to a mountain reservation

“Temeculas Jealously Guard Country”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, September 7, 1975

Profile of small Indian reservation trying to maintain its traditions as onslaught of resort and urban development approaches

“Rail Safety Violations,”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, August 10, 1975

Investigation of defective railroad track concerns in Southern California; spotchecks and review of files show twisted metal tie plates, worn rail.

“Family’s Golden Dream  Grew to Nightmare”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, May  15, 1975

Investigation of the murder conviction of an impoverished Hispanic family; research supported defense argument that the family was innocent and the conviction was eventually abandoned. (“Couple Convicted…Freed of Charge,” Riverside Press-Enterprise, November 22, 1975). Initial investigative article won Twin Counties Press Club award for Best Feature Story of the Year.

 “Appalling Conditions at Juvenile Homes,”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, February 16, 1975

Investigation of conditions at institutional homes for juveniles

 “Freight Wheels Singing Their Last”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, February 9, 1975

Profile of the last railroad-riding hobos and challenges they face making a living

“Safety Tightened for Desert Cyclists”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, November 25, 1974

Investigation of safety measures taken by promoters of large desert motorcycle rides

 “Windy, Bleak Village Haven for Blacks”  Riverside Press-Enterprise,September 15, 1974

Profile of a small town near Palm Springs, where those who are black and work in the resort’s hotels make their homes

 “Wasting Money on Court Attaches”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, June 30, 1974

Investigation of money spent on courtroom attaches (clerks, bailiffs) in Riverside County

“Sick and Illegal: A Problem for Everyone”    Riverside Press-Enterprise, March 10, 1974

Investigation of health care for impoverished illegal immigrants in Southern California

“The Scandals of Irwindale”  New Times Magazine,  May, 1974

Investigation of blackmail and bribery in a Southern California suburb

“A Baby Dies: Parents Persecuted?”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, November 24, 1973

Investigation into the procedures followed by police and coroner in prosecuting a young, poor couple whose infant likely died from Suddent Infant Death Syndrome

“Richard Krupp’s Nightmare Didn’t End”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, August 25, 1973

Profile of a police officer found innocent of murdering 22-year-old but forced to flee his community and go into hiding in the desert. Article won Twin Counties Press Club award for Best Feature Story of the Year, and California Newspaper Publishers Association runnerup award for Best Feature Story.

“Lake and Land” Riverside Press-Enterprise, May 13, 1973

Environmental impacts of Lake Perris, the new and final reservoir of California’s aqueduct system

 “Critics Attack Agricultural Research Goals”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, March 18, 1973 

Investigation of university agricultural research ties to California agribusiness

“Rough Road to Recovery” Riverside Press-Enterprise, December 17, 1972

Feature on those in an addiction program at state hospital

“Beep..Beep…Alpha Machine…at Work” Riverside Press-Enterprise, November 26, 1972

Feature on the alpha wave biofeedback craze and the medical science behind it

 “Smog No Respecter of County Lines”   Riverside Press-Enterprise  September 9, 1972

“Names, Numbers Contribute to Haze”  Riverside Press-Enterprise  September 10, 1972

“Uniform Alert Levels Remain Dream”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, September 11, 1972

3-part investigative series examining the conflicting terminology and responses of county-based smog control agencies in Southern California

“The Black Man and the American Experience”  New Orleans Review, Fall, 1972

Interview about the civil rights movement during the 1940s and 1950s with Lester B. Granger, former executive director of the National Urban League.

“Inflation, Fixed Incomes Lock in Elderly”     Washington Post, August 27, 1970

Research story on the struggle of the elderly to keep their homes in the face of rising assessments and property taxes

 

Shorter Journalism Articles of Note

(500-2,000 words)

“Northwest Tribe’s Historic Deal”   Christian Science Monitor,  July 1981

Colville Tribe’s plans to allow major molybdenum development on reservation land

“The Supreme Court’s Affront: Zurcher v. Stanford Daily”  f-10 Forum, May/June 1978

Review of Supreme Court’s decision to allow warrantless searches of newsrooms for reporters’ notes and photographers’ negatives

“Stress [for photojournalists]”   F-10 Forum, January-February 1978

Psychological and physical stress in photojournalism

“Holy the Firm”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, November 6, 1977

Review of Annie Dillard book

“Land Reform Would Alter Agriculture”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, August 24, 1977

Feature explaining impact of two federal court rulings applying aspects of the federal Reclamation Law to California agribusiness

“The Little Bureaucracy that Grew Up”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, August 14, 1977

Feature on the expansion of the Bureau of Land Management from a “rancher’s agency” into an multifacted environmental agency.

“Along the Dry Edge” Riverside Press-Enterprise, June 26, 1977

Profile of those of the frontline of California’s aqueduct system

“Miners vs Rangers”  Riverside Press-Enterprise,  May 22, 1977

Feature on violent conflicts between miners and U.S. park rangers in California

“Tiny Water Company Huge Headache”   Riverside Press-Enterprise, February 27, 1977

Feature on concerns about safety of a water system in small desert town of Mesa Verde

 “Joshua Tree in Financial, Political Crunch”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, October 25, 1976

Budget cuts at Joshua Tree National Monument leading to safety, environmental concerns

“Watching for an End”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, August 22, 1976

Profile of desert feedlot operators facing an uncertain economic future

“Two Farmers Settle for Coyote Serenade” Riverside Press-Enterprise, May 9, 1976

 Profile of elderly brother and sister living in Joshua Tree National Monument

“Tribes  Receive Reform Agency Skeptically”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, April 4, 1976

Responses to Congress’ review of American Indian policy

“Urban Sprawl Comes This Way” Riverside Press-Enterprise,  February 29, 1976

Environmental impacts of housing developments creeping from Orange County

“Big Step Toward Indians’ Land Control”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, December 26, 1975

Feature explaining federal court ruling freeing reservations from county government control

 “Front Porches: Victims of  Changed Lifestyle” Riverside Press-Enterprise, June 13, 1975

Architectural feature noting the passing of the front porch

“Railroad’s County Land”  Riverside Press-Enterprise, July 28, 1974

Southern Pacific’s environmental impact in Riverside County with its large land-holdings

“Guardianships Gone but Indians Still Can’t Use Land”

Riverside Press-Enterprise, March 31, 1974

Followup on earlier Pulitzer Prize winning investigation by the Press-Enterprise. Wealthy members of the Palm Springs tribe of Agua Calientes had been kept under the control of whites through guardianships and much of their wealth had been squandered

“Latest Indian Guardianship Case” Riverside Press-Enterprise, July 1, 1973

Details of the termination of a white guardianship over a wealthy Agua Caliente tribal member in Palm Springs.

“Libraries Need Upgrading” Riverside Press-Enterprise, April 15, 1973

Research story on which county libraries do and do not meet national standards

 “Socialism”  Riverside Press-Enterpise, October 1, 1972

Review of Michael Harrington book

“Computer Students”   New Orleans Times-Picayune Dixie Magazine, April 27, 1969

Fortran arrives and students in New Orleans begin to learn a new communication language

“Theater Builders” New Orleans Times-Picayune Dixie Magazine, March 30, 1969

Feature on New Orleans high school students who work to create their own theater

 “Onstage at Jesuit” New Orleans Times-Picayune Dixie Magazine, April 21, 1968

Teen thespians in New Orleans find a niche with “Man of All Seasons”

“Bringing Home a Brother,”  New Orleans Times-Picayune Dixie Magazine, May 5, 1968

Feature on a hospital candy-striper who gets her family to adopt a child welfare client

“From School to Job”   New Orleans Times-Picayune Dixie Magazine, October 1, 1967

Feature on high school students in professional education programs

“Driving Toward Safety” New Orleans Times-Picayune Dixie Magazine, August 13,1967

Feature on Louisiana’s program to educate teenagers about driver safety

“Aiming to Serve” New Orleans Times-Picayune Dixie Magazine, May 21, 1967

Feature on high school service clubs and those teenagers who join them

“Today’s Teachers” New Orleans Times-Picayune Dixie Magazine, March 19, 1967

Who chooses the unenviable job of teaching high school teenagers, and why

“Politics, Youth Style” New Orleans Times-Picayune Dixie Magazine, February 12, 1967

Feature on the American Legion’s way of teaching teens about politics: Boys State