My journey in journalism

New reporter on the job at Chronicle

Hello, my name is Richard Espinoza, and I am the new reporter for the Lovell Chronicle. I would like to talk about how my journey in journalism started.

My love for writing started when I was a contributing writer for the Oakland Raiders Silver and Black Illustrated for the Sound Off column. After getting my stories posted in the fan page, my dad saw the talent I had, and he encouraged me to be a sportswriter.

I decided to go back to school and earned an A.A. degree in English, but little did I know my English professor, John Orozco, would be impressed with my writing skills. I had a meeting with Professor Orozco at his office, and he said that I would make a great news reporter.

I graduated from Los Angeles Mission College in Sylmar, California, in 2008 with my A.A. degree in general education. I continued my education to earn my transfer A.A. degree in journalism and behavioral science.  Sadly, tragedy would hit me hard when my dad passed away. 

Due to my dad’s passing, I decided to take time away from school. I knew at some point I had to return to school because it is what my dad would like me to do. I went back to school and enrolled at Los Angeles Pierce College in the media arts program.

I also worked for the Los Angeles Unified School District as a buildings and grounds worker for 16 years and went on workers comp due to a work injury. From that point on I focused on school. I graduated from Pierce College in 2019 and was later accepted at Northern Arizona University. 

I enrolled at NAU in the spring of 2020, however, the COVID-19 pandemic erupted, and my enrollment at NAU was delayed. I started the first semester at NAU in the spring of 2021.  During my time at NAU, I was a reporter for the Lumber Jack school newspaper for two semesters. I would later join NAZ Today, which is a student run cable news network in Flagstaff, where students covered news in Northern Arizona communities.

During my time at NAZ Today I got training on working the camera and learned other skills. I was later promoted to be an assignment editor, where I would look for news and come up with news ideas for the next broadcast.

During my senior year at NAU, I joined the NAU/Media Intervention Center sports journalism department and got great experience in sports reporting. As part of my sports journalism assignment, I worked as an intern sports reporter for the Arizona Daily Sun. I covered all high school sports in the Coconino County area and NAU sports for the Lumber Jack. I also worked for NAZ Today’s sports program “The Over Time,” which took place on Thursdays and Fridays.

I graduated from NAU in the spring of 2023. Graduating from NAU was no cake walk for me by any means. One of the toughest things I had to do to graduate was to complete my capstone. My capstone project was on mental health among college men and college male military veterans. It was a challenge because my professor wanted me to do something that was different as it relates to mental health.

Since I have knowledge in behavioral science, I used it to my advantage to write my capstone. Doing stories on mental health is both personal and important to me because of my Uncle Johnny’s tragic suicide.  The main purpose of my capstone was to help people understand about mental health and how to detect the signs of depression or suicide.

For me, it’s all about helping people to save lives, and it is the reason why I did this project. 

After graduating from NAU I returned to my home state of California where I worked as a volunteer sports reporter for the Valley Press Telegram and covered high school football. Even though I did not get paid, the most rewarding part of the job was the hands-on experience I received. I had the opportunity to cover the L.A. City/CIF championships and the CIF state championship. I also met some of the top sports reporters from Southern and Northern California and learned some important tips in sports reporting.

I got my first professional career in journalism at the Saratoga Sun in Saratoga, Wyoming.  I worked for the Saratoga Sun for seven months, and even though things did not work out, I have no regrets moving to the state of Wyoming. What I love most about living in a small town is the people. It is the friendly, smalltown atmosphere that keeps me enjoying the work I do. Small towns such as Saratoga, Encampment and Lovell set the good example of kindness.

I am looking forward to meeting everyone in Lovell and all Big Horn County. If you enjoy the stories I write, please send me an email. Remember, your opinion matters. If you have an important story the community needs to know about, please stop by our office or give us a call.