Boeing strike coverage for the New York Times and Bloomberg News
December 12, 2024

Workers with picket signs outside the Boeing Co. manufacturing facility during a strike in Everett, Washington, US, on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. Boeing Co. factory workers walked off the job for the first time in 16 years, halting manufacturing across the planemaker’s Seattle hub after members of its largest union voted overwhelmingly to reject a contract offer and go on strike. Photographer: M. Scott Brauer/Bloomberg
Union members await results of the contract and strike vote at the IAM District 751 Main Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, US, on Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. Members of Boeing Co.’s largest union vote on the first comprehensive labor contract in 16 years on Thursday, setting the stage for a disruptive strike just as the embattled planemaker works to recover from a series of manufacturing missteps.

For Bloomberg News and the New York Times, I spent many days (and nights!) in Everett, Renton, Seattle, and other places around the region covering the lengthy Boeing Machinists strike from September to November 2024. I covered everything from the first walkout and vote to resoundingly reject the initial contract offering to the midnight start of the strike to the round-the-clock picket lines by the side of the highway and outside different Boeing facilities and finally to multiple contract rejections and ultimately a final contract acceptance and abandonment of the strike locations.

It was exhausting keeping up with all the developments, especially the first couple of days of the strike, but a pleasure to get so much time to work on one ongoing story.

Signs and posters about the impending union contract and strike vote outside the Boeing Co. manufacturing facility in Renton, Washington, US, on Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg urged members of the company’s largest union not to strike, cautioning a work stoppage would harm efforts to turn around the planemaker’s factories after years of turmoil.
Machinists leave the Boeing Co. manufacturing facility to vote on a contract and strike in Renton, Washington, US, on Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg urged members of the company’s largest union not to strike, cautioning a work stoppage would harm efforts to turn around the planemaker’s factories after years of turmoil.
Union members cheer after the announcement of the contract and strike vote results at the IAM District 751 Main Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, US, on Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. Members of Boeing Co.’s largest union vote on the first comprehensive labor contract in 16 years on Thursday, setting the stage for a disruptive strike just as the embattled planemaker works to recover from a series of manufacturing missteps.
Food for picketing workers outside the Boeing Co. facility during a strike in Everett, Washington, US, on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. Boeing Co. factory workers walked off the job for the first time in 16 years, halting manufacturing across the planemaker’s Seattle hub after members of its largest union voted overwhelmingly to reject a contract offer and go on strike.
Workers strike outside the Boeing Co. manufacturing facility during a strike in Renton, Washington, US, on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. Members of Boeing Co.’s largest union vote on the first comprehensive labor contract in 16 years on Thursday, setting the stage for a disruptive strike just as the embattled planemaker works to recover from a series of manufacturing missteps.
Workers picket outside the Boeing Co. facility during a strike in Everett, Washington, US, on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. Boeing Co. factory workers walked off the job for the first time in 16 years, halting manufacturing across the planemaker’s Seattle hub after members of its largest union voted overwhelmingly to reject a contract offer and go on strike.
Workers with picket signs outside the Boeing Co. manufacturing facility during a strike in Renton, Washington, US, on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. Boeing Co. factory workers walked off the job for the first time in 16 years, halting manufacturing across the planemaker’s Seattle hub after members of its largest union voted overwhelmingly to reject a contract offer and go on strike.
Striking machinist Carol (last name withheld) holds strike signs while dressed as a clown outside the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall during a Boeing Machinist strike rally in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Tue., Oct. 15, 2024. Carol says she works on the 767 program in the Boeing Everett factory and has worked at Boeing for 18 years. The strike is entering its second month. During the rally, the strikers erupted in chants shouting "Pension" numerous times.
Workers picket outside the Boeing Co. facility during a strike in Everett, Washington, US, on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. Boeing Co. factory workers walked off the job for the first time in 16 years, halting manufacturing across the planemaker’s Seattle hub after members of its largest union voted overwhelmingly to reject a contract offer and go on strike.
Workers with picket signs outside the Boeing Co. manufacturing facility during a strike in Everett, Washington, US, on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. Boeing Co. factory workers walked off the job for the first time in 16 years, halting manufacturing across the planemaker’s Seattle hub after members of its largest union voted overwhelmingly to reject a contract offer and go on strike. Photographer: M. Scott Brauer/Bloomberg
Workers picket outside the Boeing Co. facility during a strike in Everett, Washington, US, on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. Boeing Co. factory workers walked off the job for the first time in 16 years, halting manufacturing across the planemaker’s Seattle hub after members of its largest union voted overwhelmingly to reject a contract offer and go on strike.
Workers picket outside the Boeing Co. facility during a strike in Everett, Washington, US, on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. Boeing Co. factory workers walked off the job for the first time in 16 years, halting manufacturing across the planemaker’s Seattle hub after members of its largest union voted overwhelmingly to reject a contract offer and go on strike.

The final contract votes

Striking Boeing machinists gather in the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall during a rally in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Tue., Oct. 15, 2024. The strike is entering its second month. During the rally, the strikers erupted in chants shouting "Pension" numerous times.
Strike signs cover the walls as striking Boeing machinists wait in line for food before a rally at the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Tue., Oct. 15, 2024. The strike is entering its second month.
Striking machinists count ballots from today's vote on whether or not to end the weeks-long Boeing machinists' strike, at the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Oct. 23, 2024. The union represents approximately 33,000 machinists who work for the Boeing Company in the Pacific Northwest and who voted to reject the initial contract offer and strike with over 90% approval in September. Voting and vote counting occurred at multiple locations around the region.
Wearing a button reading "That's a Hard No" Gina Forbush, of Gig Harbor, Wash., reacts to news that 64% of striking Boeing machinists rejected the contract in today's vote whether or not to end the weeks-long strike, at the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Oct. 23, 2024. Forbush works at the Renton factory and has been with Boeing for 37 years. The union represents approximately 33,000 machinists who work for the Boeing Company in the Pacific Northwest and who voted to reject the initial contract offer and strike with over 90% approval in September. Voting and vote counting occurred at multiple locations around the region.
Wearing a button reading "That's a Hard No" Gina Forbush, of Gig Harbor, Wash., reacts to news that 64% of striking Boeing machinists rejected the contract in today's vote whether or not to end the weeks-long strike, at the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Oct. 23, 2024. Forbush works at the Renton factory and has been with Boeing for 37 years. The union represents approximately 33,000 machinists who work for the Boeing Company in the Pacific Northwest and who voted to reject the initial contract offer and strike with over 90% approval in September. Voting and vote counting occurred at multiple locations around the region.
A vintage "Vote Yes" button is seen in a collection of vintage campaign and strike buttons in the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Mon., Nov. 4, 2024. The union represents approximately 33,000 machinists who work for the Boeing Company in the Pacific Northwest and who have twice voted to reject proposed contracts in the past two months. Voting and vote counting occurred at multiple locations around the region. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
Striking machinists count ballots from today's vote on whether or not to end the weeks-long Boeing machinists' strike, at the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Oct. 23, 2024. The union represents approximately 33,000 machinists who work for the Boeing Company in the Pacific Northwest and who voted to reject the initial contract offer and strike with over 90% approval in September. Voting and vote counting occurred at multiple locations around the region.
A burn barrel is filled with fire as striking Boeing machinists in the IAM 751 union vote whether or not to accept the latest Boeing contract and end their weeks-long strike, at the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Mon., Nov. 4, 2024. The union represents approximately 33,000 machinists who work for the Boeing Company in the Pacific Northwest and who have twice voted to reject proposed contracts in the past two months. Voting and vote counting occurred at multiple locations around the region. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
IAM 751 union president Jon Holden speaks during a press conference after announcing that 64% of striking machinists rejected Boeing's contract in today's vote on whether or not to end the weeks-long Boeing machinists' strike, at the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Oct. 23, 2024. The union represents approximately 33,000 machinists who work for the Boeing Company in the Pacific Northwest and who voted to reject the initial contract offer and strike with over 90% approval in September. Voting and vote counting occurred at multiple locations around the region.
Striking Boeing machinists talk about the vote results as 64% of union members rejected the contract in today's vote whether or not to end the weeks-long strike, at the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Oct. 23, 2024. The union represents approximately 33,000 machinists who work for the Boeing Company in the Pacific Northwest and who voted to reject the initial contract offer and strike with over 90% approval in September. Voting and vote counting occurred at multiple locations around the region.
Picket signs outside a strike rally in the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Tue., Oct. 15, 2024. The strike is entering its second month. During the rally, the strikers erupted in chants shouting "Pension" numerous times.
Ballots are distributed to be counted by striking machinists as the IAM 751 union votes whether or not to accept the latest Boeing contract and end their weeks-long strike, at the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Mon., Nov. 4, 2024. The union represents approximately 33,000 machinists who work for the Boeing Company in the Pacific Northwest and who have twice voted to reject proposed contracts in the past two months. Voting and vote counting occurred at multiple locations around the region. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
A pamphlet lists the highlights of the 2024 Boeing/IAM contract at the voting locationg where striking machinists voted on whether or not to end the weeks-long Boeing machinists' strike, at the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Oct. 23, 2024. The union represents approximately 33,000 machinists who work for the Boeing Company in the Pacific Northwest and who voted to reject the initial contract offer and strike with over 90% approval in September. Voting and vote counting occurred at multiple locations around the region.
Jon Voss, a union steward and fuel cell mechanic in Boeing's Renton facility, embraces union Business Rep Carolyn Romeo, after the announcement that IAM 751 striking machinists voted to accept the latest Boeing contract and end their weeks-long strike, at the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Mon., Nov. 4, 2024. Voss said, "I've got mixed emotions. I'm very proud of everyone that stood up. I wish the Boeing Company had given us everything we demanded. Now it's time to get ready for 2028," referring to the next contract negotiation. Romeo said, "Well, it was surprising to me. I knew it was going to be close either way." The union represents approximately 33,000 machinists who work for the Boeing Company in the Pacific Northwest and who have twice voted to reject proposed contracts in the past two months. Voting and vote counting occurred at multiple locations around the region. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
IAM 751 president Jon Holden (center) greets union members after announcing that the union voted to accept the latest Boeing contract and end their weeks-long strike, at the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Mon., Nov. 4, 2024. The union represents approximately 33,000 machinists who work for the Boeing Company in the Pacific Northwest and who have twice voted to reject proposed contracts in the past two months. Voting and vote counting occurred at multiple locations around the region. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
IAM 751 union members wait to hear the result of today's vote whether or not to accept the latest Boeing contract and end their weeks-long strike, at the IAM 751 Seattle Union Hall in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Mon., Nov. 4, 2024. The union membership voted to accept the contract and end the strike. The union represents approximately 33,000 machinists who work for the Boeing Company in the Pacific Northwest and who have twice voted to reject proposed contracts in the past two months. Voting and vote counting occurred at multiple locations around the region. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
Picket signs stand unattended outside the Boeing Company's Seattle Delivery Center after the IAM 751 machinist's union voted to accept Boeing's contract offer and end their weeks-long strike earlier in the day, in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Mon., Nov. 4, 2024. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times

Portraits of scientist David Baker, Nobel laureate and UW professor, for Seattle Met
November 20, 2024

David Baker is the director of the Institute for Protein Design, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, a professor of biochemistry, and an adjunct professor of genome sciences, bioengineering, chemical engineering, computer science, and physics at the University of Washington, seen here in his lab in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Sept. 11, 2024. Baker's research group focuses on the design of synthetic nanoparticles including proteins and peptides.
David Baker is the director of the Institute for Protein Design, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, a professor of biochemistry, and an adjunct professor of genome sciences, bioengineering, chemical engineering, computer science, and physics at the University of Washington, seen here in his lab in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Sept. 11, 2024. Baker's research group focuses on the design of synthetic nanoparticles including proteins and peptides.
A model of a computationally designed peptide nanoparticle rests on a desk in an Institute for Protein Design lab at the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Sept. 11, 2024. The two sides of the particle (orange and blue) have opposite chirality or handedness in their design, yielding a symmetric design. Most life on earth has left-handed chirality, and human bodies are designed to break down left-handed particles that enter the body. By creating a medicine-delivery particle such as this with half right-handed chirality, it makes the medicine more difficult for a body to break it down, hopefully allowing for medicine that has a longer therapeutic effect in a human. David Baker is the director of the Institute for Protein Design, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, a professor of biochemistry, and an adjunct professor of genome sciences, bioengineering, chemical engineering, computer science, and physics at the University of Washington. Baker's research group focuses on the design of synthetic nanoparticles including proteins and peptides.
A model of a designed protein nanoparticle rests on a desk in an Institute for Protein Design lab at the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Sept. 11, 2024. Each color is a unique protein and each bump is an individual atom. The technology used in getting the proteins to form together in this symmetric protein structure allows the creation of medicines and vaccines. David Baker is the director of the Institute for Protein Design, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, a professor of biochemistry, and an adjunct professor of genome sciences, bioengineering, chemical engineering, computer science, and physics at the University of Washington. Baker's research group focuses on the design of synthetic nanoparticles including proteins and peptides.
David Baker is the director of the Institute for Protein Design, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, a professor of biochemistry, and an adjunct professor of genome sciences, bioengineering, chemical engineering, computer science, and physics at the University of Washington, seen here in his lab in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Sept. 11, 2024. Baker's research group focuses on the design of synthetic nanoparticles including proteins and peptides.
David Baker is the director of the Institute for Protein Design, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, a professor of biochemistry, and an adjunct professor of genome sciences, bioengineering, chemical engineering, computer science, and physics at the University of Washington, seen here in his lab in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Sept. 11, 2024. Baker's research group focuses on the design of synthetic nanoparticles including proteins and peptides.
David Baker is the director of the Institute for Protein Design, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, a professor of biochemistry, and an adjunct professor of genome sciences, bioengineering, chemical engineering, computer science, and physics at the University of Washington, seen here in his lab in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Sept. 11, 2024. Here, he is holding a model of a designed protein nanoparticle. Each color is a unique protein and each bump is an individual atom. The technology used in getting the proteins to form together in this symmetric protein structure allows the creation of medicines and vaccines. Baker's research group focuses on the design of synthetic nanoparticles including proteins and peptides.
David Baker is the director of the Institute for Protein Design, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, a professor of biochemistry, and an adjunct professor of genome sciences, bioengineering, chemical engineering, computer science, and physics at the University of Washington, seen here in his lab in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Wed., Sept. 11, 2024. Baker's research group focuses on the design of synthetic nanoparticles including proteins and peptides.

More than a month ago, and weeks before the big Nobel Prize news was announced, I had a (very) few minutes with University of Washington professor David Baker, for local magazine Seattle Met. Then, last week, the Nobel committee announced that Baker was one of the recipients of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on computational protein design. After the few minutes with Dr. Baker, I spent a little time photographing his 3D-printed models of synthetic proteins and other structures, the designs of which have promising potential in the field of medicine.

A big thanks to Nate at Seattle Met for the call on this assignment, which was my first for the publication. Here’s a link to the interview.

Twilight Tourism and the Last Bellwether County for The Times of London
November 17, 2024

Twilight Tourism in Forks, Washington

Twilight movie posters hang in a shop window in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. The book series Twilight was set in Forks, Washington, and draws thousands of fans of the books to the tiny town to see sites associated with the characters in the books.
Faith Hines, 18, of Idaho Falls, is a Twilight fan who came to the Forks Visitor Center in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. Hines says she has been on a roadtrip that included visiting Twilight movie filming locations in Oregon as a present for graduating from high school. On her bag is a hairclip that resembles the character Edward from the movies. The book series Twilight was set in Forks, Washington, and draws thousands of fans of the books to the tiny town to see sites associated with the characters in the books. The Forks Visitor Center has information for tourists interested in both Twilight-related and other tourism in the region, including nearby Olympic National Park.

Over the course of two and a half days, I worked with writer Harriet Alexander on two stories for The Times of London on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula: looking at Twilight-related tourism in the tiny town of Forks, Washington, now almost two decades after the first Twilight book was published, and a look at the political sentiment in Clallam County, deemed by many to be the last bellwether county in the US.

For the first, we spent a day speaking with locals, tourists, and businesses about how the vampire and werewolf franchise Twilight still brings people from around the world to one of the most remote parts of Washington State. Some are tired of all the traffic and difficulty getting a table at the local diner, but others think that with the decline in logging in the region, without Twilight, there might not be much left to Forks.

A vintage pickup truck similar to what Bella Swan had in the Twilight novels stands parked with a "BELLA" license plate outside the Forks Visitor Center in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. The book series Twilight was set in Forks, Washington, and draws thousands of fans of the books to the tiny town to see sites associated with the characters in the books. The Forks Visitor Center has information for tourists interested in both Twilight-related and other tourism in the region, including nearby Olympic National Park.
Twilight memorabilia is displayed in the Forks Visitor Center in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. The book series Twilight was set in Forks, Washington, and draws thousands of fans of the books to the tiny town to see sites associated with the characters in the books. The Forks Visitor Center has information for tourists interested in both Twilight-related and other tourism in the region, including nearby Olympic National Park.
Thomas Sweeney (right) takes a photo of Abbott Phinney, both of Seattle, posing with cardboard cutouts of Twilight movie actors stand in a corner of the Native By Twilight souvenir shop in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. The Twilight series was set in Forks, Washington, and draws thousands of fans of the books to the tiny town to see sites associated with the characters in the books.
People look at Twilight memorabilia, including movie props and costumes, in the Forever Twilight in Forks Collection museum in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. The book series Twilight was set in Forks, Washington, and draws thousands of fans of the books to the tiny town to see sites associated with the characters in the books.
The Cullen name is displayed on the mailbox outside the Miller Tree Inn, a bed and breakfast in a historic farmhouse that is said to be similar to the Cullen House in the Twilight series of books, in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. The book series Twilight was set in Forks, Washington, and draws thousands of fans of the books to the tiny town to see sites associated with the characters in the books. The Thurmans, a husband and wife team, bought the house in 2021 and say that the bed and breakfast is popular with both Twilight fans and other travelers. Signs outside the Inn ask Twilight fans who come to see the building not to enter or bother guests. During the annual Twilight Forever festival every summer, Trent portraits Chief Swan and M.B. portrays Rosalie, both of which are characters from the books and movies, and also host a gathering called Vampire Central at the Inn.
Twilight memorabilia is displayed in the Forks Visitor Center in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. The book series Twilight was set in Forks, Washington, and draws thousands of fans of the books to the tiny town to see sites associated with the characters in the books. The Forks Visitor Center has information for tourists interested in both Twilight-related and other tourism in the region, including nearby Olympic National Park.
Signs tell Twilight fans not to bother guests staying at the Miller Tree Inn, a bed and breakfast in a historic farmhouse that is said to be similar to the Cullen House in the Twilight series of books, in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. The book series Twilight was set in Forks, Washington, and draws thousands of fans of the books to the tiny town to see sites associated with the characters in the books. The Thurmans, a husband and wife team, bought the house in 2021 and say that the bed and breakfast is popular with both Twilight fans and other travelers. Signs outside the Inn ask Twilight fans who come to see the building not to enter or bother guests. During the annual Twilight Forever festival every summer, Trent portraits Chief Swan and M.B. portrays Rosalie, both of which are characters from the books and movies, and also host a gathering called Vampire Central at the Inn.
Trent (blue shirt) and M.B. Thurman are the owners of the Miller Tree Inn, a bed and breakfast in a historic farmhouse that is said to be similar to the Cullen House in the Twilight series of books, seen here in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. The book series Twilight was set in Forks, Washington, and draws thousands of fans of the books to the tiny town to see sites associated with the characters in the books. The Thurmans, a husband and wife team, bought the house in 2021 and say that the bed and breakfast is popular with both Twilight fans and other travelers. Signs outside the Inn ask Twilight fans who come to see the building not to enter or bother guests. During the annual Twilight Forever festival every summer, Trent portraits Chief Swan and M.B. portrays Rosalie, both of which are characters from the books and movies, and also host a gathering called Vampire Central at the Inn.
Twilight souvenirs and memorabilia are for sale in the Native By Twilight souvenir shop in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. The book series Twilight was set in Forks, Washington, and draws thousands of fans of the books to the tiny town to see sites associated with the characters in the books.
Twilight-themed mugs are seen in a shop window in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. The book series Twilight was set in Forks, Washington, and draws thousands of fans of the books to the tiny town to see sites associated with the characters in the books.
A bumper sticker reading "Vampires [heart] Forks" is seen on the information desk in the Forks Visitor Center in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. The book series Twilight was set in Forks, Washington, and draws thousands of fans of the books to the tiny town to see sites associated with the characters in the books. The Forks Visitor Center has information for tourists interested in both Twilight-related and other tourism in the region, including nearby Olympic National Park.
A sign reading "No vampires beyond this point" marks the so-called Treaty Line outside Forks, WA, in La Push, Washington, USA, on Tue., June 4, 2024. In the Twilight book series, set in Forks, WA, the Treaty Line marks a boundary between vampires' territory and the Quileute tribe's territory. This sign is covered in written messages and names from Twilight fans who have visited the location. The other side of the sign says "Welcome Twilight Fans."

Clallam County, the last bellwether

Flanked by conservative flags, Hickory Grant is a Republican candidate for State Representative of Washington's Legislative District 24, Position 2, and a current Forks City Council member, seen here in his welding shop in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. Forks is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan. Hickory Grant said, "There's a lot of places around the country where I wouldn't fit in, but here I'm par for the course." He says the state government is trying to kill logging, an industry that Forks depended on over the last century, through regulation and environmental policies. "I'm really not excited about going to Olympia [the state capital] at all because I despise cities," he said.

And the second story for the Times was about how election results in Clallam County over the past 40 years have matched the winner of the national presidential election. We spoke with local politicians, voters, party activists, and everyone in between.

Ultimately, after November’s election results were tabulated, Clallam County lost it’s status as a bellwether for the national electorate. The county’s citizens voted 52% to 44% in favor of Vice President Kamala Harris over former President Donald Trump.

Free bumper stickers reading "What have Republicans done for you?" lay on a shelf in the Clallam County Democrats office in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Port Angeles is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan.
A mural depicts the Puget Sound ferry MV Kalakala in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Port Angeles is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan. The art deco ferry operated from 1935 to 1967.
Rifles for sale stand on a shelf in Decker City Hardware, which includes a gun shop, in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. Higher capacity magazines are not legal to sell in Washington state. Forks is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan. Dean Decker, the owner of Decker City Hardware, is a former owner/operator of a logging truck and his family has been in the area for decades; "I have hauled logs off of a stand that my dad logged." Decker is a conservative but says, "I think [the area] is far less conservative than it was. I think we've gotten softer." As a gun store operator, Decker is particularly concerned with gun rights. "I can't sell [customers] what I want," he says, "I can't sell any AR15 [rifles] in Washington state."
Marcia Kelbon, a Republican candidate for State Senate in Washington's 24th Legislative District, walks through a neighborhood while canvassing potential voters in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Port Angeles is the county seat of Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan. Marcia Kelbon says she knocks on prospective voters' doors around the district 5 days a week and has driven 11,000 miles and gone through two pairs of shoes. Kelbon says, "I'm more moderate on social issues. I don't like to tell people what to do. On the doorstep [when meeting voters], the thing I want to know is what matters to you on the state level."
Marcia Kelbon, a Republican candidate for State Senate in Washington's 24th Legislative District, (right) speaks with Eric Hernandez, 56, while canvassing a neighborhood in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Hernandez says that he's an independent. "I hope people vote their conscience and not their party," he said. Port Angeles is the county seat of Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan. Marcia Kelbon uses data in a phone app from the state Republican party to identify which houses to approach and says she knocks on prospective voters' doors around the district 5 days a week and has driven 11,000 miles and gone through two pairs of shoes. Kelbon says, "I'm more moderate on social issues. I don't like to tell people what to do. On the doorstep [when meeting voters], the thing I want to know is what matters to you on the state level."
Marcia Kelbon, a Republican candidate for State Senate in Washington's 24th Legislative District, leaves flyers with a handwritten note if a person doesn't answer a door while canvassing a neighborhood in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Port Angeles is the county seat of Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan. Marcia Kelbon uses data in a phone app from the state Republican party to identify which houses to approach and says she knocks on prospective voters' doors around the district 5 days a week and has driven 11,000 miles and gone through two pairs of shoes. Kelbon says, "I'm more moderate on social issues. I don't like to tell people what to do. On the doorstep [when meeting voters], the thing I want to know is what matters to you on the state level."
Marcia Kelbon, a Republican candidate for State Senate in Washington's 24th Legislative District, speaks with Dana Martell, 44, while canvassing a neighborhood in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Port Angeles is the county seat of Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan. Marcia Kelbon uses data in a phone app from the state Republican party to identify which houses to approach and says she knocks on prospective voters' doors around the district 5 days a week and has driven 11,000 miles and gone through two pairs of shoes. Kelbon says, "I'm more moderate on social issues. I don't like to tell people what to do. On the doorstep [when meeting voters], the thing I want to know is what matters to you on the state level."
Haley Love, 30, is a worker at The Great Northern Coffee Bar in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Port Angeles is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan.
Dean Decker is the owner of Decker City Hardware, which includes a gun shop, in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. Forks is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan. Dean Decker is a former owner/operator of a logging truck and his family has been in the area for decades; "I have hauled logs off of a stand that my dad logged." Decker is a conservative but says, "I think [the area] is far less conservative than it was. I think we've gotten softer." As a gun store operator, Decker is particularly concerned with gun rights. "I can't sell [customers] what I want," he says, "I can't sell any AR15 [rifles] in Washington state."
Greg Scherer, 72, of Sequim, Wash., will be performing in a production of Sinclair Lewis's "It Can't Happen Here," seen here during a rehearsal in the Clallam County Democrats office in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Port Angeles is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan. "It Can't Happen Here" is a play and novel about the rise of a fascist dictator in American politics. The Port Angeles performance starts with an introduction that "any resemblance to current political events is purely coincidental."
Chelsea Rider, 36, says she is planning to vote for Joe Biden while hanging out at Mix-It Shack, a rolled ice cream and snack shop in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Port Angeles is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan. Rider says, "I think the things people care about are having their family be safe."
People rehearse a performance of Sinclair Lewis's "It Can't Happen Here" in the Clallam County Democrats office in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Port Angeles is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan. "It Can't Happen Here" is a play and novel about the rise of a fascist dictator in American politics. The Port Angeles performance starts with an introduction that "any resemblance to current political events is purely coincidental."
The sign for Shirley's Cafe in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Port Angeles is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan.
As people rehearse a performance of Sinclair Lewis's "It Can't Happen Here," a print showing a triumphant embrace between US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris hangs on a wall in the Clallam County Democrats office in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Port Angeles is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan. "It Can't Happen Here" is a play and novel about the rise of a fascist dictator in American politics. The Port Angeles performance starts with an introduction that "any resemblance to current political events is purely coincidental."
A Trump 2024 banner with the slogan "Let's Go Brandon" hangs on a building's exterior at the Forks Airport in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. Forks is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan.
A pistol decorated to look like the American flag stands in a display case in Decker City Hardware, which includes a gun shop, in Forks, Washington, USA, on Wed., June 5, 2024. Higher capacity magazines are not legal to sell in Washington state. Forks is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan. Dean Decker, the owner of Decker City Hardware, is a former owner/operator of a logging truck and his family has been in the area for decades; "I have hauled logs off of a stand that my dad logged." Decker is a conservative but says, "I think [the area] is far less conservative than it was. I think we've gotten softer." As a gun store operator, Decker is particularly concerned with gun rights. "I can't sell [customers] what I want," he says, "I can't sell any AR15 [rifles] in Washington state."
Biden/Harris campaign buttons hang on a wall in the Clallam County Democrats office in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Port Angeles is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan.
An Uncle Sam statue stands in the window of Laurel Barber Shop in downtown in Port Angeles, Washington, USA, on Thu., June 6, 2024. Port Angeles is in Clallam County on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the last of the so-called bellwether counties in the United States, which have historically voted for the winning presidential candidate in national US elections. Clallam county has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to Ronald Reagan.

Portraits of Key Square Group’s Scott Bessent at the RNC, for Bloomberg Businessweek
September 10, 2024

Scott Bessent is founder of the Key Square Group investment firm, seen here in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, on Tue., July 16, 2024. He is photographed here in an upstairs room in Bloomberg's HQ at the 2024 Republican National Convention in the Deer Camp MKE restaurant near the Fiserv Forum. Bessent previously was Chief Investment Officer of Soros Fund Management. Bessent is a financial adviser for former president Donald Trump.
Scott Bessent is founder of the Key Square Group investment firm, seen here in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, on Tue., July 16, 2024. He is photographed here in an upstairs room in Bloomberg's HQ at the 2024 Republican National Convention in the Deer Camp MKE restaurant near the Fiserv Forum. Bessent previously was Chief Investment Officer of Soros Fund Management. Bessent is a financial adviser for former president Donald Trump.
Scott Bessent is founder of the Key Square Group investment firm, seen here in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, on Tue., July 16, 2024. He is photographed here in an upstairs room in Bloomberg's HQ at the 2024 Republican National Convention in the Deer Camp MKE restaurant near the Fiserv Forum. Bessent previously was Chief Investment Officer of Soros Fund Management. Bessent is a financial adviser for former president Donald Trump.
Scott Bessent is founder of the Key Square Group investment firm, seen here in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, on Tue., July 16, 2024. He is photographed here in an upstairs room in Bloomberg's HQ at the 2024 Republican National Convention in the Deer Camp MKE restaurant near the Fiserv Forum. Bessent previously was Chief Investment Officer of Soros Fund Management. Bessent is a financial adviser for former president Donald Trump.
Scott Bessent is founder of the Key Square Group investment firm, seen here in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, on Tue., July 16, 2024. He is photographed here in an upstairs room in Bloomberg's HQ at the 2024 Republican National Convention in the Deer Camp MKE restaurant near the Fiserv Forum. Bessent previously was Chief Investment Officer of Soros Fund Management. Bessent is a financial adviser for former president Donald Trump.
Scott Bessent is founder of the Key Square Group investment firm, seen here in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, on Tue., July 16, 2024. He is photographed here in an upstairs room in Bloomberg's HQ at the 2024 Republican National Convention in the Deer Camp MKE restaurant near the Fiserv Forum. Bessent previously was Chief Investment Officer of Soros Fund Management. Bessent is a financial adviser for former president Donald Trump.
Scott Bessent is founder of the Key Square Group investment firm, seen here in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, on Tue., July 16, 2024. He is photographed here in an upstairs room in Bloomberg's HQ at the 2024 Republican National Convention in the Deer Camp MKE restaurant near the Fiserv Forum. Bessent previously was Chief Investment Officer of Soros Fund Management. Bessent is a financial adviser for former president Donald Trump.

A last minute addition to the work I was doing at the RNC, I photographed Scott Bessent, thes the founder of the Key Square Group investment firm and a financial adviser and top fundraiser for former president Donald Trump, on Day 2 of the Republican National Convention in the Bloomberg HQ in a restaurant near the convention site in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for Bloomberg Businessweek. He’s considered a top candidate for Treasury secretary if Trump wins the 2024 presidential race.

Due to travel, security, and timing, I didn’t have the luxury of light stands, light modifiers, more than one light, an assistant, choice of portrait location, or time… Bessent agreed to have a portrait taken between talking on a live Bloomberg broadcast in the same space, which was the Bloomberg team’s newsroom for the convention, and his dinner that night. With Bessent’s assistant holding my bare-bulb flash, first frame to last frame was 6 minutes.

Thanks to Jane and Aeriel for trust and support behind the scenes!

New story: One hundred thousand balloons
September 1, 2024

Balloons fall from the ceiling in the balloon drop at the end of the night after former president Donald Trump formally accepted his nomination as the Republican party candidate at the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, on Thu., July 18, 2024.
Volunteers inflate balloons in the Fiserv Forum for next week's 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, on Thu., July 11, 2024. After inflating, the balloons are thrown into a large fabric funnel that feeds the balloons into net bags that hold the balloons until the drop on the last day of the convention. The volunteers are a mixture of event decoration professionals that are personal friends of Treb Heining, who has organized the balloon drops at the last 9 RNCs, and local high school students (and recent graduates) who are serving as city ambassadors during the convention. Treb Heining developed the funnel filling system for the first convention during which he oversaw the balloon drop, the 1988 Republican National Convention. The balloon inflation crew filled over 100,000 balloons for the drop on the final night of the convention.
Treb Heining, CEO of Glasshouse Balloon, has been in charge of the balloon drop at the past 9 Republican National Conventions and many DNCs. He is seen here with large stylized balloons that have been inflated but not yet mounted in the rafters of the Fiserv Forum where they will be dropped from the ceiling during the final night of the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, seen on Thu., July 11, 2024. Heining started in the balloon industry as a walking balloon salesman at Disneyland in his native Anaheim, California, and now supplies balloons for many Disney properties around the world. He is the inventor of the Balloon Arch and has designed large event experiences including balloon releases at Super Bowls and Olympics opening ceremonies and, for more than 30 years, the annual New Years Eve confetti drop in New York's Times Square.
Volunteers refill a large net bag with spilled balloons on the convention floor before it will be lifted to the ceiling in the Fiserv Forum for the balloon drop on the last day of next week's 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, on Fri., July 12, 2024. Members of the balloon inflation team work with union riggers to lift and secure the net bags filled with the balloons in the ceiling of the arena.

I’ve added a new story to my website, and it’s a subject I’ve been trying to cover for nearly 8 years! And for the first time, I’ve used a little video and animated gifs.

For Bloomberg Businessweek, I photographed how exactly 100,000 balloons are dropped on the final night of American political conventions.

The balloon drops at almost every Republican National Convention and Democratic National Convention in the last four decades have been the work of Treb Heining, a man who has a claim to creating the entire balloon decorating industry.

Treb led a crew of balloon professionals and local volunteers as they inflated and tied, by hand over the course of three days, approximately 100,000 balloons to be mounted in the ceiling and dropped on the final night of the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

Big thanks to Jane Yeomans and Aeriel Brown for taking my pitch (twice!) and helping make this project a reality.

Here’s the story: One hundred thousand balloons.

Recent assignment work: graffiti, downtown development, battlefield crosses, prescription weightloss drugs, and a very good boy
July 24, 2024

Portraits of Max, a very good boy, for the New York Times

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JUN 14, 2024. Max is a 2-year-old all-black German Shepherd, Malinois, Husky, mix, photographed against a seamless white backdrop outdoors in Greenlake Park in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Fri., June 14, 2024. Max is a rescue dog who is owned by Alyxx S Berg, 57, of Seattle. Berg said that Max, a former stray, was emaciated and weighed 30 pounds when adopted and now weighs around 70 pounds and is very healthy. Max is a participant in Darwin's Ark, a community science initiative that investigates animal genetics and behavior. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times 00SP-SCIPET-MANIFESTO
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JUN 14, 2024. Close-up of the rainbow heart nametag of Max, a 2-year-old all-black German Shepherd, Malinois, Husky, mix, photographed in Greenlake Park in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Fri., June 14, 2024. Max is a rescue dog who is owned by Alyxx S Berg, 57, of Seattle. Berg said that Max, a former stray, was emaciated and weighed 30 pounds when adopted and now weighs around 70 pounds and is very healthy. Max is a participant in Darwin's Ark, a community science initiative that investigates animal genetics and behavior. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times 00SP-SCIPET-MANIFESTO
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JUN 14, 2024. Max is a 2-year-old all-black German Shepherd, Malinois, Husky, mix, photographed against a seamless white backdrop outdoors in Greenlake Park in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Fri., June 14, 2024. Max is a rescue dog who is owned by Alyxx S Berg, 57, of Seattle. Berg said that Max, a former stray, was emaciated and weighed 30 pounds when adopted and now weighs around 70 pounds and is very healthy. Max is a participant in Darwin's Ark, a community science initiative that investigates animal genetics and behavior. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times 00SP-SCIPET-MANIFESTO
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JUN 14, 2024. Close-up of the ears of Max, a 2-year-old all-black German Shepherd, Malinois, Husky, mix, photographed against a seamless white backdrop outdoors in Greenlake Park in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Fri., June 14, 2024. Max is a rescue dog who is owned by Alyxx S Berg, 57, of Seattle. Berg said that Max, a former stray, was emaciated and weighed 30 pounds when adopted and now weighs around 70 pounds and is very healthy. Max is a participant in Darwin's Ark, a community science initiative that investigates animal genetics and behavior. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times 00SP-SCIPET-MANIFESTO
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JUN 14, 2024. Close-up of the paw of Max, a 2-year-old all-black German Shepherd, Malinois, Husky, mix, photographed against a seamless white backdrop outdoors in Greenlake Park in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Fri., June 14, 2024. Max is a rescue dog who is owned by Alyxx S Berg, 57, of Seattle. Berg said that Max, a former stray, was emaciated and weighed 30 pounds when adopted and now weighs around 70 pounds and is very healthy. Max is a participant in Darwin's Ark, a community science initiative that investigates animal genetics and behavior. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times 00SP-SCIPET-MANIFESTO
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JUN 14, 2024. Close-up of the snout/mouth of Max, a 2-year-old all-black German Shepherd, Malinois, Husky, mix, photographed against a seamless white backdrop outdoors in Greenlake Park in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Fri., June 14, 2024. Max is a rescue dog who is owned by Alyxx S Berg, 57, of Seattle. Berg said that Max, a former stray, was emaciated and weighed 30 pounds when adopted and now weighs around 70 pounds and is very healthy. Max is a participant in Darwin's Ark, a community science initiative that investigates animal genetics and behavior. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times 00SP-SCIPET-MANIFESTO
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JUN 14, 2024. Max is a 2-year-old all-black German Shepherd, Malinois, Husky, mix, photographed against a seamless white backdrop outdoors in Greenlake Park in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Fri., June 14, 2024. Max is a rescue dog who is owned by Alyxx S Berg, 57, of Seattle. Berg said that Max, a former stray, was emaciated and weighed 30 pounds when adopted and now weighs around 70 pounds and is very healthy. Max is a participant in Darwin's Ark, a community science initiative that investigates animal genetics and behavior. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times 00SP-SCIPET-MANIFESTO
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JUN 14, 2024. Max, a 2-year-old all-black German Shepherd, Malinois, Husky, mix, photographed in Greenlake Park in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Fri., June 14, 2024. Max is a rescue dog who is owned by Alyxx S Berg, 57, of Seattle. Berg said that Max, a former stray, was emaciated and weighed 30 pounds when adopted and now weighs around 70 pounds and is very healthy. Max is a participant in Darwin's Ark, a community science initiative that investigates animal genetics and behavior. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times 00SP-SCIPET-MANIFESTO
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JUN 14, 2024. Close-up of the snout and mouth of Max, a 2-year-old all-black German Shepherd, Malinois, Husky, mix, photographed in Greenlake Park in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Fri., June 14, 2024. Max is a rescue dog who is owned by Alyxx S Berg, 57, of Seattle. Berg said that Max, a former stray, was emaciated and weighed 30 pounds when adopted and now weighs around 70 pounds and is very healthy. Max is a participant in Darwin's Ark, a community science initiative that investigates animal genetics and behavior. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times 00SP-SCIPET-MANIFESTO
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JUN 14, 2024. Max is a 2-year-old all-black German Shepherd, Malinois, Husky, mix, photographed against a seamless white backdrop outdoors in Greenlake Park in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Fri., June 14, 2024. Max is a rescue dog who is owned by Alyxx S Berg, 57, of Seattle. Berg said that Max, a former stray, was emaciated and weighed 30 pounds when adopted and now weighs around 70 pounds and is very healthy. Max is a participant in Darwin's Ark, a community science initiative that investigates animal genetics and behavior. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times 00SP-SCIPET-MANIFESTO

Battlefield crosses, for the Knights of Columbus

Adań (left) and Yolanda Gonzales are the parents of Sergeant Adań Gonzales, Jr., (in photo) a member of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, killed in action during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan on Aug. 7, 2011. Next to them is a curio cabinet filled with mementos of their son's service and a battlefield cross sculpture carved by chainsaw artist Anthony Marquez, a Marine veteran from Gonzales' unit. Marquez carved 17 such sculptures, all inscribed with the roman numeral XVII, for the 17 members of their unit killed in action. They are seen here in their home in Marysville, Washington, on Sat., April 13, 2024.
A battlefield cross sculpture carved by chainsaw artist Anthony Marquez is seen in the home of Adań and Yolanda Gonzales the parents of Sergeant Adań Gonzales, Jr., (seen in photo) a member of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, killed in action during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan on Aug. 7, 2011. Marquez is a Marine veteran from Gonzales' unit. Marquez carved 17 such sculptures, all inscribed with the roman numeral XVII, for the 17 members of their unit killed in action. It is seen in the Gonzales' home in Marysville, Washington, on Sat., April 13, 2024.
A Virgin Mary sculpture given by to his parents stands alongside a purple heart received by Sergeant Adań Gonzales, Jr., a member of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, when he was killed in action during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan on Aug. 7, 2011, in the home of Adań and Yolanda Gonzales, Sgt. Gonzales' parents in Marysville, Washington, on Sat., April 13, 2024. Also in the cabinet is a photo of Sgt. Gonzales with a Catholic priest in Afghanistan, challenge coins given by officers and friends to Sgt. Gonzales' parents after his death, and other memorabilia from Gonzales' military service.
Adań (left) and Yolanda Gonzales are the parents of Sergeant Adań Gonzales, Jr., (in photo) a member of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, killed in action during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan on Aug. 7, 2011. Next to them is a curio cabinet filled with mementos of their son's service and a battlefield cross sculpture carved by chainsaw artist Anthony Marquez, a Marine veteran from Gonzales' unit. Marquez carved 17 such sculptures, all inscribed with the roman numeral XVII, for the 17 members of their unit killed in action. They are seen here in their home in Marysville, Washington, on Sat., April 13, 2024.
Adań (left) and Yolanda Gonzales are the parents of Sergeant Adań Gonzales, Jr., (seen in photo) a member of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, killed in action during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan on Aug. 7, 2011. Next to them is a battlefield cross sculpture carved by chainsaw artist Anthony Marquez, a Marine veteran from Gonzales' unit. Marquez carved 17 such sculptures, all inscribed with the roman numeral XVII, for the 17 members of their unit killed in action. They are seen here in their home in Marysville, Washington, on Sat., April 13, 2024.

Seattle downtown development, for Bloomberg News

A McLaren Elva is lifted to the top of the First Light tower in Seattle, Washington, US, on Friday, May 17, 2024. Photographer: M. Scott Brauer/Bloomberg
People photograph the view from the 47th floor deck of the First Light tower in Seattle, Washington, US, on Friday, May 17, 2024. Photographer: M. Scott Brauer/Bloomberg
Construction workers on the 46th floor of the First Light tower in Seattle, Washington, US, on Friday, May 17, 2024. Photographer: M. Scott Brauer/Bloomberg
Retails space for lease in downtown Seattle, Washington, US, on Friday, May 17, 2024. Photographer: M. Scott Brauer/Bloomberg
The First Light tower (center, with crane)in Seattle, Washington, US, on Friday, May 17, 2024. Photographer: M. Scott Brauer/Bloomberg
Retails space for lease in downtown Seattle, Washington, US, on Friday, May 17, 2024. Photographer: M. Scott Brauer/Bloomberg
A construction crane stands above downtown Seattle, Washington, US, on Friday, May 17, 2024. Photographer: M. Scott Brauer/Bloomberg

Weight loss drugs, for the New York Times

WENATCHEE, WASHINGTON - JUN 3, 2024. Lesa Walton has been using Wegovy as a treatment for obesity for the past two years, seen in her home in Wenatchee, Washington, USA, on Mon., June 3, 2024. Walton says she has lost 66 pounds since starting weekly Wegovy injections; an earlier attempt to lose weight through diet and exercise only helped her lose 9 pounds in 4 months. "It [the weight] just dropped off without even trying," Walton said of the effects of Wegovy, "You take this medication and realize you're not deficient. It's something in your body [that's stopping you from losing weight]. I was super mad about it for a long time. They treat you like it's your fault. I was in the military and always super active just to have this weight keep going on." Walton, 57, is an Air Force veteran, and now works from home in the VA medical system as a Rating Veterans Service Representative, making decisions about appeals to disability claim denials. Walton says her clothes don't fit after losing the weight. "Everything's too big. It [the weight loss] still doesn't seem real. That's why I've avoided getting new clothes. Is this who I am? Do I really weigh 145 pounds?" Her highest weight was 215 pounds, and she weight 209 pounds when she started Wegovy treatments. She said that other health problems she had when she was obese, including rheumatoid arthritis and high blood pressure, have disappeared after the weight loss. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
WENATCHEE, WASHINGTON - JUN 3, 2024. Lesa Walton compares her hand to a 2019 photo showing swelling from rheumatoid arthritis, a condition she had until losing weight after using Wegovy as a treatment for obesity for the past two years, seen in her home in Wenatchee, Washington, USA, on Mon., June 3, 2024. Walton says she has lost 66 pounds since starting weekly Wegovy injections; an earlier attempt to lose weight through diet and exercise only helped her lose 9 pounds in 4 months. "It [the weight] just dropped off without even trying," Walton said of the effects of Wegovy, "You take this medication and realize you're not deficient. It's something in your body [that's stopping you from losing weight]. I was super mad about it for a long time. They treat you like it's your fault. I was in the military and always super active just to have this weight keep going on." Walton, 57, is an Air Force veteran, and now works from home in the VA medical system as a Rating Veterans Service Representative, making decisions about appeals to disability claim denials. Walton says her clothes don't fit after losing the weight. "Everything's too big. It [the weight loss] still doesn't seem real. That's why I've avoided getting new clothes. Is this who I am? Do I really weigh 145 pounds?" Her highest weight was 215 pounds, and she weight 209 pounds when she started Wegovy treatments. She said that other health problems she had when she was obese, including rheumatoid arthritis and high blood pressure, have disappeared after the weight loss. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
WENATCHEE, WASHINGTON - JUN 3, 2024. Lesa Walton holds a Wegovy injector pen, which she has used as a treatment for obesity for the past two years, seen in her home in Wenatchee, Washington, USA, on Mon., June 3, 2024. Walton says she has lost 66 pounds since starting weekly Wegovy injections; an earlier attempt to lose weight through diet and exercise only helped her lose 9 pounds in 4 months. "It [the weight] just dropped off without even trying," Walton said of the effects of Wegovy, "You take this medication and realize you're not deficient. It's something in your body [that's stopping you from losing weight]. I was super mad about it for a long time. They treat you like it's your fault. I was in the military and always super active just to have this weight keep going on." Walton, 57, is an Air Force veteran, and now works from home in the VA medical system as a Rating Veterans Service Representative, making decisions about appeals to disability claim denials. Walton says her clothes don't fit after losing the weight. "Everything's too big. It [the weight loss] still doesn't seem real. That's why I've avoided getting new clothes. Is this who I am? Do I really weigh 145 pounds?" Her highest weight was 215 pounds, and she weight 209 pounds when she started Wegovy treatments. She said that other health problems she had when she was obese, including rheumatoid arthritis and high blood pressure, have disappeared after the weight loss. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - MAY 31, 2024. Scott Hagan is a primary care doctor based in Seattle who says he is skeptical of so-called "obesity first" treatments, seen here in Jefferson Park in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Fri., May 31, 2024. "Obesity first" treatment is a philosophy of medical care that treats obesity before addressing other conditions that may be associated with obesity, such as high blood pressure. Proponents say that by getting the obesity under control, the other problems tend to be resolved. Hagan says he has a different perspective. "I'm going to use treatments I know work to control those [non-obesity] health problems, and if we're still having trouble managing those conditions, then we can talk about obesity treatments, which could include medications," he said. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - MAY 31, 2024. Stefie Deeds is an internal medicine and obesity medicine doctor in Seattle who advocates "obesity first" treatments, seen here in her Deeds Health private practice in West Seattle, Washington, USA, on Fri., May 31, 2024. "Obesity first" treatment is a philosophy of medical care that treats obesity before addressing other conditions that may be associated with obesity, such as high blood pressure. Proponents, like Deeds, say that by getting the obesity under control, the other problems tend to be resolved. "If you treat obesity and patients can lose weight, then the other conditions improve as well," Deeds said, "If you treat [obesity], everything gets better." Deeds says she has seen in the results in her own patients, though she wishes the medicines like Wegovy and Ozempic were less costly. "It's a shame how expensive they are in the United States. They need to be more affordable because people deserve treatment," she said. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times

Street art and graffiti, for Cascade PBS

BGnarley, a photographer who chronicles the Seattle region's graffiti scene, walks past graffiti on the so-called Dookie Wall in the SODO area of Seattle, Washington, USA, on Tue., May 28, 2024. The Dookie Wall, so-named because the area was often used by dog-walkers in the past, is considered a "free wall" where graffiti writers are unofficially allowed to paint graffiti. BGnarley is a pseudonym he uses to post photos of graffiti around Seattle on social media (on instagram as B.Gnarley) and in a periodic magazine highlighting street art called BGnarley Underground Arts and Culture, the eighth issue of which is being finalized now.
Tags cover the ends of old metal barrels near the so-called Dookie Wall in the SODO area of Seattle, Washington, USA, on Tue., May 28, 2024. Local artists Aerub and Merlot are seen in 2020 tags in orange (center). The name of the wall is said to come from the fact that area around these disused train tracks was often used by dog walkers in the past. The Dookie Wall is considered a "free wall" where graffiti writers are unofficially allowed to paint graffiti.
Used paint cans lay on the ground in front of a graffiti piece reading Seko on the so-called Dookie Wall in the SODO area of Seattle, Washington, USA, on Tue., May 28, 2024. The name of the wall is said to come from the fact that area around these disused train tracks was often used by dog walkers in the past. The Dookie Wall is considered a "free wall" where graffiti writers are unofficially allowed to paint graffiti.
BGnarley, a photographer who chronicles the Seattle region's graffiti scene, stands near graffiti under the Ballard Bridge near Fisherman's Terminal in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Tue., May 28, 2024. BGnarley is a pseudonym he uses to post photos of graffiti around Seattle on social media (on instagram as B.Gnarley) and in a periodic magazine highlighting street art called BGnarley Underground Arts and Culture, the eighth issue of which is being finalized now.
A graffiti piece by local artist Aerub is seen on the so-called Dookie Wall in the SODO area of Seattle, Washington, USA, on Tue., May 28, 2024. The Heinous piece appears to be the top of at least 4 layers of murals. The name of the wall is said to come from the fact that area around these disused train tracks was often used by dog walkers in the past. The Dookie Wall is considered a "free wall" where graffiti writers are unofficially allowed to paint graffiti.
Graffiti, including a piece by Mosef (top), covers a "free wall" in an alley behind a West Seattle Rite Aid in Seattle, Washington, USA, on Tue., May 28, 2024. A "free wall" is where graffiti writers are unofficially allowed to paint graffiti.
A mural painted by mural artist Crick Lont (known as dozer_art on social media) for the 50th anniversary of hip-hop is seen in the Beacon Hill area of Seattle, Washington, USA, on Thu., May 30, 2024. "Because I'm a fan [of hip-hop]," Lont said, "I wanted to paint the biggest fan around." The mural features an image of Charlie, who Lont says is a long-time fixture of hip-hop shows in the Seattle area.
Mural artist Crick Lont (known as dozer_art on social media) is seen next to a commissioned mural he painted, with local graffiti writer Charms, on the exterior of La Esperanza Mercado Y Carniceria in the Beacon Hill area of Seattle, Washington, USA, on Thu., May 30, 2024. The mural features a large portrait of Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata alongside the landscape, flora, and fauna, of the Sonoran Desert. The pair painted the mural in 2020 and, Lont says, wanted it to "reflect the community." The mural is a mixture of stenciled and freehand spray-paint art.
A butterfly painted by mural artist Crick Lont (known as dozer_art on social media) is seen in a commissioned mural he painted, with local graffiti writer Charms, on the exterior of La Esperanza Mercado Y Carniceria in the Beacon Hill area of Seattle, Washington, USA, on Thu., May 30, 2024. The mural features a large portrait of Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata alongside the landscape, flora, and fauna, of the Sonoran Desert. The pair painted the mural in 2020 and, Lont says, wanted it to "reflect the community." The mural is a mixture of stenciled and freehand spray-paint art. Lont's logo, a silhouette of a graffiti writer with outstretched arms, is hidden above the midpoint of the butterfly's wing.
Mural artist Crick Lont (known as dozer_art on social media painted an electrical box with local artist Desmond Hansen in the Beacon Hill area of Seattle, Washington, USA, on Thu., May 30, 2024. Lont painted butterflies on the box.

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