I'm Doing Independent Journalism Full-Time — Here's Why It Matters

Right now, I’m in Panama, meeting with locals, listening to their stories, and digging into how they feel about the Trump administration’s increasingly aggressive rhetoric toward the Panama Canal. This isn’t something you’ll see covered honestly in legacy outlets. And if they do cover it, it won’t be from the ground, or through the voices of everyday Panamanians. That’s where I come in.

Truth be told, so far, most folks I’ve met here don’t even know about the rhetoric coming from Washington, D.C. But, there has been an overall disdain toward the Donald Trump personally, especially stemming from his first Administration.

I’ve made the leap. I’m doing journalism full-time. No bosses. No ads. No billionaire owners. No editorial strings. It’s funded by you and only you.

Every story I report is independent and fiercely accountable to the truth — not to investors, sponsors, or political agendas. I have full editorial control over what I cover, how I cover it, and who I speak to. That freedom means everything. It allows me to report with integrity, to ask uncomfortable questions, and to highlight the perspectives that often go ignored.

But here’s the thing: independence isn't free.

It’s only possible because of the people who believe in this work enough to support it — people like you. I don't have corporate backers cushioning my budget. I don't run ads or take money from sponsors who expect a certain kind of narrative. My only accountability is to the people who read and support my work.

If you value journalism that’s on the ground, unfiltered, and unbought, I’m asking you to help make it sustainable. Your subscription, your support, quite literally keeps this going. It funds the reporting, the travel, the time spent in communities that are too often left out of the headlines.

I’m here in Panama to listen — and to tell the truth, even when it challenges power. Especially when it challenges power.

Thank you for being part of this.

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