Through two decades as an award-winning journalist, Matthew Schofield built an international reputation as an investigative reporter and narrative story-teller. At a time when the gate-keeper function of traditional media fades, he’s looking to use these skills to bring the stories of businesses and clients directly to market.
Professional Experience
The Kansas City Star 2008 -
Editorial Board Member/Columnist
• Responsible for writing and editing opinion pieces and op-ed columns
• Created seven-part feature; “A Roadmap to a Good Exit from Iraq”
Deputy National Editor
• Directed, and editor for six senior correspondents
• Oversaw record growth of political website
• Developed international news website
• Assisted on daily column
McClatchy Newspapers 2003 - 2009
(Formally Knight Ridder Newspapers)
Baghdad Bureau Chief (Temporary Assignment)
• Produced stories about the politics and economy in Iraq
• Trained Iraqi staff members in writing news stories in English for an American audience
European Bureau Chief (Berlin, Germany)
• Responsible for European coverage for 33 US newspapers with a readership of 7 million, and a wire service, which serves 550 newspapers worldwide
• Directed and managed freelance writers
• Covered a wide variety of European events including the Madrid and London bombings, Israeli-Lebanon war, Death of John Paul II and selection of Benedict XVI, the Athens Olympics, German World Cup, Collapse of the European constitution, Turkish Kurdish separatism, and the vampire tales in rural Romania
• Provided frequent coverage in Baghdad, producing stories on the Iraqi people, the deteriorating country, and investigated possible atrocities
• Served as writing coach for the locally hired Iraqi staff
Philadelphia Inquirer 2007
Moscow Bureau Chief (Temporary Assignment)
• Responsible for coverage of Russia for the newspaper, which has over 800,000 readers
• Prepared office administratively for arriving permanent Bureau Chief
Knight Ridder Newspapers 2003
Baghdad Bureau Chief
• First Bagdad Bureau Chief for Knight Ridder Newspapers
• Opened office and coordinated coverage of Iraq after the fall of Hussein government
• Embedded with U.S. Marines during invasion of Iraq
• Compiled the first comprehensive civilian death toll in Baghdad (morgue by morgue) and the early days of Muqtada al Sadr's Mahdi Army
The Kansas City Star 1984 - 2003
Senior Writer
• Produced in-depth features covering the Missouri/Kansas area.
• Wrote stories about the tobacco industry, the effects of crystal meth on the region and death penalty defense, among many other topics.
• Worked with the Knight Ridder’s Washington bureau covering World Bank and IMF issues, including a piece on the cashew industry in Mozambique.
National Desk Correspondent
• Reporter for Kansas, Oklahoma, and Missouri region and correspondent for the Missouri desk.
• Covered city halls, criminal courts, school boards and general news.
Professional Awards and Recognition
Winner of the Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) - Large-class newspapers and wire services award, for reporting on released Guantanamo Bay detainees (‘09)
Three-time Presidents Award (company-wide McClatchy/Knight Ridder), for Iraq invasion coverage, coverage of the Iranian nuclear program and Guantanamo Bay coverage (‘03-‘08)
Nieman Fellowship at Harvard University (‘01-‘02)
Nancy Dickerson Whitehead Award, for a narrative serial called “Meth Diary” (‘99)
Nineteen other regional (Midwest, Missouri, Kansas) reporting/writing awards
Education:
Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
President's Certificate from having completed a Nieman Fellowship.
University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS
Bachelors of Science Degree in Journalism
Other Interests
Conversational in German and French
Soccer (former collegiate player and collegiate, high school and youth coach)
Cycling
Writing fiction