Q&A with Vanessa Shirley
by Nathan J. Comp
Vanessa Shirley
This has been a year of firsts for Vanessa Shirley, the 28-year-old newswoman on WKOW Channel 27. Not only did she buy a winter coat fit for a Wisconsin winter, but she has used de-icer and shoveled snow for the first time, as well. No, she hasn’t lived a pampered life, but she never endured a true winter until she moved here from Arizona in October 2006.
Born in and raised in the small mining town of Globe, Arizona, Shirley moved to Yuma, an Arizona border town, after college, where she covered the immigration beat for her local television news station. In fall 2006, Shirley landed a gig here at WKOW 27.
Shirley spoke this week to The Madison Times, discussing her experience reporting on immigration issues and how she’s grappling with a winter that has even Wisconsinites pulling out their hair.
TMT: What are a few things that surprised you when covering immigration issues in Arizona?
VS: Well, being from Arizona, that’s always been a part of growing up. But moving to Yuma, right on the border, next to Mexicali, what surprised me was how dangerous it is, how people risk their lives every single day crossing. We covered people dying in the desert basically every day in Yuma.
TMT: What is it about America that makes people take those risks?
VS: Money. There just aren’t the jobs [in Mexico]. I just did an interview on Sunday where I interviewed two illegal immigrants in Rock County. They came all the way to Wisconsin to work on a dairy farm. [One] said in Mexico there’s just not the job opportunities; he couldn’t afford to raise his family. He said the government is very corrupt and there aren’t the opportunities for a better life.
TMT: What are some public misperceptions about immigrant communities?
VS: I asked him that, and it wasn’t included in my story, but he feels that a lot of Americans think illegal immigrants are criminals and they’re here to take advantage of the system. He said that’s not true. He said, “We’re very hardworking, we’re very loyal to our employers.”
TMT: What other areas of life do you enjoy reporting on? I know you do the “People Making a Difference” segments.
VS: Not anymore. As of two weeks ago, we hired a new features reporter, so that’s no longer my franchise. What else do I like reporting on? I really like social issues. I’ve done stories on domestic violence, different education issues, I feel like I’ve taken on the jail beat as well. I’ve been doing a lot of stories at the Dane County Jail. How taxpayer money is spent, and safety concerns.
TMT: What story would you say you’ve done that has had the most influence?
VS: My ‘People Making a Difference’ stories, by far. I interviewed a local Madison doctor who has this organization called Combat Blindness, and he’s been doing it for about 20 years. He basically travels to developing countries, like Kenya, India, and South Africa; and he does free cataract surgeries, which is a leading cause of blindness in developing countries. He’s just the most amazing man I’ve ever met.
When you’re a journalist, you cover so much death and destruction, then you meet someone like that, that’s actually going out and doing some good in the world, it gives you a little hope.
TMT: Being from Arizona, how are you coping with this horrendous winter?
VS: (Laughs) I’ve learned my lesson from last winter. I finally have a good winter coat. Winter coats in Arizona are totally different than what they have here in Wisconsin. So I came here last year with just a wool coat, which I thought was really warm, and I froze.
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