Matthew Hendrickson, Patch Staff

I come to Patch after working in a wide variety of media environments, with experience in traditional newspaper reporting as well as on the Internet.  In the past, I&#39;ve reported on Chicago&#39;s vibrant arts community for the Chicago Journal and done investigative reporting at the Chicago Reporter and org. I graduated in 2009 from Columbia College with a B.A. in Journalism. </b>

<b> </b>

<b>My investigative series on childhood lead poisoning rates in Chicago, published at ChicagoTalks, won a 2009 Peter Lisagor Award from the Chicago Headline Club in the Neighborhood/ Community News category. The series was also a finalist for a 2009 Investigative Reporters and Editors Award.</b>

<b> </b>

In Chicago, I also founded Jettison Media LLC, which publishes the arts and culture magazine Jettison Quarterly where I also serve as editor in chief.

I am very interested in the future of journalism on the Internet and am excited by Patch&#39;s hyper-local focus on news in communities across the country. But aside from journalism, my interests also include music, literature, movies and the arts.

I hope to see you all around town. Feel free to shoot me an email about any topic under the sun.

<b>Your Beliefs</b><br>At Patch, we promise always to report the facts as objectively as possible and otherwise adhere to the principles of good journalism. However, we also acknowledge that true impartiality is impossible because human beings have beliefs. So in the spirit of simple honesty, our policy is to encourage our editors to reveal their beliefs to the extent they feel comfortable. This disclosure is not a license for you to inject your beliefs into stories or to dictate coverage according to them. In fact, the intent is the opposite: we hope that the knowledge that your beliefs are on the record will cause you to be ever mindful to write, report and edit in a fair, balanced way. And if you ever see evidence that we failed in this mission, please let us know.<br><br><b>Politics </b><br>I consider myself to be an independent. I don&#39;t think any one party has all the answers, or knows the best way to get everything accomplished. To me, working with people from a variety of different backgrounds, usually ensures the best results. I like to consider the grey areas, because to me, no issue is black and white. I consider myself to be progressive in my ideology and letting people make the best decisions for themselves. I consider myself to be open, caring and compassionate and think that is reflected in my views on many social and political issues. If you&#39;d like to know my views on specific topic or event, feel free to email me.<br><br><b>Religion</b><br>I am not religious.<br><b><br>Local Hot-Button Issues</b><br>I make it my mission to provide only the facts and to not editorialize. Issues involving schools are especially important to me, as well as a government&#39;s duties to its citizens to be both fiscally and socially responsible and fair.