Haavik recording a “john sting” in New Ulm that was part of “Bought and Sold: The New Fight Against Teen Sex Trafficking” which will be rebroadcast on MPR News at noon and 9 p.m. on Monday, August 22.

 
Submitted by Sarah Eldred

(Summer 2016) Emily Haavik graduated from the University of Minnesota Duluth in 2012 with a degree in journalism. And like so many of us decided to check out a completely different field, advertising. After that flirtation was over, she worked at a television station in Duluth as a news producer and reporter for a couple years. Haavik wanted to switch to public radio so she applied for the American Radio Works internship to learn more about investigative work and long-form journalism. Her UMD journalism prof (and APM Reports Editor) Catherine Winter endorsed her as a ‘gem’.

Haavik has observed this of reporters and producers here at APMG, “They demonstrate how to treat sources with respect, tell their stories in honest and compelling ways, and become educated on new topics quickly and thoroughly.

Emily says she’s “getting much better at finding buried information” and “practicing not taking no for an answer.”
She has worked closely with Sasha Aslanian on this story.

Regarding Sasha, Emily says:
“Sasha has consistently given me opportunities to take ownership and push myself with new challenges. One that stands out is being sent to Illinois to conduct a prison interview. The fact that she and our bosses trusted me with an interview we’d only have one shot at — not to mention lugging their expensive gear around Chicago — meant a lot to me.”

Emily’s reporting on trafficking will also be featured on an upcoming episode of Reveal.