World My Iowa: Covering the Caucuses as a Native or a Newcomer By Julia Carroll - January 15, 2024 KELLEN BROWNING If you need an antithesis to the city of San Francisco, Des Moines could be just the place. Back in November, when I was told I had a fortnight to relocate from the Bay Area to chilly Iowa for the winter to report on the Iowa caucuses, I turned to Sydney Ember, a colleague who landed this assignment four years prior, for some guidance. She convinced me that navigable snowy roads weren’t nearly as threatening as they seemed, though she admitted nearly perishing thrice on the icy byways during her coverage of the 2020 Democratic primary race in Iowa. Equipped with that reassurance — and a good selection of new winter coats — I headed off to Des Moines. In a mere six weeks, I have ridden my rental vehicle across more than 3,400 miles, been part of rallies for all the top contenders, and engaged in conversations with dozens of voters. But whilst I was briefly living the Iowan life, one staff member among us is an actual Iowan. Anjali Huynh, a political journalist who calls Iowa City her home town, has seen all of us novice reporters trying to become overnight experts on Iowa and — although I’m only guessing — probably couldn’t help but cringe at our struggle to fit in with the locals. As my temporary deployment comes to an end here, I wanted to chat with a true Iowan about her beloved state and discuss the insight I’ve gained. Here’s our conversation. ANJALI HUYNH How did you react when you first heard that you were being deployed to Des Moines, a place you had never been before? KELLEN I had no previous Midwest experience, so I was excited about it, but also quite clueless about what to anticipate. I imagined miles of cornfields and flatlands, quite the opposite of San Francisco’s hilly terrain. When I first landed here, I remember thinking how amazingly quiet downtown Des Moines was. “People must be staying home because of the chilly weather”, I thought. However, I soon realised that was simply how less populated Iowa was. ANJALI How cold was it? KELLEN It was about 40 degrees, which I now consider a warm day. But I’m curious: How has it been for you, a native of Iowa City, watching people like me dropping in from out of town? ANJALI It’s been fascinating. The caucuses drove me into journalism. In 2016, I attended my first event which was for Senator Bernie Sanders in my hometown. The attraction was the presence of Josh Hutcherson, who portrayed Peeta in “The Hunger Games,” campaigning for him. I was only 14 and was dazzled by the massive turnout, all eager to see the senator from Vermont. That’s when I first came to understand the significant role Iowa plays in attracting these candidates here. So in 2020, while gearing up for the Democratic primaries, I convinced a local e-zine to allow me to cover the candidates. I went to the Iowa State Fair for them and in the process of covering the candidates, I recall observing all the national media professionals and their condescending attitude towards the fairgoers. This annoyed me. From that point, I committed to doing a better job if I ever got a national platform. That meant not relying on cliches when talking about Iowans but ensuring that I fully comprehend the reason behind their beliefs. KELLEN It’s something I’ve been attempting to accomplish by being on-the-ground here for the past six weeks. ANJALI Did anything about Iowa take you by surprise? KELLEN I genuinely had no idea that the “Iowa Nice” reputation was for real. I’ve had campaign operatives and strategists who’ve been in the business for ages ask me, “Oh, did you get mittens? Do you need them?” But Anjali, I wanted to ask you about your expectations from the caucuses today. What’s your opinion about the process in general? ANJALI I’m still talking to a lot of voters who are undecided. I’ve been covering Vivek Ramaswamy over the last week, and I’ve encountered so many people at his events who say they’re between him and any number of other candidates. Many Iowans wait until the last second to decide whom they’re going to support, so those final pitches do matter. There are a lot of issues with the caucuses; the fact that they’re at a very set time, on a certain day, in person, does make them inaccessible to some people. But there’s a certain beauty about seeing the process unfold, seeing neighbors who really value this process come together and convince one another to support a particular candidate. Iowa has a more diverse array of perspectives than it gets credit for — there aren’t just farmers here — and you can especially see that during the caucuses. KELLEN My greatest takeaway is the pleasure I derived from engaging directly with voters who take civic responsibility very seriously. They also didn’t hesitate to voice their opinions to the media. Recently, I had the opportunity to chat with two couples in Sioux Center post a Trump rally, and they commented: “You know, we don’t really have much of a liking for The New York Times. We have reservations regarding its credibility.” Our conversation lasted about 20 minutes during which I attempted to explain the media’s perspective: We try to report the truth. Our stories are accurate. They essentially responded by saying that “The media has lost the trust of people” and hence they’re relying more on what they witness around them, and on alternative news sources, like Tucker Carlson. There’s this prevailing division in the country regarding what constitutes factual information, and that significantly impedes the ability to penetrate peoples’ societal bubbles. Nonetheless, I appreciate the fact that we had the opportunity to discuss this face-to-face rather than through digital mediums. ANJALI Do you recall any funny moments from the campaign trail? KELLEN The funniest moment for me was when a 10-year-old girl from Nebraska asked Vivek Ramaswamy, if he became president, whether he would request China’s leader, Xi Jinping, for a giant panda for her local zoo. He promised to give it a shot. ANJALI What were some general highlights from Iowa? KELLEN Jogging by Gray’s Lake in Des Moines. Iowa is famous for its awe-inspiring sunsets. And Des Moines has several beautiful bridges that glow at night. Plus, some of the food was really nice. A bridge spanning Gray’s Lake in Des Moines, where Kellen Browning went for a run during his temporary deployment in Iowa. Credit… Kellen Browning/The New York Times Even when I ended up in the provincial parts of the state while covering campaign events, they had their own unique charm. For instance, the Fruited Plain Café in downtown Sioux Center was a warm haven away from the cold. In fact, I even ended up unknowingly driving into Nebraska at one point. Anjali, what’s your favorite place in Iowa that’s not Iowa City? ANJALI I find Dubuque during the autumn season to be stunning. The last time I visited, the town was hosting a winter market. KELLEN I’ll certainly consider visiting sometime when the mercury isn’t at negative 18 degrees. Covering the Iowa Caucuses: A Perspective from Both a Native and Newcomer TAGS Caucuses covering Iowa Native Newcomer Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Linkedin ReddIt Email Telegram Previous article The Needle Returns for the Iowa Caucus. Here’s How It Works. Julia Carroll

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