Meet the (Flatwater Free) Press with Matthew Hansen

Matthew Hansen, editor of the Flatwater Free Press will be back in Lincoln, at  Francie & Finch, to talk journalism, hear story ideas, and also to hand out an actual physical newspaper, their annual FFP Commemorative Edition.  It’s very cool. Matthew has selected a couple of his favorite Nebraska books, by FFP correspondents and FFP-connected authors like Carson Vaughan, Joe Starita, Ted Genoways, and more. We’ll also have a few copies of “The Better Half,” by Sarah Baker Hansen and Matthew Hansen about their epic Nebraska road trip.

10% of the proceeds go to Flatwater Free Press!  (Including pre-orders of Ted Genoways upcoming book, Tequila Wars: José Cuervo and the Bloody Struggle for the Spirit of Mexico.

About Flatwater Free Press:
***Flatwater echoes the origins of our state’s name, a translation of the Oto or Omaha words for the Platte River. The Platte of course spans the state, providing sustenance and a travel route for this land’s first human inhabitants. Today it connects Scottsbluff to Omaha and hundreds of communities between. The word is all about Nebraska, all of Nebraska, and all of our state’s history.

Free references the First Amendment. Freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and the right to participate in democracy — we hold these values dear. Through journalism, we aim to hold power accountable and amplify diverse voices. Free also describes our free and open nature – anyone will be able to read our work or republish it, with no barriers.

Press is the word that the Constitution uses to assign journalists an important role in democracy. It defines our mission as one of public service. We’re here to tell stories with a purpose: Helping Nebraska realize the best version of itself.

About Matthew Hansen:
***Matthew Hansen is the editor of the Flatwater Free Press, Nebraska’s first statewide nonprofit news source. Hansen, a 16-year veteran of Nebraska newspapers, has previously worked as a reporter at the Lincoln Journal Star and then a reporter and metro columnist at the Omaha World-Herald. During his time in newspapers, he travelled to Cuba and Afghanistan and won multiple state, regional and national awards for investigative stories, feature stories and columns. He was the 2015 Great Plains Writer of the Year. Most recently Hansen has served as the managing editor at the Buffett Early Childhood Institute, creating a new website focusing on early childhood education. The native of Red Cloud and one-time intern at the Red Cloud Chief and the Hastings Tribune now lives in Omaha and is married to Sarah Baker-Hansen, a longtime Nebraska food writer and restaurant critic. Their book together, “The Better Half” is an examination of the Nebraska’s finest road trips, restaurants and hidden stories.

***(Information obtained from flatwaterfreepress.org)