An Asbury Park Press investigation looks into the increasing frequency, intensity and brazen nature of antisemitism in the Lakewood area.

News director Frank Scandale is the newest member of the Asbury Park Press newsroom, but he brings decades of journalism experience with him to the Shore.

He's been at the forefront of coverage for some of the biggest news events of the generation across the country.

He has a proven track record of utilizing a keen eye, sensivity in news judgement, care for the community and dogged sense of justice to amplify the voices that need to be heard.

Since joining the Asbury Park Press, he's immersed himself in some of the biggest issues facing the Shore and has a slate of upcoming projects that will enhance the understanding of what makes the area tick.

Tell us about your background. Where are you from? How and why did you get into reporting/photojournalism/journalism? How did you get to the Asbury Park Press?

I stumbled into news reporting because my Aunt Betty used to read the now defunct Elizabeth Daily Journal religiously. She knew I was a writer and found a classified ad in the paper seeking stringers to cover night meetings. At the time I was waiting tables at night and doing odd jobs after college and writing the Great American Novel by day.

I called the paper and covered a Scotch Plains-Fanwood Board of Education meeting that night. I took notes and called in and dictated a story. The next day the story was stripped across the front page of the Western county edition . My parents' phone was ringing all morning and I was off and running.

Two weeks later, the editor offered me a full-time reporting position covering night meetings, cops and whatnot. For about a $1.90 an hour and all the bad coffee you could drag out of the vending machine, a career was launched.

I have worked much of my career in New Jersey, including editor of The Record of Bergen County, and New York, in addition to a 10-year stint as an editor at The Denver Post. I was most recently a remote editor for the McClatchy news company, running a site and newspaper in Georgia, before returning to New Jersey journalism with the Asbury Park Press.

Is there one story in your career that really stands out? What was it and why?

In a long career, there are many standout stories, but two sit atop.

One was the Columbine High School massacre in the suburbs of Denver. I was the metro editor when that horror struck, and for weeks the staff and the community reeled from the devastation and unthinkable tragedy. That was April 1999. The staff was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News in 2000, a bittersweet recognition of our diligent and sensitive but aggressive work at that time.

Soon after, I become editor of The Record back in New Jersey and eight months later terrorists struck the Twin Towners and unleashed a nightmare scenario in our backyard and country.

Those two stories stand out for exactly what they were - unparalleled news events in our lifetimes that will forever serve as pivotal moments in our lives and the history of the United States. It was our duty and obligation to cover those events to the best of our abilities and I believe we did exactly that.What is one thing about yourself that would surprise people?

I once struck out 20 of 21 batters in our Little League in Brooklyn, New York, a record that will stand forever - as our school was closed some time ago.

What does being able to connect with the community through your work mean to you?

Everything. It means everything and is my favorite level of reporting and editing.

I have covered all levels of news, from international business with Reuters wire service to weekly community news, and everything in between. What resonates most with me is connecting with those neighbors in my county and or state and making an impact from the work we do. Whether it is exposing wrongdoing, covering a tragedy and trying to make some sense of things, or helping someone in need, the work has never bored me or seemed trivial.

Our role as journalists, as the cliché says, is "giving a voice to the voiceless."

More to the point, the 1902 essay by Finley Peter Dunne turned into the guiding principle for journalists - "comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable" - meaning our basic role is to to support the downtrodden while challenging those in power.

Our role in society is critical to democracy, and we take that very seriously - but hopefully not ourselves too seriously at the same time.