Tanner Russ. Writer, reporter, journalist

Let me write words for you.

Headshot (Maranie Staab credit).jpg

Photo Credit: Maranie Rae

It took me until I was 23 years old to figure out what I wanted to pursue as a career. After having dabbled in poetry and short story writing at Oregon State University, I got a break when my old track and field coach asked me if I wanted to take over the beat reporting role for prep sports in the Portland suburb of Wilsonville and nearby Canby. I took the job and never looked back.

 

Getting the chance to meet interesting people, be it athletes, coaches, community members, and tell their stories and do important work within the community was fulfilling. It led me to travel across the country and earn my master’s degree in magazine, newspaper and online journalism from Syracuse University.

 

My full time reporting has mostly been in and around the Portland metro area, covering a myriad of prep sports for the cities of Newberg, Molalla, Woodburn, Canby and others. Meeting people where they’re at, finding the story amidst the numbers and getting the chance to show the world is a driving force for me, and I hope you get a glimpse of that through my clips on this website.

 

If you read something you like and want to reach out, feel free!

Pamplin Media Group

I provided regional coverage of Pamplin’s Valley Zone, covering 12 schools from Newberg to Colton and Gervais to Canby. Duties included gameday coverage, feature writing, building a tree of sources and budgeting print products.

 

Newhouse Sports Media Center

While my coverage of various games was cut short due to the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020, I was able to provide gameday coverage of women’s basketball and Syracuse football, in addition to shooting gameday photography.

 

Our Town (Silverton, OR)

I’ve conducted interviews with people from various walks of life, and helped to tell the story of a small town in the publications voice.

I have several years of sports photography experience under my belt, ranging from youth sports to college athletics.

I have several years of sports photography experience under my belt, ranging from youth sports to college athletics.

Today, I’m searching for the next story to tell and the next adventure to embark on. If you have an interesting story that you want told, don’t hesitate to reach out.