Photo Editing: Assigned Photography 



Choosing Life With Down Syndrome

After prenatal testing shows a fetus is at risk, families are faced with a profound decision. The national abortion debate is making it even harder on them.

Photographs by Maddie McGarvey, art direction and photo editing by Lisa Larson-Walker.


Published by Slate, May 31, 2018

France’s Ferguson

The death of Adama Traoré in police custody has reignited a cultural crisis over race, assimilation, and what it means to be French.

Photography by Oscar Castillo made possible with the support of the Magnum Foundation, article by Henry Grabar, art direction and photo editing by Lisa Larson-Walker.


Published by Slate, Jan. 31, 2017

Raise and Support

These veterans at Standing Rock are so disillusioned by traditional politics they didn’t vote. But they still think American ideals are worth fighting for.

Photographs by Christian Hansen, article by Aaron Labaree, art direction and photo editing by Lisa Larson-Walker.


Published by Slate, Dec. 8, 2017

It’s Not Over

Standing Rock was never just about the pipeline. It’s about an existential fight against the corporate interests who would sacrifice people and the planet on the altar of short-term gain.

Photographs by Christian Hansen, article by Susan Matthews, art direction and photo editing by Lisa Larson-Walker.


Published by Slate, Dec. 11, 2017


When the Neighborhood Gentrifies and the Elementary School Doesn’t

In Portland’s Albina district, a historically black public school is struggling as its area transforms.

Photographs by Clayton Cotterell, article by Jessica Huseman, art direction and photo editing by Lisa Larson-Walker.


Published by Slate, June 8, 2017

How to Change White Teachers’ Lenses

America’s students are now majority-minority, but its teachers are not. That’s why they need to be “culturally competent.”

Photographs by Joe Leavenworth, article by Vanessa Romo, art direction and photo editing by Lisa Larson-Walker.


Published by Slate, June 7, 2017

The Color of School Reform

After Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans fired its mostly black teacher corps. Now its charter schools are trying to convince black educators that there’s a place for them.

Photographs by William Widmer, article by Alexandria Neason, art direction and photo editing by Lisa Larson-Walker.


Published by Slate, June 5, 2017

Who Gets to Live in Fremont, Nebraska?

A new Costco plant could save the town—by bringing hundreds of immigrants to the only place in America that passed a law to keep them out.

Photographs by Ryan Soderlin, article by Henry Grabar, art direction and photo editing by Lisa Larson-Walker.


Published by Slate, Dec. 6, 2017

Money Talks: Jeanne-Salomé Rochat 

Money remains one of our biggest taboos — bigger than sex — and yet we spend more time earning it, spending it, and thinking about it than almost anything else. We’re bored with people presenting us with their seemingly effortless lives instead of the messy reality of their finances. So, here’s our attempt to turn it inside out: People talking honestly, and realistically, about their relationship to money.

KK: Are you ever worried about money?
JSR: I’m worried about everything collapsing. In a second, everything could be gone. But that’s not necessarily related to money, because I know I wouldn’t die instantly if I didn’t have any. Also, I probably couldn’t live the life I live if I were an anxious person. I hope a lot. So maybe the answer to your question is no.

Photographs by Philipp Langenheim, art direction by Erich Nagler, interview by Kati Krause, and photo editing by Lisa Larson-Walker.


Published by Matter, Jan. 29 2015

What Happened to Baby Johan?

The father, mother, police, doctors, and hospital records all tell different stories about the night that Johan Aspelin was fatally injured. Does anyone know the truth?

Photographs by Talia Herman, art direction by Erich Nagler, article by Elizabeth Weil, and photo editing by Lisa Larson-Walker.


Published by Matter, Feb. 2 2015