Quest Network Blue Zones - Joseph Van Harken, Video Producer

Blue Zones - Quest for the true fountain of youth

Joseph Van Harken, Video Producer

Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism John M. Patterson Documentary Television Award
Awarded the Harry B. & Helen F. Weber Fellowship to report for the Mackinac Island Town Crier
Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism Society of Professional Journalist's Student of the Year
Awarded CNN Masters Fellowship
Avid breakdancer

Joseph Van Harken gen·er·al·ist (jnr--lst):

n. A physician whose practice is not oriented in a specific medical specialty but instead covers a variety of medical problems.

Okay, so I'm not a doctor. I don't have the attention span to focus on one field for ten years of schooling, but I do like the idea of having a broad general knowledge and skills in several areas. That's why I chose a profession that at least sounded similar: journalist.

Seriously though, ever since I was little my interests have varied, from science to literature to break-dancing to pole vaulting to soccer. I've always liked to be in the mix and experience things first person, which probably has something to do with the whole outgoing thing, but I'll figure that one out with my shrink. The main point is that when it came down to choosing a path in life, I had to find one that fulfilled my curiosity and let me get out in the world to explore first hand---that's what journalism has let me do.

learn, travel, write

That's been my mantra since the first day I traded in my Where the Wild Things Are book for a National Geographic magazine when I was eight years old. But sooner rather than later, I realized that in my generation of multi-media distribution, I'd better expand the scope of the generalist definition beyond the knowledge portion and really sharpen my skills in all kinds of storytelling formats. Starting first in print journalism and still photography, I moved to television, then to new media, and finally to long form video/documentary film. Now I like to mix media with each experience and cover a story in the way it feels best. I feel fortunate in the past few years to have chalked up a variety of experiences and lucky enough to have my work appear on CNN, MTV, ESPN, the Discovery Channel, and the Tribeca Film Festival. I have documented the aftermath of the Asian tsunami in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, traveled undercover through Afghanistan, ridden the recall bus with Arnold Swarzenegger, unmasked a drag queen in Queens, captured a pregnant woman's fight against cancer, shot models in Miami, road-tripped with rappers, raced cars cross-country with cannon balers, and unzipped the underworld of New York City's up-and-coming fashion designers.

I'm looking forward to this trip so I can experience a culture I've never met before and so I can learn some secrets to their longevity. If successful, maybe I'll learn how to live past 100 years too! Hmmm, if I had that much time, I'd probably go to med school.

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