By Stephen Lee "Elevate[s] TV from mere boob tube to a source of thoughtful discussion" - Yahoo! "Too cool" - Brad Meltzer, co-creator of Jack & Bobby

Author Information Hi. My name is Stephen Lee, and welcome to my site. Hopefully, you've explored FootnoteTV and the Newsaic a little by now and like what you've seen. This page features a little more information about me (for more on the site itself and how and why I put it together, go here). First of all, I've been a journalist for much of my life and am proud to consider myself that, even though I haven't made any money as such for several years. Here are some points of what I've done. I was a metro reporter for the Chicago Tribune for about 15 months. I had a great time at the Tribune and learned a lot there. I wrote editorials briefly for the Detroit Free Press. That, unfortunately, ended prematurely because I went on strike in the summer of 1995 along with the newspaper unions. I went to law school in the fall of 1998 but did not stay away from journalism long, especially when I ended up covering two criminal matters involving my fellow students. First, there was the law student who was arrested on drug smuggling charges just weeks after graduating and who was ultimately convicted after his alibi witness admitted on the witness stand that he had been lying for the defendant. Second, there was the ex-boyfriend of a law student, who was ultimately convicted of murdering her in her apartment. I also did an internship with ABC News' Law and Justice Unit, where I got my first experience with television journalism. And then I created FootnoteTV. Second, I am actually a lawyer. I graduated from Columbia Law School in 2000, joined the bar of the State of New York in 2001, and am now a mid-level litigation associate at Debevoise & Plimpton (on-line here), one of the top law firms in the United States and, I think, the only real-life law firm to be mentioned twice in The West Wing (Josh Lyman's father was a partner at Debevoise, and Joe Quincy (played by Matthew Perry) gave up a job interview at Debevoise to come work in the White House). As a lawyer, I've helped represent clients ranging from large corporations to individual people in a wide variety of disputes, including a 2004 investigation into allegations of sexual abuse that were made against a high-ranking Catholic leader. I live in New York City with my wife, Helen Kim, a violin teacher and performer who plays in the orchestra of the Broadway show The Producers. We met once briefly in 1998 but did not begin dating until after we met a second time at a common friend's wedding in the late summer of 2001. I proposed in September 2002 on stage after the show, and we were married on August 29, 2003 in my hometown of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. I would love getting your feedback. Please send me e-mail at stephenlee@footnotetv.com.

Snapshots This is how I ended the first chapter of my journalism career. After graduating from Yale in 1995, I worked for the Detroit Free Press for about two months before going on strike and I then worked for the Chicago Tribune from the fall of 1995 to early 1997. I visited the Trib one last time before starting law school, and my car actually caught on fire while there. Fortunately, I came out of this okay. This is the event that inspired FootnoteTV. My younger brother and sister did not see the first presidential debate between Al Gore and George W. Bush, but they did see the Saturday Night Live sketch based on the debate. Rather than simply bemoaning this fact, I decided to do something with it. In 2001, I was a litigator at a big firm and I was trying to develop this site entirely on my own. I was just about to give up on dating, at least for the time being, and then I met Helen Kim, a violinist. We got engaged in September 2002 and got married in August 2003; I actually planned both events around the TV schedule so I could keep up with this site. This is how FootnoteTV looked like when I launched the site in early February 2002. It's kind of embarrassing looking back at this now, but I think I can safely that it's gotten better with age. I've continued to tweak the design of the site over time and to expand it. In early 2004, FootnoteTV and I were mentioned on the Today show as part of their "The Intern" series, a take-off on the Apprentice. "Team Peacock" pitched a story about FootnoteTV and won that round, though, unfortunately, they never actually got to do the story itself.

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DISCLAIMER. The materials contained in this website have been prepared by Stephen Lee ("Author") for informational purposes only and do not contain or constitute legal advice. These materials may not reflect the most current legal developments, verdicts or settlements. Furthermore, this information should in no way be taken as an indication of future results. Reading this website is not intended to create, and your receipt and/or use of the information contained herein, does not constitute an attorney/client relationship. You should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel. Reproduction, distribution or republication of material contained within this website is prohibited unless the prior permission of Author has been obtained. (C) Copyright 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 Stephen Lee. All rights reserved. Newsaic and FootnoteTV are registered service marks of Stephen Lee. Mirror Law and Footnote Comics are service marks of Stephen Lee. More information available here. Comments or suggestions to the Site Editor.