Mike Drago

Mike, vice president of content, joined Idea Grove after a long career with leading news organizations, most recently as city editor of The Dallas Morning News.

Through 23 years in the deadline-a-minute world of print and digital newsgathering, he led a wide variety of coverage efforts, from breaking news to investigative stories and special projects. He built a team of education reporters that won state and national accolades, rooted out corruption and prompted reforms in the Dallas school district. Later, he oversaw coverage of Texas and the Southwest during hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

As city editor and assistant managing editor he oversaw reporters who covered everything from City Hall to transportation policy and from big-city crime to small-town curiosities. While often focused on coverage strategies, Mike’s proudest newsroom accomplishments were helping reporters craft stories that made government better and improved peoples’ lives.

After receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from the University of North Texas, Mike went to work for The Associated Press. In nine years as a reporter and editor, he wrote about everything from Texas high school football to the government standoff with the Branch Davidians in Waco. He covered more than 20 space shuttle missions from the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Magic Johnson’s last game in the NBA and Dirk Nowitzki’s draft-day trade to Dallas.