What was your first job as a journalist?
Contributor to SLUG Magazine. I wrote about video games and movies.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes--way back in elementary school.
How is social media changing news?
It creates a need for reporting to happen fast, which sometimes means inaccurate. Algorithms create content bottlenecks.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Spider Jerusalem from Transmetropolitan.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Journalists seek out the stories that keep society connected. They help create a perspective from which to view the world.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
Can't really think of one.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Email pitches are great.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
Google docs, Scrivener, Word.
What's your favorite social network?
Instagram
Who do you wish followed you?
I'd like it if Helen Rosner followed me. I think she'd be able to provide some pretty good insights on food writing.
Why did you become a journalist?
I did so because I love writing. Journalism gives me the opportunity to take a deeper look at things and communicate what I see.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
I did! I managed the editorial page. I wrote an incendiary piece about how the school dress code should apply to cheerleaders.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
I won a Utah SPJ award for writing about a local all-you-can-eat buffet.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Good writing/editing skills are a must, but you've got to be able to work well with others.
When's the best time to pitch you?
Evenings are when I check my email.
What's the best pitch you ever got?
Probably to do an interview with Andrew Zimmern as he passed through Utah.
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
I can't think of one off the top of my head. I usually just ignore the bad ones.
What's your favorite drink?
My favorite grown-up drink is an old fashioned. My favorite soft drink is Diet Dr. Pepper.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
At a movie theater or restaurant.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
I like Fangoria, Vulture, The Atlantic, and NPR.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That Utah has a bland food scene. It's actually evolved in some interesting ways.
