Amanda Hirsch
(She/Her)
As seen in:
Apple Podcasts,
LinkedIn,
Forge,
Medium,
Yahoo Life,
NASA,
PBS,
Substack,
EIN News,
Motherly
and
Covers:
Storytelling for social change, telling your story online, improvising adulthood, improvising motherhood
On a mission to fill the world with women's* stories (*everyone who identifies as female). She/her. #blacklivesmatter | Mastodon: amandahirsch@mindly.social
Interview
What was your first job as a journalist?
Guest columnist for my college paper (The Daily Pennsylvanian)
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Only playfully in an antique store...not for real
How is social media changing news?
Splintering us into multiverses with different versions of reality and truth.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
I'll have to think about that. Not sure.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Hoo boy. It means to hold the powerful to account, and to help other people understand the truth about the world.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Thoughtfully.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
Google Docs and Squarespace are the main tools/software I use.
What's your favorite social network?
Twitter
Who do you wish followed you?
Amy Poehler.
Why did you become a journalist?
Because I believe the stories we tell create our world.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
No, I was a drama club girl, through and through.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
This one for Melinda Gates's Evoke website:
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Think about who you want to help with the stories you write. Hold yourself to that standard.
When's the best time to pitch you?
Morning.
What's the best pitch you ever got?
I'm not sure.
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
Not sure.
What's your favorite drink?
Earl Grey tea (day) and bourbon (night)
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
These days: somewhere else in my apartment, most likely my couch or yoga mat.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
The Sun magazine
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That it's nice-to-have, versus essential.
Would you like to take the Muck Rack Interview?
Create a Muck Rack profile.