What was your first job as a journalist?
My first paid job was as a freelancer for the "underground" newspaper, the Los Angeles "Free Press" back in 1971 or so.
How is social media changing news?
An easier question would be, "How is it not?"
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Perry White. Of course, he's an editor, but that's a kind of journalist I think.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Simply put: a journalist connects the dots.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Contact me by email. No cold calls on the telephone, please. Don't "circle back" to "make sure I got your message" more than once.
What's your favorite social network?
Twitter.
Who do you wish followed you?
I'm already amazed and humbled by the number of important and well known technologists who follow me, so that's a difficult question.
Why did you become a journalist?
I grew up in the media, so I've been practicing journalism for all of my life, meaning it's just a part of who I am.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
No. I didn't work for my high school newspaper. I was writing ad copy for radio when I was in high school.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
Difficult question. I did an interview with Red Hat's Jim Whitehurst that I like. Also, an early in-depth look at Istio.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Study the field you want to cover and write. Try to bring something to the story that's not available elsewhere.
When's the best time to pitch you?
I prefer to be pitched by email, so any time works.
What's your favorite drink?
Coffee.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Pre-COVID, in a restaurant. Post-COVID, watching Netflix.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
The Atlantic.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That Linux is an excellent server operating system, but that it's not suitable for desktop use.
