Christopher Schaberg
(He/Him)
St. Louis
As seen in:
Medium,
MSN,
Yahoo Life,
Bloomberg CityLab,
The Independent (UK),
Yahoo News,
Yahoo News Malaysia,
Yahoo News New Zealand,
The Atlantic,
Genius
and
Covers:
Airports, air travel, environment, ecology, contemporary literature, creative nonfiction, fly-fishing.
Interview
What was your first job as a journalist?
Technically, I guess that would be writing a piece for my college newspaper.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes
How is social media changing news?
It's making people crazy, and unable to slow down and read multiple (sometimes longer, more nuanced) stories.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Dora the Explorer
What does it mean to be a journalist?
It means to pay attention and write about what it happening, even when it is overwhelming.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Write to me with some sense that you've actually read my work. I am a critical writer. I don't do puff pieces.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
Google Docs
What's your favorite social network?
I don't have one right now. I quit Twitter last spring, and am holding off from joining anything otherwise, for the moment.
Who do you wish followed you?
I don't wish for anyone to follow me. I do wish for people to READ my writings.
Why did you become a journalist?
By becoming an out-of-place English professor
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
No. (It was so small, we didn't have one.)
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
My books about air travel, including some related articles that fueled these books.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Write! Submit! Allow yourself to be edited! Obey deadlines!
When's the best time to pitch you?
Early morning.
What's the best pitch you ever got?
To write an epilogue for my book GROUNDED.
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
I block these things out.
What's your favorite drink?
Boulevardier
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Playing with my kids, cooking, doing dishes, or fly-fishing.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
The New Yorker
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
Air travel is supposed to be this unquestioned, positive experience—unless it's a tragedy, or merely a non-tragic debacle.
Would you like to take the Muck Rack Interview?
Create a Muck Rack profile.