What was your first job as a journalist?
Writing match reports for my local football team for the local paper. They were fairly cruel with their editing.
How is social media changing news?
There's more of it. Whether that is good or bad I don't know.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Seth Wright (technically Press Secretary) in the Netflix series Designated Survivor.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
It means being in the privileged position of being able to offer your thoughts to complete strangers and force them to ask questions.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
In a brown envelope by a mystery contact.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
I'm the Tony Adams of journalism. No frills and I play to my strengths. My laptop and a 2010 edition of Word is enough for me.
What's your favorite social network?
Twitter - I think it is the natural progression from Facebook. A more mature kind of cynicism.
Why did you become a journalist?
Because I love to write.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
I have been covering the Oyston ownership from the perspective of Blackpool FC fans for over a year and it has been a rewarding experience.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Write a lot.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
In a book or in a classroom.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
Anything that Jonathan Liew has written for - so usually the Telegraph.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That journalists are morally corrupt henchmen of the apocalypse.
