What was your first job as a journalist?
Still a teenager, I had a 60-week-running political cartoon in the San Rafael Independent Journal and wrote features for The Pacific Sun.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
I still weep salty tears remembering my beloved Selectric II. And I went to college so long ago I wrote everything on a Corona portable.
How is social media changing news?
For one thing, it's terrifying and baffling me. It is far too easy to get caught in a feedback loop and only hear what you want to hear.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Probably Dr. John H. Watson.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Lord knows... all I know is that I write to find out what I think and am constantly interested in the world around me.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
I am happy to say that I never see any hashtags. Not Luddite so much as too old for Twitter.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
No preference... being old-fashioned, I always enjoy actual phone calls from actual people.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
My trusty old Mac, with Word for writing and ProTools for music editing.
What's your favorite social network?
Facebook... it's the only one I even remotely understand.
Why did you become a journalist?
It was inevitable... I love writing and reading and I have an inflated enough sense of self to believe that others might read my stuff.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
I was an editorial writer and editorial cartoonist.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
A feature article for the San Francisco Chronicle about desperate people writing to Santa.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Write like you talk. And be honest.
When's the best time to pitch you?
Whenever I'm not parenting. Mid-day is usually good.
What's the best pitch you ever got?
Do you want to sign with Arista Records and open for Bob Weir at the Fillmore in 4 months?
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
An offer to write short features for a porno magazine. Couldn't get out of that office fast enough.
What's your favorite drink?
Daytime: Peet's espresso. Evening: either Guinness or single malt scotch, depending on the weather.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Chasing my ten-year-old son around.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
The Nation, for current events, and The New Yorker for culture.
