Don Merrill
Verified- Journalist, Freelance
- News and Public Affairs Producer, KBOO-FM (Portland, OR)
Pacific Northwest, Portland
Covers:
General Interest including authors & musicians, display & performance arts, science, government & politics, the military and Public Radio.
Doesn't Cover:
Food, sports, fashion, gaming
I do interviews. I wrote a book & working on a musical about the public radio pledge drive. And I have a public safety/social justice nonprofit @cnbseennow
Interview
What was your first job as a journalist?
Working for a military closed circuit radio station.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes.
How is social media changing news?
Gives journalist more leads and tips, which is good. Spreads wildfires of misinformation, which is bad.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Stephen Colbert, Seth Meyers, Lou Grant, Michael Che, John Oliver, Tina Fey, Carl Kolchak, Les Nessman, Amy Poehler, Jon Stewart
What does it mean to be a journalist?
To sometimes be like Dr. Stockmann in Ibsen's "Enemy of the People" who has the courage to tell an unpopular truth.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
n/a
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Email.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
Audacity, Adobe Premier, Celtx, GanttProject, PSPP, Sendblaster, Microsoft suite
What's your favorite social network?
Twitter
Who do you wish followed you?
n/a
Why did you become a journalist?
Love telling people's stories and learning stuff and trying to make sense out of situations I don't control.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
No.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
A story for Salt Lake City Weekly about the local branch of the NAACP.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Though sometimes, they'll disgust & infuriate you, at the most basic level, love people & try not to judge them. Just tell their story.
When's the best time to pitch you?
M-Su, 1000 to 1800
What's the best pitch you ever got?
Around 2015, a retiring news director gave me a handful of notes about something she'd been hearing about, called the anti-vaxxer movement.
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
A guy who, for years, had run for practically every office in Portland, OR called me to interview him for yet another office.
What's your favorite drink?
San Pelligrino
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
In the kitchen, cooking.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
The Week.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That many think government is in the way. I think this Family Guy clip sums up the reality of its necessity. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_-w_T-t8aM
Would you like to take the Muck Rack Interview?
Create a Muck Rack profile.