What was your first job as a journalist?
Writing for the OSHA magazine on compliance assistance tools.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
A very long time ago.
How is social media changing news?
Social media brings concerns to light that prompt investigation.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
I didn't know that journalists wrote fiction. Is that journalism?
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Writing on workplace violence and related issues means a lot of research and a lot of care to get the story straight and clear.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
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How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
I don't want to be pitched on stories. I want to find out what is happening and shed light on it.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
I use email and phone to contact the officials whose work I study. I use my iPhone 11 to dictate notes, then I edit them in Word on my PC.
What's your favorite social network?
Facebook
Who do you wish followed you?
Managers of HR offices and occupational safety and health offices.
Why did you become a journalist?
To study and report on issues that I thought were important and on which I thought I could shed some light.
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?
My articles since 2012 have collected and shared the best information to build a workplace bullying policy.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Get the facts right, then tell the story so a 9th grader can understand it.
When's the best time to pitch you?
10 AM to 4 PM
What's the best pitch you ever got?
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What's the worst pitch you ever got?
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What's your favorite drink?
mocha frappuccino
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Reading a book or traveling
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
The New Yorker, the New York Times, and the Washington Post.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
I don't know.
