Jonathan D. Salant
As seen in:
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette,
LinkedIn,
MSN,
Bloomberg Businessweek,
Bloomberg News,
HuffPost,
The Washington Post,
Aol,
Boston.com,
SFGate,
Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle
and
Covers:
Congress, New Jersey politics, national politics, polls, lobbying, campaign finance, federal government, government waste, government misconduct & ethics
DC columnist, @PittsburghPG. @SPJDC Hall of Fame. Former president @PressClubDC, @RegionalReports & @SPJDC. @dcmediasoftball player-coach.
Interview
What was your first job as a journalist?
Local government reporter for the Bergen Record in New Jersey.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
I still have a large Royal typewriter in my home office.
How is social media changing news?
Everyone is a 24-hour wire service now. But unlike traditional wire services, some post first and then report.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Sally Field as Megan Carter, not because she did her job right, but because I sat behind her in two scenes of "Absence of Malice."
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Journalism is the independent gathering and verification of facts.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Email is easiest. But please do your homework. I'm just going to delete releases on topics that have nothing to do with my beat.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
Microsoft Access and Excel to analyze campaign finance data.
Why did you become a journalist?
Tikkun olam. It's a way to make the word a better place by reporting on important issues for the public.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
I was news editor and a prolific newswriter for my high school paper.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
We won the Press Foundation's Dirksen Award and Press Club's Walczak Award for a project on the secret money in the 2010 elections
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
The First Amendment gives us the responsibility to hold public officials accountable to the public. Never forget that,
When's the best time to pitch you?
During normal business hours.
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
I get dozens of them, all pitching stories about local issues in other states even though I work in Washington for a New Jersey news outlet.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Playing softball. I still coach and play on two teams.
Would you like to take the Muck Rack Interview?
Create a Muck Rack profile.