John Mecklin on Muck Rack

John Mecklin

Verified
Paonia, Santa Barbara
As seen in: Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Daily Mail, Reuters, The Atlantic, Educational Studies, Environmental Communication, Expert Review of Anticancer Therapy, Taylor & Francis Online, Flipboard, The Japan Times, Foreign Policy Magazine and
Covers:  nuclear weapons, climate change, and disruptive technologies that pose an existential threat to humanity.
Doesn't Cover: Everything else.
Editor in Chief @BulletinAtomic. Ex-Miller-Mccune/PacifStandard, High Country News, SF Weekly. Email: jmecklin@thebulletin.org Tips: Signal to meckdevil.11
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Interview

What was your first job as a journalist?

I was a reporter for the Williamson County Sun, then a rural county north of Austin, Texas.

What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?

#muckrackinterview

Why did you become a journalist?

I wanted to be a writer, and I wanted to be paid.

Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?

No.

What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?

In the current economic environment, unless journalism is an absolute calling, i.e. you'd drop dead if you couldn't do it, do something else.

What's the best pitch you ever got?

The one that won a George Polk Award, the IRE certificate, and a slew of other major national awards: https://archives.sfweekly.com/sanfrancisco/fallout/Content?oid=2141567

What's your favorite drink?

A quality Tempranillo.
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