What was your first job as a journalist?
Philadelphia Inquirer, Northeast Neighbors section, covering schools and community issues. Loved those zoning board meetings til all hours.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes.
How is social media changing news?
It's making for challenging times -- allowing for spread of truly "fake news," conspiracy theories & just plain dumb stuff.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Everything. Only journalists are keeping this world a tad sane at this moment.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
By email with data to back up trends and sources willing to talk--all to make my life easier.
What's your favorite social network?
Facebook
Who do you wish followed you?
Rachael Maddow
Why did you become a journalist?
What else are you going to do with an English degree? I love to write, ask questions, find answers, and make a difference in people's lives.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
Proud Executive Editor of the Kentucky Kernel, independent student paper for the University of Kentucky.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
This year, a profile of Morris Arboretum's retiring executive director that got me on the front page of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Think twice about this choice of profession -- and if you still want to pursue it, then it's a calling and go all out.
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
Let me get back to you on that.
What's your favorite drink?
Cosmopolitan
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
In a coffee shop writing/editing/tweaking my first novel. Or in the gym trying to shed those last pounds.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
Washington Post
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That lifestyle stories are less worthy than investigative or political journalism.
