What was your first job as a journalist?
I was and still am a publicist. I started writing about the visual arts (and food + wine) five years ago.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes!
How is social media changing news?
The level of concentration has gone down and people are reading sources that support their own opinions.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Albert Camus
What does it mean to be a journalist?
To advocate for the profession and promote reading and the search for knowledge, much more in depth than what we find on social media.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
(that's not news-related, but I enjoy following it!)
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
By email, but if someone wants to talk to me and I can make the time, I like pitches over a cappuccino1
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
Social Media and Internet
What's your favorite social network?
Instagram.
Who do you wish followed you?
Eric Asimov.
Why did you become a journalist?
To express myself and find a way to communicate with a larger audience.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
I wrote about apartheid when Nelson Mandela was still in jail.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
Right now, I am enjoying my own personal blog that documents my journey through studying for the SWE Certified Specialist of Wine study.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Get lost in thought and investigation. The final product will arrive and on time!
When's the best time to pitch you?
Morning.
What's the best pitch you ever got?
The private Pharrell Williams concert during Art Basel.
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
Pitches for things I don't write about, like fashion.
What's your favorite drink?
Wine!
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Bird watching.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
National Geographic.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
For wine: That I drink all of the time!
