What was your first job as a journalist?
Still looking for that "first".
Have you ever used a typewriter?
I learned to use a typewriter in high school in 1970.
How is social media changing news?
Not sure social media is changing news as much as it's making news. The definition of "news" is migrating to views of the news that happens
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Not into fiction.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Researching an article makes me more rounded while writing an article feels like I am valuable to the market.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Great stories are about people, not things, what impact are you looking for, who will benefit and why would people be interested.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
The usual.
What's your favorite social network?
Linkedin
Who do you wish followed you?
Buffet, Gates, Jobs (his vision was inspiring).
Why did you become a journalist?
To fill the gap I was looking for in the market as a reader.
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?
The Taxing of Social Security.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Do your research, write background, write about what interest you, write from the reader's POV, and KEEP WRITING!
When's the best time to pitch you?
Any, lloyd@lloydlofton.com
What's the best pitch you ever got?
A manager told me a story of how I helped his team and ask if I could share more details in articles. I've been writing articles since then.
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
People ask to connect with me on Linkedin, I accept (I never IDK) and 15 seconds later I get a pitch for the "next big thing", not cool.
What's your favorite drink?
Peach tea.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Writing articles, playing my guitar, traveling with my wife.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
ThinkAdvisor, InsuranceNewsNet
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That there is a new way to sell. There are different ways to market now but the basic principles of selling, building relationships hasn't.
