What was your first job as a journalist?
Managing editor and sole writer for a newspaper I created when I was five years old. It had a small audience and a very limited run.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
I honed my typing skills on my mother's non-electric Remington as a child. I'm sure my fingers have the stress fractures to prove it.
How is social media changing news?
It amplifies stories in unprecedented ways, but not always for the best.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Clark Kent!
What does it mean to be a journalist?
To tell stories that inform, entertain, inspire, and challenge readers.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
It's hard to remember most of them, but the meme response to the reveal of Ben Affleck's Batman will always make me chuckle.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
I'm still figuring that out - but an email brief usually works for me.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
journals and academic databases, digital archives, Microsoft Word, Adobe Suite, Canva
What's your favorite social network?
Instagram.
Who do you wish followed you?
Alan Moore
Why did you become a journalist?
I prefer to think of myself as a writer who occasionally masquerades as a journalist. I really love the journey of writing and research.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
No - we didn't have one.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
I wrote a piece on adaptation theory as a grad student that has been widely cited in articles, blogs, essays, and even course materials.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Do your homework, follow the evidence, and be true to it.
When's the best time to pitch you?
Overnight, US time.
What's the best pitch you ever got?
A non-journalism piece - researching the impact of Sputnik's launch on federal education policy in the United States. It was fascinating!
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
No comment. (NDA signed)
What's your favorite drink?
My morning coffee.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
If I'm not traveling, then you'll find me at the library (I'm at my happiest in the Special Collections Archives), or in a virtual world.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
New Scientist, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, the Chronicle of Higher Education, or the Hathitrust archive.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
Not Applicable.
