What was your first job as a journalist?
Intern on the Detroit News police beat (the notorious 1300 Beubien precinct).
Have you ever used a typewriter?
In Iraq in 1991.
How is social media changing news?
It's giving voice to any asshole with an opinion .
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Frank Reznek from Permanent Deadline, a novel about Big Media by yours truly, Mark Fritz
What does it mean to be a journalist?
To truthfully and honestly bear witness.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Coherently
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
My five senses
What's your favorite social network?
Formerly Joe's
Who do you wish followed you?
Emily Blunt
Why did you become a journalist?
To find truth and bear witness.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
It was full up.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
The evolution of the modern feeding tube, a device at the center of endless end-of-life moral quandaries.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Don't lie.
When's the best time to pitch you?
Anytime
What's the best pitch you ever got?
Inside curve
What's your favorite drink?
Jim Beam straight up and a Bud back.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
On my motorcycle.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
The Guardian
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That it isn't based on pattern recognition.
