What was your first job as a journalist?
Covering high school sports for the local daily newspaper when I was still in high school.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes. And my first employer was still casting printing press plates in molten lead.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Hildy Johnson: fearless, clever, quick-witted and always cracking wise.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Keeping power in checj
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
By receiving a short, tight overview of what is new and why it matters, delivered by email.
Why did you become a journalist?
I grew up in the Watergate era, when journalism was a noble craft. I kept at it because I realized its importance to democracy.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
Yes, I worked for my high school newspaper, first as its sports editor and then as EIC.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
The terrible damage inflicted on Alaskan flora and fauna when the Exxon Valdez went aground in Prince William Sound.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
The craft is going through a rough spot as the industry tries to work out a new business model, but ignore those who say it is dying.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
The New Yorker, The Washington Post, Smithsonian magazine and Los Angeles Times, in that order.
