Mark Johanson
Verified
(He/Him)
As seen in:
Bottom Line,
CNN,
CNN en Español,
CNN International,
CNN Travel,
MSN,
MSN Canada,
MSN Money Canada,
Revista Época,
UOL
and
Covers:
travel, sustainability, design, adventure, environment, world heritage, airports, arts, culture, ecotourism, outdoors, work-life balance, latin america, south america, emerging destinations
Author of Mars on Earth (Oct ‘24) | Freelancer @NatGeoTravel @TravelLeisure @FoodandWine @LonelyPlanet covering travel, food, design & nature in Latam & beyond
Interview
What was your first job as a journalist?
A script analyst for the development dept. of Magnolia Pictures... does that count? Otherwise, self-eployed blogger!
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes. In a school play.
How is social media changing news?
It's making it much faster, and placing journalists on a treadmill (for better or worse).
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Hmm... I'm more of a nonfiction guy: Paul Theroux, Pico Iyer, Bruce Chatwin, to name a few.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
We're the town crier.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
I'm partial to all the non news-related #hashtags that teenagers come up with these days. It's unappreciated creativity.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Email.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
Brain. Pen. Moleskin notepad. Mac. iPhone. Camera that's too fancy for my patience.
What's your favorite social network?
RIght now, my favorite social network is Instagram -- it's like a postcard for the digital generation (follow me @MarkOnTheMap)!
Who do you wish followed you?
Travelers (armchair or otherwise).
Why did you become a journalist?
One day I sat down and asked myself what my favorite thing in the world was. Turns out, it was the world. So I found a way to explore it.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
In high school, there were the newspaper people and the yearbook people. I was one of the silly yearbook people.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
I did a story on the north of Sri Lanka four years after the civil war. It got a lot of backlash, but I think I started a conversation!
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Write every day. Start a blog. If you want to be a travel writer, get out there and start traveling. It's the only way.
When's the best time to pitch you?
Really, it doesn't matter. Unless you live Down Under, we are already on different schedules.
Would you like to take the Muck Rack Interview?
Create a Muck Rack profile.