Mike Mason
Verified
(He/Him)
As seen in:
WOIO-TV (Cleveland, OH),
LinkedIn,
Substack,
The Business Journals,
AZCentral | The Arizona Republic,
KNXV-TV (Phoenix, AZ),
WXIX-TV (Cincinnati, OH),
NewsBreak,
BetaKit,
KSHB-TV (Kansas City, MO),
WBRC-TV (Birmingham, AL)
and
Covers:
Crime, corruption, wrongdoing
Doesn't Cover:
Fluff
Award-winning Investigative Reporter in Cleveland. I like art, photography, writing & anything outdoors.
Interview
What was your first job as a journalist?
Writer at WSVN in Miami.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes
How is social media changing news?
It means we have to post everything on those sites to inform people.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Don’t have one
What does it mean to be a journalist?
To be a watchdog over government and public officials, to deliver the truth about where tax dollars are spent and holding the powerful acco.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Present the facts.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
NexisLexis, Pacer, Autotrack, old fashioned door knocking,
What's your favorite social network?
Facebook
Who do you wish followed you?
Madonna
Why did you become a journalist?
I like finding answers and questioning whether someone’s telling the truth.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
Nope, didn’t have one. But in college I became president of our campus TV station.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
In Tampa I warned the public an elevated expressway could collapse 5 months before it did. Another about EPA coverup of toxic water in NC
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Work hard at enterprising original stories that make a difference and don’t accept “no comment” for an answer.
When's the best time to pitch you?
9am
What's the best pitch you ever got?
The EPA covered up toxic drinking water
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
To do a story about a family reunion.
What's your favorite drink?
Monster
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
TV
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
All local newspapers
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
It’s easy.
Would you like to take the Muck Rack Interview?
Create a Muck Rack profile.