Muriel Zagha
As seen in:
MSN,
Yahoo Entertainment,
The Guardian,
The Telegraph,
Yahoo News UK,
Audioboom,
The Daily Telegraph,
AOL UK,
Les Inrockuptibles,
The Spectator
and
Covers:
All aspects of French culture and society. Cinema and the visual arts; literature; theatre.
BBC, TLS, Engelsberg Ideas, Spectator, Telegraph. Writer, broadcaster. ‘Scribe’ (Private Eye)
Interview
What was your first job as a journalist?
Editorial assistant on the lifestyle section of The Sunday Telegraph Magazine
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes.
How is social media changing news?
Social media tends to create an echo chamber. The more diverse the sources of information, the better.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Madeleine Forestier in Guy de Maupassant's novel Bel-Ami
What does it mean to be a journalist?
It means a state of open-mindedness: I want to hear new stories without prejudice.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
≠parklife
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
By email, though some of the best ideas come out of casual conversations.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
I am a Mac person.
What's your favorite social network?
A free and open society.
Who do you wish followed you?
Marcel Proust.
Why did you become a journalist?
I love the variety of the work and the people you meet.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
We did not have one, sadly.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
A review of Bertrand Tavernier's wonderful history of French cinema, a work which illuminates the core of French culture.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Persistence is essential. If they show you the door, come back through the window.
When's the best time to pitch you?
In the morning.
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
Somebody wanted me to write about paper weights being the next big thing.
What's your favorite drink?
Old Fashioneds made with cognac.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Reading.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
Le Canard Enchaîné.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That it's easy to write funny things.
Would you like to take the Muck Rack Interview?
Create a Muck Rack profile.