What was your first job as a journalist?
Associate editor at BasicPro Magazine, a magazine about the BASIC programming language.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Oh yes and the best class I ever took in college was typing. A skill I'm using to fill out these answers.
How is social media changing news?
Social media makes news more outrageous.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Mark Twain.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
You get to give a voice to people who don't have a voice.
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Facebook Messenger. Because then I can treat you like a human being.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
I'm one of the top social media users in the world, so start with TweetDeck. Use almost everything Google makes, from Assistant, to Docs.
What's your favorite social network?
Facebook. Because, well, how can 2 billion people be wrong?
Who do you wish followed you?
The youngster who is starting to build a new company that's about to change the world.
Why did you become a journalist?
Because I fell in love with new things and wanted to share those with the world (my dad was an engineer and I grew up in Silicon Valley).
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
We didn't have a high school newspaper, but I took photography and spent many an hour in the darkroom there.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
Explaining Siri to the world.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Don't get naked on the Internet. I've done it four times, great for traffic, but it might not be the traffic you want.
When's the best time to pitch you?
Whenever you see I'm online on Facebook Messenger.
What's the best pitch you ever got?
"Want to race?" Elon Musk as he gave me the first ride in the first Tesla.
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
I got a pitch in a bathroom once. That didn't go well.
What's your favorite drink?
Hint Water.
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
Playing with my kids and trying to get them off their iPads.
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
Techmeme. Because it generally brings me to the important tech news of the day. The Economist.
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That it's easy to get past the PR people to stories that really matter.
