Simon Austin
As seen in:
Training Ground Guru,
The New York Times,
BBC,
Daily Mail,
The Sun,
The Telegraph,
Yahoo News UK
Covers:
features, liverpool, football, tennis, rugby union, leeds united, tottenham, sports news
Proud dad to 2 girls... and @ground_guru
Interview
What was your first job as a journalist?
Trainee reporter, Banbury Guardian
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes. Grateful for tippex.
How is social media changing news?
Journos still need good principles - source a story/ verify/ don't rely on Twitter gossip
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Drop the dead donkey crew
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Privileged position - you can find out new things/ uncover truths/ hold people to account/ change people's lives
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
iPad, iPhone, dictaphone, twitter, pen and paper
What's your favorite social network?
Twitter
Who do you wish followed you?
John Updike (unlikely now)
Why did you become a journalist?
Loved writing and naturally nosey/ a gossip
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
We didn't have one
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
Recently: interview with Scott Mercier, unknown hero of the Lance Armstrong scandal. Had to give up the sport he loved because he was clean.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Give readers insight, telling them something they didn't know. That requires graft/ talking to people in the know/ developing contacts.
When's the best time to pitch you?
Any time
Would you like to take the Muck Rack Interview?
Create a Muck Rack profile.