Stephen M. Silverman
New York
As seen in:
IMDb,
MSN Canada,
Yahoo Entertainment,
The Wall Street Journal,
Yahoo Canada,
Yahoo News,
Yahoo News New Zealand,
New York Post,
Chicago Tribune,
People
and
Covers:
Travel, culture, amusement parks
Doesn't Cover:
Cosmetics, fashion, celebrity-endorsed products
Author of 13 books, including the latest, THE AMUSEMENT PARK
Interview
What was your first job as a journalist?
Editor-in-chief of Coast magazine, a general-interest regional monthly based in Los Angeles
Have you ever used a typewriter?
In journalism school at Columbia and then at the New York Post, until around 1982
How is social media changing news?
It's delivering our bulletins
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
Either Hildy Johnson or Walter Burns in "His Girl Friday"
What does it mean to be a journalist?
Truth, justice, and the American way
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
Email
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
Still use pen and notebook for interviews and travel pieces; otherwise, laptop (Word)
What's your favorite social network?
Partial to Instagram, though I do comb Facebook, against my better judgment
Who do you wish followed you?
Book readers
Why did you become a journalist?
Writing is all I've ever done; I've also had the good fortune to be in the right place at the right time
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
Editor-in-chief and humor columnist
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
An interview with the great film director David Lean, which, over time, and subsequent interviews, evolved into my writing his biography.
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Be persistent
When's the best time to pitch you?
Anytime, though I'm likely to read the email first thing in the morning.
What's the best pitch you ever got?
The one that led to a safari in Kenya
What's the worst pitch you ever got?
A cosmetics pitch -- I don't cover cosmetics
What's your favorite drink?
Vodka in summer; Scotch in winter; Champagne anytime
When you're not at a computer, where are you most likely to be?
JFK Airport
Aside from your own, what's your favorite publication to read?
The New Yorker
What's the most common misperception about your beat?
That it's fluff.
Would you like to take the Muck Rack Interview?
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