Stephen Shankland
(He/Him)
- Head of Content, Commonwealth Fusion Systems
California
As seen in:
LinkedIn,
Medium,
MSN,
MSN Canada,
MSN Money Canada,
BBC,
MSN Philippines,
CBS News,
CNET,
KPIX-TV (San Francisco, CA)
and
Covers:
science, digital photography, academic research, broadband, web browsers, html, javascript, android, processors, google, programming, technology, industry standards, wireless, USB
Head of Content at Commonwealth Fusion Systems, a company commercializing fusion energy: clean, safe, affordable, secure. Former sci-tech journalist.
Interview
What was your first job as a journalist?
Science writer for the Los Alamos Monitor.
Have you ever used a typewriter?
Yes -- the last time was a Smith-Corona electric typewriter I used to fill out my college entrance application.
How is social media changing news?
More gossip, less verification, a better ability to track interesting subjects, and a vastly richer supply of sources.
Who's your favorite fictional journalist?
None of them.
What does it mean to be a journalist?
It really is the first draft of history, only nowadays, it's more like the zeroth draft of history.
What's the funniest news-related #hashtag you've seen?
NA
How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?
E-mail.
What tools and software do you use to do your job?
Twitter, Google+, RSS, e-mail, Flickr, LinkedIn, CNET, Lightroom, Photoshop, Chromebook, MacBook Pro, Canon SLR.
What's your favorite social network?
Twitter
Who do you wish followed you?
Neil deGrasse Tyson
Why did you become a journalist?
I love to learn, and I love to teach.
Did you work for your high school newspaper? If so, what did you do there?
No.
What story are you most proud of writing or working on?
What advice can you offer to aspiring journalists?
Start your own blog and write, write, write. When taking notes during an interview, flag the hot quotes as they go by.
When's the best time to pitch you?
During the morning on Europe time.
Would you like to take the Muck Rack Interview?
Create a Muck Rack profile.