Coffee With A Journalist

Today we sit down with Victoria Song, a Consumer Tech Reporter for Gizmodo. Victoria covers the news, product reviews, and in-depth features surrounding consumer tech products. Before joining Gizmodo, she was the Wearables and Smart Home Editor at PC Magazine. During the episode today, Victoria talks about the madness surrounding CES, how she organizes her sources in her inbox, how she approaches reviewing consumer products, her simple rule for email follow-ups, and more.

This week we’re joined by Terry Stanley, a Senior Editor for Adweek. In her role, Terry covers consumer trends, cannabis marketing, meat alternatives, pop culture, challenger brands and creativity. Prior to Adweek, Terry was a freelance writer for the LA Times, Mashable, and Brandweek. She has also appeared on The Today Show, CNBC, VH1, Fox News and other media outlets to talk about advertising, product placement and entertainment merchandise. During the episode today, Terry talks about one of her biggest pitching pet peeves, how she is constantly communicating with sources, her favorite afternoon beverage, and lots more.

This week we’re joined by Jacob Bell, a senior reporter for BioPharma Dive. In his role, Jacob covers the FDA, big pharma, and drugmakers. He has held positions at Industry Dive including reporter and associate editor and has reported for other notable outlets including The Deal, TheStreet, and McClatchy. On the episode, Jacob tells us about pitches that grab his attention and ones that completely miss the mark, his preference for sources using bullets, his hopefulness for the future of journalism, and more.

Today on Coffee with a Journalist, we’re chatting with Jane Thier, an associate editor for CFO Dive. Jane covers the news surrounding financial executives from major companies to politics and universities. She previously worked for Sauce Magazine, SmartAsset, and Thunderfoot as an editorial intern. During the episode, Jane tells us more about the various publications underneath Industry Dive, how often she is producing stories and what she includes in them, what she values in a pitch, and more.

Today on the show, we’re joined by Brena Nath, a managing editor for HousingWire Plus. In her role, Brena breaks down the daily news cycle for insights and analysis around the housing industry. Her coverage aims to connect, build relationships, and spotlight top industry voices. Brena has worked on both sides of the aisle throughout her career not only as a reporter and editor but also as a PR and community manager. During the episode, Brena talks more about HousingWire’s general coverage area and their move into the B2C space, the hundreds of pitches she receives per day, the importance of building connections with sources, and more.

On today’s episode, we’re joined by Simon Cohen, a contributing editor for Digital Trends’ Entertainment and Home Theater sections. Simon covers consumer technology including audio and video products. He has been a journalist for over 15 years and has written previously for VentureBeat and OZY. During the interview, Simon shares more about being a technology reviewer and the influx of products he receives, how he reads every email that lands in his inbox, his favorite Danish drama on Netflix, and more.

Today on Coffee with a Journalist, we’re joined by Erika Wheless, a Commerce Reporter for Digiday. Erika reports around content and commerce including stories about platform shopping experiences, eCommerce data privacy, and tech’s impact on eCommerce. During the episode, Erika tells us about her coffee upbringings, her fascination with social media platforms entering the e-commerce space, her proudest moments as a journalist, and more.

Today on Coffee with a Journalist, we’re joined by Steven Aquino, a freelance journalist, and contributor to Forbes, TechCrunch, and Macworld. Steven covers technology, accessibility, special education, and more. He’s been a journalist since 2013 and writes a weekly column at Forbes about accessibility and assistive technology as a part of their diversity and inclusion coverage. During the episode today, Steven tells us about his unique perspective when it comes to writing about accessibility, the shift in his inbox now that he writes at Forbes, his favorite quarantine activity, and more.

On today’s episode, Tomio Geron, a Senior Reporter for Protocol, joins us. Tomio writes about technology with a focus on fintech. He has an extensive journalistic background and has previously written for The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Dow Jones VentureWire, and Red Herring. Tomio starts by sharing more about Protocol’s focus as a news outlet, a pitch he received about an FDA-approved product, answers an audience question about the best way to approach him with a story, and more.

Today, we’re joined by Lydia Dishman, a regular contributor to Fast Company. Lydia writes about the intersection of tech, leadership, and innovation. Lydia has been an independent journalist since 2009 and previously wrote for SC Magazine, CBS Interactive, and USA Today. Lydia shares details about surveys and sample sizes, one of her recent pieces about the places to work at home, shares praise about her Fast Company co-workers, and much more.

Today, Emily Canal from Insider joins us on the podcast. Emily is a senior reporter at Insider covering entrepreneurship around small business and strategy. Prior to joining Insider, Emily was a reporter for Inc. Magazine and Forbes. On the episode, Emily dives right into the stories she’s covering and reporting on, subject lines that catch her attention, some of her recent favorite books, and so much more.

Today, Mar Masson Maack from The Next Web joins us. Mar is the Editor of Growth Quarters and Podium at The Next Web and joined the outlet in 2017. During today’s episode, Mar tells us more about the tie in between Growth Quarters and Podium and The Next Web, the percentage of pitches in his inbox, how he analyzes pitches and sources, and more.

Our guest on the show today is Heather Somerville, a technology reporter for The Wall Street Journal. Heather joined The Journal in 2019 and covers venture capital and finance. Heather started her career in 2007 with The Charlotte Observer and has previously reported on the tech industry for Reuters and the Bay Area News Group, including the San Jose Mercury News. Today, Heather shares more about her openness to Zoom “coffee meetings,” her passion for writing a particular type of story, her thoughts on embargoes, and more.

Today, Alejandro de la Garza, a Reporter for TIME Magazine, joins us on the podcast. Alejandro joined TIME in 2018 and he writes on science and tech - most recently surrounding the technological implementation of various tools and strategies to combat COVID-19. During the episode, Alejandro explains more about his unique title and how it relates to the magazine, why he appreciates follow-ups, what topics he’s sick of being pitched, and more.

Today we’re joined by David Carnoy, an Executive Editor for CNET. David joined CNET in April 2000 and covers gadgets, tech, and e-publishing. David started his career in 1989 as an editorial assistant and has held other positions including editorial director and senior editor.  On the episode today, David tells us more about how many gadgets he receives for review, what and when he prefers to hear about products, his career as a novelist, and more.

Today’s guest is Brit Morse, an assistant editor for Inc. Magazine. Brit joined Inc. in September 2017 and covers startups, entrepreneurship, and access to capital. Aside from writing, she is also a violinist and is learning how to play the guitar. During the episode, Brit tells us more about her recent conversations with employment lawyers, how she follows up with sources, her occasional interview with founders, and more.

Today on the show, Dom Nicastro, a senior reporter for CMSWire and Reworked, sits down for a sip of coffee. Dom joined Simpler Media Group in 2014 and covers digital customer experience technology and strategies for the digital workplace and employee experience. He is also currently a Saturday morning radio show host for the North Shore Sports Desk on 104.9. Previously, Dom was a managing editor and freelance healthcare editor. During today’s episode, Dom talks about his technology disconnect during the holidays, the new Reworked website and editor, why he wants to connect with people and not companies, and more. Let’s hear more from Dom now!

Bryan Walsh, Axios’s Future Correspondent, joins us on the show today. Bryan joined Axios in February 2020 and covers emerging technology and the trends shaping geopolitics, work, warfare, and more. Additionally, he writes the twice-weekly Axios Future newsletter. Bryan has been a reporter and writer since 2001 when he started at TIME Magazine, he helped launch OneZero on Medium, and is the author of “End Times: A Brief Guide to the End of the World” available on Amazon. Today, Bryan shares in detail about the types of stories he writes for Axios, his bi-weekly newsletter and how he weaves pitches and sources into them, his experience reporting at TIME which led him to write his book, and more.

Today, we’re joined by Sissi Cao, a Business and Tech Reporter for Observer. She joined the team in October of 2017 and covers major news and updates surrounding power players including Tesla, SpaceX, Toyota, Amazon, and Uber. She’s also worked for Trusted Insight as a Finance Editor and for Capital News Service as a Business Reporter and Web Designer. Sissi talks about one of the most interesting cold pitches she received on the show today, the Slack channel her team uses for PR pitches, the similarities between Silicon Valley and the journalism industry, and more.

We’re joined by Christine Hall from Crunchbase News on today’s episode. Christine has been a Contributing Writer for Crunchbase News since April of 2020 covering startups and venture capital with a focus on venture-backed companies, entrepreneurs, trend pieces, and funding announcements. She started her career as a reporter for The Houston Business Journal in 2002.  On the episode today, Christine tells us about her process for reading, responding, and forwarding emails to colleagues, how she’s adapted to remote work, her favorite kinds of novels, and more.