June 14th, 2017 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Angelo Lopez
Angelo Lopez came to California in 1974 and hasn’t left. It wasn’t a gold rush that brought him, but he did live the somewhat nomadic lifestyle of a prospector moving from place to place as a self-described “Navy brat.” Born in Norfolk, Virginia, to Filipino parents, he spent his youth on military bases on the U.S.
April 13th, 2017 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Washington Post Columnist Margaret Sullivan
It’s a cliché in journalism to find people who say they always knew what they wanted to be. Margaret Sullivan doesn’t exactly say that, but she admits that she only remembers having one serious idea of what she wanted to be.
February 22nd, 2017 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Tara Gatewood
Nothing in Tara Gatewood’s career went according to plan. If it had, she says, she would be a photographer somewhere doing “amazing shoots.” Her interest in journalism — and course of study — started with photography at Montgomery College in Maryland, having moved from her home in the Isleta Pueblo tribal community in New Mexico.
February 18th, 2016 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Chris Geidner
Chris Geidner makes a very convincing lawyer, even though his full-time job has him covering law instead of practicing it. He’s eloquent in his delivery, articulate, makes a point well and argues for it. And he’ll answer your questions more than thoroughly.
December 16th, 2015 • Quill Archives
Remembering Austin Kiplinger
Austin Kiplinger, a journalist and philanthropist whose family name is synonymous with contributions to journalism and business/finance reporting, died Nov. 20 at age 97. He joined SPJ – then Sigma Delta Chi – as a journalism student at Cornell University in 1936, remaining active since that time.
December 16th, 2015 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Marc Maron
Marc Maron doesn’t fit the mold of what most people associate with a “journalist.” He has never worked in a newsroom. He won’t go out on assignment. He most likely doesn’t know, or care, whether it’s spelled “lead” or “lede.” Even so, his contributions to the journalism landscape are undeniable.
April 6th, 2015 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Jose Antonio Vargas
Jose Antonio Vargas is a busy guy. Look at his Twitter bio and you’ll see that, along with all the accounts representing different projects in which he’s involved. He’s also hard to pin down for a phone or even email interview.
February 4th, 2015 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Mike Pesca
Growing up on Long Island, Mike Pesca was an admitted lover of radio. And by his own admission, journalism was “OK. Making up stories seemed fun,” he said. He honed those storytelling and journalism skills at Emory University in Atlanta and eventually made his way back to New York, working for public radio station WNYC and the Leonard Lopate show.
December 9th, 2014 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Melody Joy Kramer
Note: This interview had been condensed for clarity and length. It’s fair to say Melody Joy Kramer’s path to her current job leading digital and social media at NPR was round-about. Or, as she says, “serendipitous.” After all, the ingredients came from applying for a prestigious program, the Kroc Fellowship, which trains people, often not from journalism school backgrounds, to work in public radio.
December 9th, 2014 • Quill Archives
Intro: New Year, New You
As 2015 approaches, ask yourself: What have I been putting off? Learning a new skill? Getting that side project rolling? Or, more personally, starting a family and having kids? The list goes on and on. Maybe it’s that book you’ve been meaning to write.
September 3rd, 2014 • Quill Archives
Codifying A New Code of Ethics
It’s finally here. After over a year of listening, gathering input, releasing drafts, doing re-writes and addressing concerns, the newly revised Code of Ethics is ready for prime time. But the show isn’t over yet. Just like in show business, it’s not over until the proverbial fat lady sings.
September 3rd, 2014 • Quill Archives
Seriously, It’s Time to Get Serious About The Serial Comma (And Other Style Gripes)
Two spaces after a period. Always. Apostrophe after possessive words ending in “s,” not just plural possessives (e.g. Angus’ watch). State abbreviations according to AP Style, not postal codes. Why do we follow these conventions? For those who use the AP Stylebook, it’s a given that we’re bound by what the Stylebook editors – and newsrooms’ individual style – dictate.
September 3rd, 2014 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Kara Swisher
Kara Swisher may very well have been spying on your emails (or those of foreign leaders) had she followed her first path. As an undergraduate at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, she was on track to being a spy or diplomat.
June 20th, 2014 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with John Tlumacki
It’s hard to think of anyone more “Boston” than John Tlumacki, though he doesn’t have an impossibly thick accent or use the stereotypical “wicked” modifier. Growing up 20 miles north of the city, he attended Boston University to pursue journalism. He got his start in the field as his high school’s yearbook photographer, and even had a stint as a campaign photographer for U.S.
April 9th, 2014 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Liz Wahl
The tagline for this feature is “Quill asks 10 questions to people with some of the coolest jobs in journalism.” But Liz Wahl is on our radar, and the world’s, for the job she doesn’t have. You might not recognize her name off hand, but you probably know the headline: “Anchor resigns on-air to protest coverage of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”
February 13th, 2014 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with David Folkenflik
Like so many career stories, David Folkenflik’s began with not intentionally majoring in what he ended up doing for the rest of his life. Growing up in Laguna Beach, Calif., the son of two university professors, he attended Cornell University. He studied history and thought he’d get into some kind of public service or public policy.
December 20th, 2013 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Samantha Grant
Jayson Blair. It’s a name that evokes two immediate responses: lies and The New York Times. More than 10 years after the biggest ethics debacle in journalism’s modern day, Samantha Grant is trying to show that there’s much more to the story.
June 6th, 2013 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Todd Melby
Growing up in the small, western North Dakota town of Hettinger, Todd Melby didn’t know his upbringing would prepare him for one of the biggest professional projects of his life. Granted, it took him a few decades to realize that, but with age comes wisdom.
April 11th, 2013 • Quill Archives
What’s Your Personal Code of Ethics?
SPJ’s Code of Ethics is among the most cited codes for journalism professionals, but there are certainly more from other organizations and news outlets. These codes are mostly starting points to guide ethical decision-making. Often the gray areas of journalism ethics require your own additional thought process.
April 11th, 2013 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Erin Polgreen
At 30 years old, Erin Polgreen is among many noteworthy entrepreneurs in the journalism landscape who are striking out on their own. She also really enjoys a good bourbon and will talk in depth about the merits of top-shelf brands, and the drawbacks of mid-level brands that really aren’t that good but get consumers to think they are.
February 8th, 2013 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Shane Snow
Shane Snow might not be a typical New Yorker — in that he’s from Idaho and spent time after college at BYU-Idaho “finding himself” in Hawaii. Though he had a knack for technology and Web design, his deeper interest was in writing.
December 6th, 2012 • Quill Archives
Questioning the J-School Choice
“It’s 2012 and I’m in journalism school. Am I an idiot?” Call it a shot across the bow. Call it an angst-ridden plea for help. Call it obvious. Whatever you want to call that question Reddit user “Sound_Sop” asked of Ira Glass, it’s the basis for a very worthwhile discussion on the state of the industry and the value of the venerable journalism degree.
August 7th, 2012 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Sally Jenkins
Some journalists write. Some journalists report. Some journalists are columnists. All three describe Sally Jenkins, but just in the most basic way. Jenkins, currently with The Washington Post, is more than a sports reporter and columnist. She’s a vivid and gifted storyteller, one whose work has rightly won industry accolades, including a 2011 Sigma Delta Chi Award for sports columns.
April 5th, 2012 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Jim Asendio
More than four decades into a journalism career that has spanned both U.S. coasts, Jim Asendio isn’t going to the newsroom on a daily basis for the first time in a long time. But it’s not because he’s retired – though he did leave his last job over a conscious choice of his own.
February 7th, 2012 • Quill Archives
Quill at 100
The first thing you’ll notice about this 100-year issue of the “magazine for journalists” is a rather muted tone. Rather than filling the pages with remembrances of how great people think Quill is, we thought it best to stick to the mission: giving journalists educational resources to help them do their jobs better.
December 2nd, 2011 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Eric Deggans
In another world, you may have heard of Eric Deggans the rock star. But life presents choices, and we chose certain paths that lead to different ends. Deggans’ path to becoming a TV and media critic for the St. Petersburg Times (which officially becomes the Tampa Bay Times in 2012) was full of choices.
August 4th, 2011 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Stephanie McMillan
To call Stephanie McMillan a cartoonist is like calling Paul McCartney a musician. It’s accurate in all meanings of the word. But leaving it at just cartoonist (even adding “editorial” as a descriptor) comes up short. She might rightly be described as a social activist and agitator, one whose pointed commentary and analysis are conveyed most visibly through pictures and their associated dialogue bubbles.
June 1st, 2011 • Quill Archives
Ten – with Andre Malok and Amy Ellis Nutt
Collaboration is all the rage in journalism. In many conversations that means inter-outlet collaboration, such as between a newspaper and non-profit online investigative outlet. For Amy Ellis Nutt and Andre Malok, their intra-newsroom collaboration shows every sign of success. The New Jersey Star-Ledger pair — Amy a features writer and Andre a videographer/graphic artist — have teamed up for reporting projects that have grabbed major attention.
April 4th, 2011 • Quill Archives
Ten – with Fake AP Stylebook Founders
If you’re a journalist using Twitter, sources like The AP Stylebook (@APStylebook and hashtag #APStyle) are an indispensible resource in a fast-paced environment. And if you need a good laugh, a related, albeit satirical, source — @FakeAPStylebook — is almost as necessary.
February 2nd, 2011 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten – with Ken Rudin
Some kids obsess over a sports figure or the latest teen pop music sensation. Others spend their time outside or getting into mischief down by the creek on a lazy summer day. For Ken Rudin, NPR’s political editor and brain behind the popular Political Junkie column, his young days were spent at local (competing) campaign offices and collecting candidates’ buttons.
December 2nd, 2010 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Tracy Record
Before major media companies were investing in online local news ventures (such as AOL’s Patch), and even before many j-schools announced news-gathering partnerships to do the same, there were neighborhood blogs. Take, for example, Tracy Record and West Seattle Blog, which is known in the online journalism community as a particularly endearing success story.
August 3rd, 2010 • Quill Archives, Ten With...
Ten with Dan Christensen
It’s said that “desperate times call for desperate measures.” There are few desperate times more urgent than the loss of one’s job and the immediacy of the grim financial and psychological outlook that carries. But when investigative reporter Dan Christensen was laid off in 2009, he didn’t act out of desperation.
