What Journalism School Skill is Most Useful in a Reporting Career - Yoav Gonen

Yoav Gonen returns to Capture Your Flag to build upon his 2009 interview with a 2010 conversation with host Erik Michielsen. In Chapter 7 of 17, New York Post newspaper education reporter Yoav Gonen shares the most useful skill learned in Journalism School. He highlights persistence, as he commonly faces challenges getting someone to respond and participate in a story. Gonen prefers to confront a potential source in person. He finds 9 times out of 10 the person contributes. It is not always easy. Gonen shares that he often will have to find out where the person will be after hours, for example at a dinner benefit, and then track them down for a quote. Gonen earned his BA in English from the University of Michigan and his Masters in Journalism from New York University.

How to Handle the Hardest Conversation in Journalism - Yoav Gonen

Yoav Gonen returns to Capture Your Flag to build upon his 2009 interview with a 2010 conversation with host Erik Michielsen. In Chapter 6 of 17, Gonen, a New York Post education reporter, shares why interviewing a parent who has lost a child is the most difficult conversation in journalism. As a general assignment reporter, Gonen was tasked with knocking on doors of families who lost a loved one. He finds himself sympathetic to families and has found warm reception from families who want to talk about their lost loved one. The most difficult door knock Gonen faced involved going to a family whose son murdered his girlfriend and then committed suicide. Gonen diffuses an initial hostile confrontration and discusses why the story should be written. Gonen earned his BA in English from the University of Michigan and his Masters in Journalism from New York University.

How Journalist Respects Sources Portrayed Negatively in Story - Yoav Gonen

Yoav Gonen returns to Capture Your Flag to build upon his 2009 interview with a 2010 conversation with host Erik Michielsen. In Chapter 5 of 17, Gonen, a New York Post education reporter, shares his approach to dealing with sources that will be portrayed negatively in a story. Gonen notes negative information will be made public and offers sources a chance to say something. He highlights that there are two sides to every story and that, in general, sources normally offer their point of view on what is being reported. Gonen earned his BA in English from the University of Michigan and his Masters in Journalism from New York University.

How Journalist Maintains Credibility When Interviewing Sources - Yoav Gonen

Yoav Gonen returns to Capture Your Flag to build upon his 2009 interview with a 2010 conversation with host Erik Michielsen. In Chapter 4 of 17, Gonen, a New York Post education reporter, shares how he maintains credibilty in his reporting role. He tries to be as open and forthcoming as possible when gathering information and interviewing sources. He finds there is an art to sharing information, however, to get a complete response from a source. Gonen earned his BA in English from the University of Michigan and his Masters in Journalism from New York University.

How Reporter Balances Ethics With Incomplete Information Constraints - Yoav Gonen

Yoav Gonen returns to Capture Your Flag to build upon his 2009 interview with a 2010 conversation with host Erik Michielsen. In Chapter 3 of 17, Gonen, a New York Post education reporter, shares one of the great challenges in journalism, handling incomplete information. Gonen notes it is rare to have complete information, so going to press with a story requires sound judgment that balances need for ethical reporting with need to participate in a competitive news marketplace. He shares one challenge, a high school principal accused of having a drinking problem, and how he went through the decision to research, write and publish the story.

Yoav Gonen earned his BA in English from the University of Michigan and his Masters in Journalism from New York University.

Transcription: 

Erik Michielsen:  As a newspaper reporter, how do you maintain an ethical approach when you may not necessarily have complete information in developing a story?

Yoav Gonen:  Often times, that presents a big problem because there are times when you might be getting conflicting information from different sources, and you can sometimes have an article saying, well this person said this and this person said that.  Sometimes what they say is… might be negative toward someone, and you want to be careful just putting stuff out there because somebody said it.  The constraint you have is that your competitors are probably out there working on the same story and they might be getting stronger information or different information.  There was recently a principal who was removed from a school and there were rumors going around that it had to do… it had something to do that he had a drinking problem.  So, I was hearing this at various levels and at some point it came from reliable enough sources that I felt comfortable putting it in there, but the truth is you can’t know for a100% - I mean these are accusations. 

So, you do hesitate to put this information out there because everyone that picks up a paper is going to read about this guy and read that people are accusing him of having a drinking problem and that is a big deal. You want to cross your T’s and dot your I’s as much as you can.  You reach out to as many people, you make sure you turn over every stone and then at the end of the day you have to decide, “Okay, I’m I comfortable enough with the people that have told me this that I believe them or am I not?”  And then you just got to make the decision.

Why Journalist Embraces the Emotional Intensity of Reporting - Yoav Gonen

Yoav Gonen returns to Capture Your Flag to build upon his 2009 interview with a 2010 conversation with host Erik Michielsen. In Chapter 2 of 17, Gonen, a New York Post education reporter, shares why he finds the emotional intensity interviewing people for news stories so appealing. Gonen, who did not grow up in an emotionally intense family, is drawn to the emotional range - the highs, the lows, in his reporting role at the New York Post newspaper, where he covers education across New York City. Gonen earned his BA in English from the University of Michigan and his Masters in Journalism from New York University.

How Muslim High School Girl Inspires Education Reporter - Yoav Gonen

Yoav Gonen returns to Capture Your Flag to build upon his 2009 interview with a 2010 conversation with host Erik Michielsen. In Chapter 1 of 17, Gonen, a New York Post education reporter, shares why the human element in his reporting makes his job so fulfilling. Gonen regularly meets people in extraordinary circumstance and gets to tell their stories. In one instance, a young Bangladesh-born Muslim girl living in New York overcomes family and cultural obstacles to study her passion, biology, while in high school. Gonen details his experience discovering, researching, and writing the story that ultimately ended with the Muslim girl receiving a scholarship to study at Cornell University. Gonen is a University of Michigan graduate and also earned his Masters in Journalism from New York University.

Why British Stationers and Tailors Inspire Product Design - Richard Moross

In Chapter 2 of 17, entrepreneur and Moo.com founder Richard Moross finds inspiration in fine crafted goods. Certain trades, including bespoke tailors and custom English stationers, are dying, being replaced by cheaper, mass produced product. This is a tragedy, notes Moross, as the fine attention to detail and personalization provide a personal consumer connection that raises confidence. The classic made to order craftsmanship inspires Moross in his own endeavor at printing company Moo.

How to Create Transformational Consumer Experiences - Richard Moross

In Chapter 3 of 17, entrepreneur, innovator and Moo.com founder Richard Moross shares what he learned working and world renown design agency and experience consultancy Imagination. Today, Imagination is the largest independent design agency in the world. Here, Moross learns firsthand what authors Pine and Gilmore termed "The Experience Economy". Moross learns premium pricing comes from experience integration. At his company Moo (www.moo.com), he integrates this experience element in nearly every consumer interaction, pushing the relationship into what Pine and Gilmore term a "transformational business" in line with Maslow's Self Actualization stage in the hierarchy of needs.

How Details Enable Sustainable Design Differentiation - Richard Moross

In Chapter 4 of 17, entrepreneur, innovator and Moo.com founder Richard Moross provides background into why increasing consumer intelligence, via research and education, makes details as important as ever in product and experience design. Moross aspires to create differentiated produce in an increasingly homogenized world in what he does at his company, Moo (www.moo.com). From ordering to fulfillment to messaging, Moross always looks for new ways to stand out in what he creates and how it is shared.

What Tiffany and Apple Teach About Brand Storytelling - Richard Moross

In Chapter 5 of 17, entrepreneur, innovator and Moo.com founder Richard Moross uses Seth Godin's phrase "Be Remarkable" to unify his company, Moo (www.moo.com) around a common goal. Moross references Tiffany and Apple as inspirations behind why innovative product packaging creates winning consumer experiences and lasting brand stories. Moross frames this approach as shipping product that takes into account sympathy for the surrounding box.

How Manufacturer Institutes Green Business Practices - Richard Moross

In Chapter 6 of 17, manufacturing company founder and CEO Richard Moross shares the ongoing rollout of green business practices for his printing company Moo (www.moo.com). Moross and his team constantly seek ways to innovate printing technologies, materials, and packaging to create more environment-friendly product.

How Austin, Texas Turned Residents into 750,000 Publicists - Matt Curtis

In Chapter 10 of 17, public affairs and communications strategist Matt Curtis showcases Austin, Texas' secret marketing weapon: its residents. Curtis describes Austin as a city of 750,000 publicists who vigorously and happily promote their town when traveling outside it. Curtis, chief of staff for mayor Lee Leffingwell, notes that the civic pride not only unites Austin's people, but it also increases city tourism income to help the city grow.

How Political Public Affairs Career Stays Creative and Fun - Matt Curtis

In Chapter 4 of 17, public affairs and communications strategist Matt Curtis shares how to keep local politics publicity and promotion fun and exciting. Curtis came into political public relations after starting his career in film publicity. Curtis defines publicity as an extreme on the public relations and strategic communications spectrum, opposite from reactive public information officer responsibilities. Curtis embraces the publicity element in local Austin, Texas politics, balancing serious efforts such as Hurricane Katrina disaster relief with light-hearted campaigns such as "Polar Bear" swimming days for the community and press.

What Motivates an Author to Write - Nina Godiwalla

In Chapter 1 of 14, "Suits: A Woman on Wall Street" author Nina Godiwalla shares why she writes. Daily interactions with inspiring individuals motivates Godiwalla to reflect, learn, and embrace the creative medium. Godiwalla embraces shared experiences and the associated inspiration Godiwalla and, it is hoped, her readers encounter.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: Why do you write?

Nina Godiwall: I want to constantly be growing as a person and for writing I think it’s an opportunity to actually stop and reflect on what goes on because I think we can just live our life and never reflect and never learn from it and for me writing is that opportunity to stop and think and learn.

What I hope and I do this, this is what I like to do through writing, is I’m constantly interacting with people, I definitely have a world that I create where I am with people that I find inspiring and I hope to inspire other people, through writing I think of it as sharing an experience and letting people create that experience, take in that experience and create for themselves what they need to and for me that is my way of sharing and kind of reciprocating. And with writing I think it’s interesting because you have that opportunity not just to see the people that you meet in person in your life but you have that opportunity to affect people that you may never know, you may never see them.

How Meditation Improves Memoir Writing - Nina Godiwalla

In Chapter 13 of 14 in her 2010 Capture Your Flag interview, author Nina Godiwalla answers "How has meditating helped you be more self-aware and introspective in your writing?" Godiwalla notes how meditation has helped her be more present in every moment, choose where to put her attention, and apply this process in her memoir writing.  Her book "Suits: a Woman on Wall Street" covers some buried and even dark experiences.  The meditation helps Godiwalla get depth in understanding what happened and putting it down on paper.  As a result, she is able to take the reader to a different level in the storytelling experience. Nina Godiwalla is the author of "Suits: A Woman on Wall Street" and the founder and CEO of Mindworks, a provider of leadership, stress management, and diversity training programs. Before starting her business and writing her book, Godiwalla worked in corporate development at Johnson & Johnson and Oxygen Media and investment banking at Morgan Stanley. Godiwalla earned an MBA from Wharton, a MA from Dartmouth and a BBA from the University of Texas.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: How has meditating helped you be more self aware and introspective in your writing?

Nina Godiwalla: For me meditation is a general term and it is for a lot of people as well, of being present in every moment so while we’re speaking actually really listening to what you’re saying and not having my mind think about ‘Oh wow, I’m really nervous, does this make sense? It’s a lifestyle in that I can choose where I’m putting my attention, meditation is choosing where you put your attention at every single moment of your life.

So in terms of being able to take that self awareness and understand and quietly be with myself and be comfortable, it’s completely affected my writing specifically the book I’ve written because it’s a memoir and it’s about my life. One of the things is I think we go through experiences and if they don’t work the way we want them to work we kind of can bury them someplace else. And to be honest some of the stuff I wrote about were definitely things that I buried, I didn’t want to go back, I didn’t want to think about them and meditation allows me -- gives me the safety and comfort with myself to go back and visit those experiences and not just visit them but try and understand why I put myself in that situation, why that happened and get that depth and in all honesty when you’re writing you want to take people to that different level, you don’t want to – it doesn’t need to just be ‘Hey this is what happened’ its kind of like, ‘I’m trying to understand what happened’ and when you’re meditating you’re actually getting comfortable enough with yourself to where you’re not denying things, you’re not -- you’re saying ‘I accept the way I acted, I accept what happened and let me take it to a different level’ and I think that way you’re able to take the reader to a different level.

How a Pulitzer Photographer Chat Redirected Career - Andrew Hutson

In Chapter 4 of 16, environmental management expert Andrew Hutson meets Washington Post Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Michael Williamson flying from Washington D.C. to Chicago. Hutson, then a business process consultant, finds inspiration in Williamson's project riding horses with Mexican mounted police doing drug control. That night Hutson invests time identifying and pursuing a purpose more aligned with his passions and interests. He goes on to earn a Public Policy PhD from University of North Carolina, join the Environmental Defense Fund, and help Wal-Mart to make its global supply chain more environmentally sustainable.

How Harper's Bazaar Piqued Fashion and Magazine Career - Lulu Chen

In Chapter 2 of 13, fashion stylist Lulu Chen discusses early fashion and publishing inspirations that have informed her career. At 12 years old, Chen begins reading Harper's Bazaar (http://www.harpersbazaar.com/) and connects with the visions, fantasy, and fashion the magazines present. Chen sees fashion as wearable art and something that allows someone to play a character one day.