The Muck Rack Blog

Featured journalist: Christopher Wiggins

Today’s featured journalist is Christopher Wiggins, a journalist based in the D.C. Metro area. According to him, he’s “that guy who always has ‘just one more follow-up question,’ and knows what feels like everyone.”

Wiggins covers what feels like everything so here are the things you shouldn’t reach out to him about: business, cars, gossip, food, Wall Street, books, sports, and generally anything boring. His portfolio includes: “President Obama: Be Careful Not to Catch ‘Romnesia’ from Mitt” and “Election 2012: A Day With Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Adam Cook.”

There’s also a Washington DC Stonewall Award for Community All-Star that Wiggins got in 2012, which makes sense since he believes being a journalist means: “recognizing your duty - explain a story, in context with accuracy and integrity. Appreciating the access to history and people others don’t.” Impressive, right?

Do you want to be featured? Set up your own own journalist portfolio and then let us know through delia at muckrack dot com.

-dp

What’s the deal with @Seinfeld2000? An exclusive interview with its creator.

Last December, @SeinfeldToday started tweeting out addictingly relatable mini-“Seinfeld” plots revolving around modern day annoyances. Co-run by BuzzFeed’s Jack Moore, the account picked up more than 75,000 followers its first day, and after about a week it was in the hundreds of thousands. Stories about it popped up everywhere; it was the parody account of the moment.

An army of imitators followed, and among them was a clunky, typo-ridden faux-clone that had the same gimmick but was deeply dissonant: @Seinfeld2000.

Profane, nonsensical and often dark, the account viciously and hilariously lampooned @SeinfeldToday, attempting to poke holes in its formula while sending up the idea of parody accounts in general. It has an almost insurmountable barrier of entry, and it is often associated with that sect of Twitter users who must not be named. (In a fawning tribute, The Daily Dot called it “Weird Twitter’s parody about nothing.”) But whether the humor is your brand or not, its dedicated fans find it among the funniest parody accounts on Twitter.

The account has amassed more than 7,000 followers, done a Reddit AMA, made believers of Lena Dunham and Rob Delaney, written a few BuzzFeed posts, launched a YouTube channel, and just released a 17,000-word eBook called “The Apple Store.” I caught up @Seinfeld2000 and asked: What’s the deal with S2K?

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#muckedup Chat Tuesday: Spy Vs. Spy, Snooping On Journalists

News of the Department of Justice eavesdropping on Associated Press journalists rocked the media world this week. The government monitored reporters and editors’ home and work phone lines for two months.

The feds are mum on what exactly they were looking for, but word is it’s part of an investigation behind last year’s Yemeni bomb plot, wherein the government was looking into just who provided that information to journalists. 

The move both stokes conspiracy theorists and gives reason for all journalsits to be weary. Big brother is watching. And for journalists looking to truly muckrack and reveal dirt on the powers that be, this is a warning. Watch your back. It’s not just the AP that’s a target. 

In an interview with NPR, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said he’s approved media monitoring so many times in his four years as the head of the Justice Department that he doesn’t even remember the details and organizations his employees have snooped on.

Wow. 

In response to those words, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press sent a letter to Holder expressing their concern and demanding that this practice be curbed in lieu of the First Amendment. Fifty two news groups signed on. The letter specifically calls for all phone records returned and information on just what news outlets have been targeted. 

This case displays both the lack of transparency and the culture of fear prevalent in Washington, and just how journalists can be victimized for essentially doing their job. 

We have a lot to talk about this week on the chat. We’ll share stories on similar experiences we’ve had, how to avoid marginalization and censorship and how to keep our First Amendment rights intact. 

See you this Tuesday, May 21 at 8 pm EST.

—AP

#muckedup No. 47 Recap: Coding, The New Must Have Skill?

Is coding the most important skill for journalists? In our tumultuous industry, it certainly doesn’t hurt to know how to code, and some would argue that this ability is a new communication tool to both tell better stories and comunicate data in new, entertaining ways. 

This week on the chat we talked about the pros and cons, and even traded some tips and feelings on whether coding enhances or distracts us from our primary goal as storytellers. I, and many others, think that it’s an enhancer and only makes us stronger journalists to have at least a working knowledge. Here’s our Storify take on what other journalists said during the chat. 

If you like what you see here, join us this Tuesday, May 21 at 8 pm EST.

—AP

Sullivan & Son TBS Hangover Brunch highlights 2013 Upfronts

Today Muck Rack attended the Sullivan & Son TBS Hangover Brunch at Gotham Comedy Club. The event invited a select group of journalists to sit in a small and intimate setting to get to know the stars of the hit TBS show, from Executive Producers Vince Vaughn, Peter Billingsley, and Rob Long.  

The brunch was an incredibly unique experience, forgoing the fancy presentations and larger audiences that have come to dominate Upfronts, and instead focusing on direct communication with everyone in the room, including writers, bloggers, television stars, and more!

Make sure to check out the season premiere of Sullivan & Son June 13 at 10pm ET on TBS featuring Steve Byrne, Ahmed Ahmed, Owen Benjamin, Roy Wood Jr., and Valerie Azlynn. Also, don’t miss your chance to see these hilarious comedians on their Sullivan & Son Comedy Tour.

-DZ

From LA Times to NY Times, NPR to Al Jazeera America, and beyond …

Here’s a selection of the most intriguing career status updates we covered this week in the Muck Rack Daily.

- KB