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10 Questions with ... Todd Starnes
July 14, 2009
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NAME:Todd StarnesTITLE:Anchor-ReporterNETWORK:Fox News RadioMARKET:NationalCOMPANY:News CorporationBORN:Memphis, TNRAISED:Southaven, MS
BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
WTJS/Jackson, TN; KFBK/Sacramento; Fox News Radio. Author of "They Popped My Hood and Found Gravy on the Dipstick" and the upcoming "Dispatches from Bitter America."1. How did you get your start in radio- why did you choose radio?
I was originally a print journalism guy but my first full-time radio gig was news director and program director at WTJS in Jackson, TN. It was everything you could imagine a small Southern radio station would be and I loved every minute of it. Radio is theatre of the mind and there's an intimacy with listeners that's not replicated online or even on television. After a stint at KFBK in Sacramento, I was offered a position at FOX News Radio. I joined the staff in 2005. It's the best thing that's happened to me professionally. I consider it a great blessing to work at 1211 Avenue of the Americas and I get to practice my craft alongside some of the best journalists in the business. And I am especially thankful that no one told me to lose my accent.
2. About what are you most passionate these days?
Telling good stories. To be a good talker, you need to be a good listener. I love getting out in the field and hearing from "real" people. I've been fortunate to cover some amazing stories at FOX News Radio - traveling with the Obama campaign, covering Pope Benedict's visit to the U.S. Honestly, though, some of my favorite interviews have been with "regular folks" - the owner of a diner who watched firefighters save her business from a wildfire, the deputy sheriff in a raft rescuing someone from flood waters - those are the stories that really hit home.
3. Your best-selling book discusses the circumstances behind your heart surgery and weight loss. In brief, what happened, and what's the most important lesson you learned from the experience (recognizing that the whole story is best related in the book, "They Popped My Hood and Found Gravy on the Dipstick")?
Within three years, I underwent open heart surgery to replace my aortic valve, lost both my parents to sudden illnesses, lost 150 pounds and ran the New York City Marathon. The book is actually based on a series of audio journals that were broadcast on KFBK documenting my surgery and recovery. I was heavily influenced by the humorous essays of Lewis Grizzard and Erma Bombeck and my book is written in a similar style. Looking back, I discovered that God's grace is sufficient to get us through difficult days - and in the end - it's going to be okay.
4. You're an award-winning journalist and a man of deep faith. How, if in any way, does your faith inform what you do as a newsman -- what lessons learned from your religious convictions help you do your job better as a journalist?
I believe my faith in Jesus Christ calls me to be excellence driven. That means being the very best possible reporter I can be. It means getting the quotes right, spelling people's names correctly, doing the fundamentals of my craft. It also means asking tough questions - but doing so in a compassionate and fair manner. I'm not a big fan of "gotcha" journalism. Sometimes we get into this routine of believing caricatures of people - forgetting that the individuals we cover - are indeed human beings. Aside from the Bible on my desk, I hope people see my faith reflected in the way I conduct my life.
5. If you hadn't gone into radio, what would you be doing today?
I would own a weekly newspaper somewhere in the Deep South with rocking chairs on the front porch, a sleeping dog in the corner and golf clubs next to my desk.
6. Who are your mentors, your inspirations, the people you've learned the most from?
Don Boykin has been one of my great journalism mentors. He just retired as deputy managing editor at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. David Dockery, the president of Union University is one of our country's great intellectuals and a spiritual giant in my life. I've been inspired by my young cousin, Bill. He's a college kid - working this summer as a lifeguard. He saved a kid from drowning a few weeks ago. Putting your own life on the line to save another --- that's inspirational.7. Of what are you most proud?
My family. I have a very large, very Southern family. Most folks squirrel away their crazy relatives in the attic. In the South, we like to put them on the front porch. I love my family and enjoy my frequent retreats from New York to the homestead in northern Mississippi. And they've also given me carte-blanche to write about them - although a few of my aunts have threatened legal action. (I think they were kidding).
8. In support of the book, you've had the tables turned on you (as in this case), being the interviewee instead of the interviewer. If you could ask yourself a question that your interrogators haven't asked, what would it be (and what would the answer be, while we're at it)?
"Are you really as crazy as you come off in your book?" Yes.
9. Fill in the blank: I can't make it through the day without ______________.
...BARBECUE.
10. What's the best advice you ever got? The worst?
The best: "Live like you were dying" - Tim McGrawThe worst: "Go ahead and have a second piece of that sweet potato pie - it won't hurt you."
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