10 Questions with ... John Wordock

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

I'm the managing editor for MarketWatch.com's radio network. We have more than 250 affiliates, including WINS/New York, KFWB/Los Angeles, WBBM/Chicago, KCBS/San Francisco, KRLD/Dallas, KYW/Philadelphia, WTOP/Washington, WBZ/Boston, KJR/Seattle, WCCO/Minneapolis, KMOX/St. Louis, WKRC/Cincinnati, KDKA/Pittsburgh, WTIC/Hartford and WBAL/Baltimore. During a quarter-century in broadcasting, I've anchored business updates for AP Radio, kept tabs on Washington for Bloomberg TV & Radio, covered politics for WBBR/New York, and filed a weekly-syndicated report for Westwood One/CBS Radio. I currently appear afternoons on WBZ/Boston, WTOP/Washington and WBBM/Chicago. I've also received nice accolades, including NYSSCPA's Excellence in Financial Journalism Award, the National Headliner Award, the National Association of Real Estate Editors' Best Broadcast Award, and the Dateline Award from the Society of Professional Journalists' Washington, D.C. chapter.

1. How and why did you get into broadcasting?

Growing up as a kid on the coast of Maine, I used to cross the AM dial every night, hoping to hear the Top Ten at Ten when WABC in New York played music. I was also a very young consumer of news, listening to WINS/New York, the old WTOP/Washington and WBZ/Boston. The radio made me realize there was a world beyond my little village in Maine. I also used to play DJ with an old turntable at home, doing news updates between songs. By the time I reached my junior year in high school, I managed to get on the air at the old WMER-AM 1440 in Portland, Maine doing sports updates and reading weather liners. Radio was my ticket through school. I used my radio gigs to help pay for college and j-school.

2. How has the economic downturn affected your job? Do you sense more of a demand among the public or station managers for financial reporting, or is there any fatigue from all the bad news?

The recent meltdown has kept me and my team extremely busy. We're lucky to be centered in the belly of the beast -- Washington, D.C. Our affiliates want us to decode -- in everyday English -- the wild ride for the stock market, the massive losses in the job market, and the unforgiving collapse in the housing market. We really have become MarketWatch. And my ten person staff has come through with flying colors, often throwing the spotlight on Main Street America and its troubles. We do money news for everyday people so demand for our product remains intense with few signs of bad news fatigue. In the last two years we've added about 50 stations. When the Dow drops 200 points or more, the phones ring off the hook and my inbox gets flooded with interview requests. The main question I get: What the heck is going on?

3. You went to journalism school. In light of changes in the media in recent years, would you recommend j-school to students today? What did you get out of your j-school experience that serves you well today?

I consider myself lucky. I got to go to Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism thanks to the Ben Grauer Scholarship, named in memory of the NBC broadcaster. Journalism schools are learning to adapt to changing media trends. But J-School may not be for everyone. The one thing I learned at J-School: Ethics. Someone is always trying to chip away at your standards. Be wise and be careful! At the end of the day the only thing you have is your reputation.

4. As someone whose job it is to pay attention to every twist and turn of the economy, are you optimistic or pessimistic about the near future of the nation's economy? Why?

This year's election was a nasty wake-up call for those who run Washington. So few of our nation's leaders have met a payroll or had to maintain a balance sheet. Near term, I think our nation's leaders will have trouble getting their act together. The rise of technology has also made it easier for businesses to survive with smaller workforces, especially in broadcast journalism. Long-term I remain hopeful Americans will become more realistic about saving and spending, and ultimately businesses should start hiring again to meet pent-up demand for toasters, TVs, and hubcaps. But it may take years for America to bounce back.

5. Of what are you most proud?

I'm very proud of my entire family. My three kids and my wife (a fellow member of the Fourth Estate) also help me realize there's life beyond the daily headlines.

6. What economic issue do you think is the most underreported? What story do you think is way more important than its coverage in the media would indicate?

I don't think we in the media have entirely calculated how much wealth has been wiped out among retirees and soon-to-be retirees. Because there's no real weekly or monthly report out of Washington, just anecdotal information here and there, it's very hard to track just how much wealth has evaporated. Millions of Baby Boomers will probably never get to retire. Sad. Disturbing. But true. I think we're still in the early stages of this story. Someone needs to create the Retiree Misery Index.

7. Who are your mentors and inspirations in the business?

The late David Halberstam was kind enough to help me with my undergraduate thesis on Robert F. Kennedy. I talked to him several times and he always encouraged me to zig when it would have been easy to zag. I still use that philosophy 20 years later as a reporter, anchor and manager.

8. What do you do for fun?

I enjoy fishing -- even if I don't catch anything. I also love watching DVDs, specifically old TV shows like "Adam-12." Oh no! Another 2-11 in progress? I also love the original episodes of "The Fugitive." Still waiting for Dr. Richard Kimble to confront that one-armed man...

9. Fill in the blank: I can't make it through the day without _____________.

... a 5-mile run and a morning cup of coffee.

10. What's the best advice you've ever gotten? The worst?

Best advice: Long-time New York radio guy Walt Wheeler once told me: Remember, people are making toast when they're listening to you. So you need to grab their attention.

Worst advice: When I was looking to make TV a full-time gig, a talent agent told me I had to change my appearance to look like Brad Pitt. At that moment I knew TV was probably not for me.