Staff Q&As: Meet business reporter Lauren Boyer
To help you get to know our newsroom staff a bit better, a series of question-and-answer posts with each journalist will run on Mondays. This morning, meet business reporter Lauren Boyer. You might have seen her out in York County on her mobile journalism days — most recently at Macklin’s Cupcakes. She also blogs for York Common Cents.
Name: Lauren Boyer
Lives in: York
Hometown: Hershey
Position at the YDR: Business reporter
Years with the YDR: One
Graduated from: Hershey High School in 2006. Penn State University Schreyer Honors College in 2009.
With a degree in: Journalism
Twitter: @laurenboyer
Facebook: www.facebook.com/bylaurenboyer
Google+: Click here.
Whatever you’d like to tell us about yourself: I’m 24 years old. My parents’ names are Ann and Stan. My first words were, no joke, “Don’t worry be happy.” I once worked as a character at Hershey Park, parading around the midway dressed as an over-sized chocolate bar with limbs. I got meningitis my freshman year of college and almost died. My senior semester of college, I lived with an 85-year-old woman at her house in downtown State College. Best decision I ever made. In my short professional career, I’ve managed to write not one, BUT TWO stories for different papers examining romance and carnal shenanigans at county fairs. Likes: Marilyn Monroe, artificial sweeteners, breaking awkward silences, footie pajamas, factories, working on an iPad. Dislikes: People who walk slow, stupid hashtags.
1. What made you want to become a journalist? I was hesitant at first. My mom — also a Penn State journalism major — forced me to take journalism in high school. I loved writing and talking to people, so my teacher picked me as a co-editor-in-chief of the paper as a junior. Then, I ended up interning at the weekly newspaper in our town before I was old enough to drive. This forced me to ride the bus home after school, shove my notepad down my running shorts and jog to the office from our house a few miles away. Sometimes I walked home. Other times I got a ride. I try to continue that passion today, minus the sweaty gym shorts.
2. How do you see journalism changing? The basic function is the same. We’re still telling stories, but it’s just on different platforms that, one day, will probably exclude print editions.
3. What do you like most about your job? The least? I love doing something different every day. Lately, it’s been awesome to learn how to pair social media and video with my stories to create a full picture — something I never learned to do in college. And, of course, I love wandering around York County for my mobile reporting project as a member of Digital First Media’s ideaLab.
4. It’s 9:30 a.m. on a day off. What are you doing? Out for a run on the rail trail.
5. What’s been your favorite project or story recently? Why? A story I did on boomerang kids — adult children co-habitating with their parents. It’s a common situation in this economy and one dear to my heart. I shacked up with my ‘rents for a few months after graduating from Penn State a semester early. I had a full-time job, but that didn’t make it any easier. Coming it at a close second is one I did on York County’s thoughts about tubeless toilet paper.
6. The drink that’s on your desk right now is: Brewed chai tea sprinkled with cinnamon.
7. Your favorite journalism-related blog you read or Twitter feed you follow: Romenesko and www.stuffjournalistslike.com.
8. What’s your favorite movie? Book? That’s tough. For books, I like “True Story: Murder, Memoir, Mea Culpa” by Michael Finkel and anything by Kurt Vonnegut. Favorite movies are “Nothing But the Truth,” “A Clockwork Orange” and “Shattered Glass.”
9. What’s your favorite place in York County? My apartment. It’s the only place I found on my apartment search that didn’t look run-down. It’s a modern house with three floors and a basement. The living room is connected to the bedroom by a spiral staircase AND I have a huge walk-in closet. In other words, it’s paradise. Also, I have two bathrooms — completely necessary for one person. Trust me.
10. What’s one piece of newsroom jargon that had to be explained to you? None. I was born ready.
Last week, we ran a Q&A with assistant sports editor Brittany Wilson. To read all of the staff Q&A interviews we’ve done so far, click on the “Staff Q&As” under “About us” at the top of the homepage.