4 Things Journalists Can Learn from the Lacy/Zuckerberg Interview

This is something of corollary to the last one, but make sure you understand the audience as much as the background of the story. News doesn’t exist in an objective vacuum. It exists because it is of interest to the audience – and that has a profound impact on what is or isn’t news in a particular context. Don’t assume you can take one set of news values and apply them elsewhere. You have a job to do – extracting information relevant to the people you want to read it. Know what they want to know, and find it out. 

[This tweet](http://twitter.com/sarahcuda/statuses/768319260) should have set alarm bells ringing. Being interviewed more than interviewing? Another quick look at her website, and you notice an invitation to become [a fan of Sarah Lacy on Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sarah-Lacy/6713753539). Build a reputation based on your work, not on a cult of personality. That way you’ll be less likely to dominate an on-stage interview with references to yourself…