The Internet is my Gutenberg Bible, it is the sacred living body of communication that changed my life. (Asher Wolf)
With this tl;dr quote that sums up almost everything that follows, we’re thrilled-to-actual-(but not literal)-bits in announcing our very first #digitalwriters profile showcasing @Asher_Wolf.
By her own admission, Asher is “…rumoured to never sleep“. And really, it’s no wonder: Asher operates as an information activist, disruptive journalist, citizen technologist, blogger, single mum, and internaut (which we suspect is a cross between an internet junkie and a juggernaut?).
Asher runs her Twitter feed exactly as a true digitocentric (and yes, that term is completely made up) should – by constantly streaming crucial links containing up to the minute news updates and a generous smattering of life reveals. Asher also contributes to New Matilda and The Drum, is a regular columnist with The Guardian, and currently blogs at Medium. She is the founder of the International CryptoParty movement, an organisation promoting personal privacy and cryptography in over 60 cities around the world…
…but enough of her standard biographic blurb. Let’s hear from the woman herself about her work, life, and the complex juggling manoeuvres she deftly performs in order to produce her #digitalwriting:
Somewhere between picking up my first smart phone in 2009 and learning to use social media to try to explore 4Chan’s /b/, Anonymous, ProjectPM, and transparency movements like Wikileaks and now, I went from being called a “tweeter” to a “citizen journalist” and now to being a “journalist.” Strange days.
In the past I experienced a sense of impostor syndrome, particularly when writing about tech, security and international relations. Now I just shrug it off and look at the list of all the ways in which I am qualified to talk about those issues, particularly in regards to my academic background and personal experiences.
The slow shift into journalism while experiencing early motherhood has not been a bed of roses. There’s been kiddie tantrums when I’ve wanted to write stories, an iPad my son flung out a car window and toddler poo jokes in the background when I’m trying to look professional. My son is really an out-door lover and I’d rather find a cafe to sit in a corner with a coffee and use my laptop. We compromise to find bits of happiness for each other every day.
This piece on potential legislative changes to the right to protest and picket in Victoria was essentially written with my four year old son in-tow at a meeting at Trades Hall, surrounded by activists and unionists and lawyers. It was tough to write, because my concentration was split in 10 different directions. Just getting the notes down was a challenge.
I have [come] to accept that there are things I have absolutely no control over and just do my best. After I finish writing an article I sometimes look at and notice every little mistake. I get annoyed. And then I think about what it took just to get a sentence onto paper, and think “this has to be good enough for now.” I still always question my work, but not the effort I put in. Also: never read all the comments on your published articles unless you care what every cretin thinks. Reading the comments will not make you happy.
The hardest part I’ve experienced are structural limitations, like lack of access to affordable, quality childcare and the stereotypes that keep the status quo in place. When I see journalists interviewing the same little group of white male tech journalists over and over for comment (particularly in the tech sector) I’m not really very impressed at all.
I try my best to work around distraction, banging out articles while my son is asleep, writing pitches while my son is at kindergarten. I figure I’m also up against younger, better looking journalism graduates with a whole lot more time on their hands. I don’t have time and I don’t have a journalism degree, so I work all the harder.
digitalwritersaus 