Rachel Sklar: The FishbowlDC Interview

Say hello to the Huffington Post's Eat the Press Editor Rachel Sklar, who sent us her answers this weekend. Sure, she's not from D.C., but she's a fellow media blogger and our one-time sister up at FishbowlNY. How many suits do you own? Yikes - one. Do I need more? What word do you routinely misspell? I finally mastered 'Ahmedinejad.' Oops, I guess I didn't. But otherwise, I am prone to adding the odd gratuitous "u" to words like 'honour' 'favour' and 'colour.' But that's actually right in Canada. So it doesn't really count. Did you see Brokeback Mountain? I did not. But I saw various mash-ups on YouTube, so I feel like I did. Did you see The Da Vinci Code? No, but I read it. I'm sure Paul Bettany made a fine albino. What's the name of your cell phone ring? "Cell Phone Ring." What time did you get up this morning? It's Sunday! Um, 10:30. But I will take this opportunity to stand in defense of night owls and suggest that you rephrase the question as "What time did you go to bed last night?" When did you last cry and why? Yesterday. I spent some time reading accounts of people lost in Iraq, like this one from Newsweek's "Voices of the Fallen" issue - it's a collection of emails from Army Cpl. Stephen M. McGowan, from the last year of his life. The emails are so normal and upbeat, and he sounds like such a great guy. He was killed three weeks before he was supposed to return home. Truly heartbreaking. Which of the seven deadly sins are you? Gluttony. Food is delicious! Beach, city or country? Why are you making me choose? You need all three to appreciate all three. Would you say you're cute? Pretty? Hot? Beautiful? Do people actually answer this? I'd say that whatever people think, their opinion will probably change in either direction after getting to know me. Isn't that how it works? Read the rest when you click below...(and see previous FishbowlDC interviews: Julie Mason, David Shuster, Joe Curl, Alex Pareene, Peter Beinart, Jonah Goldberg, Megyn Kendall, Ana Marie Cox, Jim Brady, Howard Mortman, Amy Argetsinger, Jose Antonio Vargas, Chuck Todd, Tom Gottlieb, Kelly Ann Collins, David von Drehle, David Lat, Mark Leibovich, Zain Verjee, David Plotz, Paul Kane, Karen Travers, Mark Halperin, Hugo Gurdon, Greg Kelly,Ken Rudin, John Dickerson, Anne Schroeder, Spencer Ackerman, Bret Baier, Bob Sellers, Greta van Susteren, Danielle Jones, Jonathan Salant, John McCalla, Pam Hess, Ryan Grim, Marc Ambinder, Marty Kady, Jack Shafer, Annie Lou Bayly, Jerry Zremski, Charlie Cook, Dave Hughes, Howard Fineman, Katie Tarbox, Mark Segraves, Chris Cillizza, Tom Sietsema, Bill Triplett, Robin Givhan, David Brody, Norah O'Donnell, Carl Cannon, Jordan Lieberman, David Folkenflik, Molly Henneberg, Ernesto Londono, Brody Mullins, Aaron Blake, Martha Raddatz, Andrew Sullivan, Christina Bellantoni, Shane Harris, Nora McAlvanah, Adam Nagourney, Erin McPike, Mike Memoli, Ju-Don Marshall Roberts, Arthur Delaney, Chris Mincher) What color is your bathroom? White and towel-coloured. Yeah, I said "coloured." How many emails do you receive a day, roughly? Oy. About a gazillion. I'm constantly maxing out my Gmail account, and that is hard to do. What's your opinion of New York City? Love it, except when I'm late and stuck in midtown traffic. But I can't blame New York for my own bad habits - when I'm actually on time and strolling to my destination, I usually feel like throwing my hat up in the air, Mary Tyler Moore-style. It's that sort of city. What's your favorite letter? The ones that say "Enclosed please find this check." What single person played the biggest role / had the biggest influence on your journalism career? Elizabeth Spiers, for giving a random non-blogger who knew nothing about media free rein at FishbowlNY (where you and I first met - I believe she tapped you too, yes? A fine nose for talent, that Ms. Spiers). That put me in a position to cross paths with Arianna Huffington, and there is obviously no overstating how amazing working for the Huffington Post has been and continues to be for me. I have been lucky - there is plenty of influence to go around. I have found it to be a generous industry. Have you ever downloaded a podcast? If so, which one? I downloaded a Ricky Gervais podcast once at the persistent urging of a friend, and found it funny but distracting - if I'm online, I'm surfing, which means I'm distracted from the podcast. So it's a form that doesn't really work for me. Who's your all-time favorite American Idol candidate? I don't really watch the show but I have a definite weakness for Kelly Clarkson and am actually listening to a random iTunes mix that has both "Breakaway" and "Since U Been Gone" right now. Also partial to Chris Daughtrey for the pipes and the, er, pipes. He is not an unattractive man. When's the last time you volunteered? Where? Loosely construed, last night when I answered some questions for a journalism student's thesis (er, best of luck to her). But that's not what you're asking. It's a good question, and I now feel sufficiently guilty. Who is your favorite active journalist? Right now, Josh Wolf, baby. Talk about a volunteer! What did you have for breakfast? Diet coke. I know, gross. What's your favorite item of clothing? A pair of fuzzy gray sweatpants, which I am wearing fresh from the laundry right now. See above re: getting to know me and deciding whether to find me attractive. For those with a fuzzy sweatpant fetish, I'm their girl. What one toiletry item could you not live without? These are very odd and personal questions. I'd say toothpaste is pretty damn essential. If you could have one superpower, which one would it be? Go back in time and make everything right. Better role model: GIJoe? Barbie? Sorry, what century are we in? How about GI Barbie?

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Rachel Sklar: The FishbowlDC Interview

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