SUCCESS: Former Poly student David Randall recounts his experience on The Poly Spotlight and discusses his work as a New York journalist.
Kira Roybal, Staff Writer
We all know that one kid who sits next to us in math or literature or history. He has his friends, you have your friends. He has his hobbies, you have your hobbies. You two exchange the occasional “hello” or ask each other what the answer to number 11 was on the worksheet, but neither of you really take the time to find out more about each other. It’s too bad that you two never got to know one another, because what if this kid who sat next to you in freshman biology went on to become a huge success?
One example of such success came from right here at Poly, and his name is David Randall. From the graduating class of 1999, Randall was the Diversions editor of The Poly Spotlight. After graduating from University of California Riverside in 2003, he moved to New York to pursue a career in journalism. Randall is currently a senior reporter at Reuters, an international news agency; he has also written articles for the New York Times, New York magazine, Forbes and the Associated Press.
As part of a Forbes article he wrote about the business of music concerts, Randall was able to visit backstage at Coachella and meet some of the bands and artists. He said that he has also been able to travel to Mexico and France as part of his career. Another one of Randall’s news stories explained why a certain city in Connecticut became the worst stop for business after three consecutive mayors were arrested on corruption charges. The city’s local newspaper was not too pleased and tried to retaliate by claiming that Randall was a “big jerk.”
To find unique stories, Randall uses a technique he calls “reported comedy,” where he finds humor in everyday situations. For example, Randall has written stories on a New York’s unicycle club that meets at President Grant’s tomb and why people wait in long lines for Broadway tickets without knowing which show they will see. He explained that these attention-grabbing stories capture “a slice of life.”
On Friday September 7, The Poly Spotlight was able to video chat with Randall. The FaceTime interview allowed the Spotlight staff to grasp Randall’s character, from his manner of speech to his facial expressions, even though he was 2,000 miles away in New York.
The video was streamed from an iPad and then projected onto a Promethean board; it was also video-taped. Spotlight is entering the digital age, as it can now combine entertainment technology (like the iPad) with education technology (like the Promethean board) to create a new environment that fosters a type of global communication. With Spotlight’s move from print to web, Randall can even read this article online now. This interactive technology is the future for Spotlight; it will expand our newspaper’s boundaries and interview more efficiently.
Randall had much advice to give Spotlight, such as that now the world of journalism is about “forging your own path.” But the most significant advice Randall shared he learned from his time on Spotlight 13 years ago.
“The people you know now hopefully you’ll know for the rest of your life,” Randall said. He emphasized the importance of gaining access into the “window [of] someone else’s life” because who you befriend now can remain your friend and confidant well into the years.
Randall has friends who have become doctors and teachers; one even lives in Australia. The places he and his friends have gone to have expanded all of their worlds. “When you get out of Poly, you realize the world is a lot bigger than you think,” Randall stated.
Along with his work in journalism, Randall has also published a New York Times bestseller titled Dreamland: Adventures in the Strange Science of Sleep. The book, which discusses the research behind sleeping, was inspired by his sleepwalking and crashing into a hallway wall.
The topic of sleep was intriguing to Randall because much of sleep research had gone unrecognized by the mainstream audience. “I ended up writing the book that I had wanted to read,” Randall said.
Randall explained that the will to work is what drove him to complete his book, Dreamland. He said that he would arrive at the library at 7 a.m., continue to work on his book until 10 a.m. and then start his full-time job. He also said that for every 20-page chapter, there were 80 pages of notes behind it.
Despite all the effort put into writing the book, Randall has hinted that a second one is in store; he said that it will be a non-fiction book set in Southern California.
Randall’s success and passion for his career gives Spotlight, and perhaps the student body, the hope that success can come from anywhere, as long as one looks for it.
Video by Cole Nelson/ The Poly Spotlight