Technology is an extremely broad topic, and yet is still somehow considered one sector of business. Giants like Apple, Google and Amazon have their fingers in just about every pot, and as startups pop-up, these big players scoop up their favorites to incorporate into their portfolios.
The news coverage of the technology sector is equally broad, and thus equally hard to keep a comprehensive eye on. To help out, we’ve put together a list of some of the best US based tech reporters to keep an eye on for PR professionals who are trying to round out their perspective on the technology news cycle.
Brian Fung, Washington Post
Brian Fung’s The Switch column is probably the best telecommunications-focused column in the country. Fung provides consistent coverage of the heated debates in Washington on America’s broadband infrastructure, the latest regulations from the FCC and how the private sector is reacting. And if you’re concerned about net neutrality, this column is a must read.
Steve Kovach, Business Insider
If what you’re concerned about are the biggest names in the tech sector, then this is the reporter to follow. From Apple to Uber to Google to Verizon, Kovach presents a comprehensive stream of the tech stories that have the biggest impact with the biggest companies.
Elizabeth Weise, USA Today
Elizabeth Weise covers a little bit of everything, and her day to day coverage is best suited for the technology enthusiast with a short attention span. Whether you’re in the mood for self-driving cars, diversity in Silicon Valley or the latest cyber breach, Weise has something for you.
Walt Mossberg, Re/Code
A column for the contemplative tech reader, Mossberg’s weekly article focuses on high level trends in the industry (usually). One week he will pontificate on how immigration is the foundation of the America’s tech dominance, the next, he will be waxing poetic about the Google phone.
Nicole Perlroth, New York Times
More than any other security reporter, when Nicole Perlroth writes about a cybersecurity trend, it’s real. She doesn’t write often due to her other editorial duties, but when she does, make sure you take the time to read it. Her coverage goes into more detail than most other news outlets do about individual instances of cyber breaches. And while her work is high quality, it also translates into layman’s terms rather nicely.
Sarah Perez, TechCrunch
When it comes Silicon Valley coverage, TechCrunch leads the pack. While TechCrunch leaves quite a bit of coverage to its contributor network, the intrepid writer at the publication is Sarah Perez. Perez’s beat encompasses everything you need to know in the world of mobile, along with a good smattering of the rest of the big players in tech as well. So if you’re concerned with your phone, Perez is the one to follow.
Dan Goodin, Ars Technica
Ars Technica has a fairly impressive base of journalists serving on its editorial board, most of whom have quite a depth of understanding when it comes to the technology they cover. Dan Goodin has this depth and then some for security, so anyone looking for news that demonstrates a clear and deep understanding of cybersecurity beyond the high level issues should be following this reporter.
John Timmer, Ars Technica
Yep, Ars Technica is on here twice. As one of the only tech-focused publications that keeps a dedicated staff for science news, Ars Technica deserves the second atta-boy. I find that at most publications, scientific stories are allocated to a reporter who’s coverage is most relevant to the research, but Ars Technica keeps such stories under the umbrella of ‘science’ and John Timmer possesses a much wider understanding of scientific application than the reporter writing on research or new technology than journalists covering research as more of a one-off, and it shows in the coverage.
Ken Yeung, VentureBeat
If you care about venture funding, of course VentureBeat has some of the most in-depth coverage across the board. Ken Yeung is one of the most prolific writers at the publication, covering both the venture capital space as well as the social media space, a sector that continues to just get hotter and hotter.
Steven Norton, Wall Street Journal CIO Journal
If Enterprise IT gets you going, than WSJ CIO Journal should be your home screen. If you enjoy reading about networking infrastructure, hybrid cloud offerings and web application firewalls, Steven Norton is the reporter to keep an eye on. Norton runs the full gauntlet IT across industries, including interesting use-cases of enterprise IT solutions in action.