We were lucky to catch up with Julie Mastrine recently and have shared our conversation below.
Julie, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
I used to live inside a political bubble.
I thought I knew everything there was to know about “the other side.” I decided they were evil and out to destroy our country. I even worked as a professional political activist, pumping out partisan propaganda for “my side.”
But a piece of my conscience nagged. Something deep within told me I didn’t have the full picture.
I started forcing myself to read media outside of my bubble. I listened to commentators on the other side and questioned friends who thought differently from me.
Turns out I was dead wrong about “the other side.”
They weren’t all evil, heartless and cruel. They had sincerely held beliefs and strong foundational values. They made a lot of good points I hadn’t considered.
I realized I was wrong about many things. My beliefs dramatically changed, and my life improved for the better.
After this transformation, I decided I wanted to work professionally on the issue of media bias. I realized our media landscape was seriously broken, and I didn’t want anyone else to be duped, looking at the world through one-sided blinders the way I was.
I wanted Americans to know their favorite news outlet may be mischaracterizing their opponents or not telling the full story – that when we don’t allow information to break through the hardened shells of our ideology, nuanced thinking is inhibited, which fuels contempt and harms us.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
After my personal political and spiritual transformation, I wanted to work on the issue of media bias. I found a job listing at AllSides.com, a fledgling company with just three full-time employees. As the Director of Marketing and Media Bias Ratings, I threw myself into marketing the company, improving our content, developing bias rating systems and writing at length about media bias, including teaching Americans how to see it.
When I created the first version of the AllSides Media Bias Chart™ in early 2019, I had no idea how viral it would go. It’s now been viewed tens of millions of times, printed in numerous academic textbooks, and hung in classrooms around the country — even Elon Musk has commented on it.
My efforts helped AllSides raise its profile to become a nationally-known resource for balanced news and media bias ratings.
After I spent years writing about media bias, news media companies started to approach us with interest. They were impressed with what I had written about bias and wanted to know more about their own bias. I am now consulting over 40 newsrooms around the country, running bias audits of their content and providing recommendations to help them mitigate political bias in the news and to cover a variety of perspectives.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
The most impactful quality in my journey was the ability to admit when I was wrong. Being honest with oneself and having a repentant attitude is the key to positive transformation.
It can be scary to take a hard look at oneself and see that you need to make changes. But don’t be afraid to admit when you’re on the wrong path, have had the wrong ideas, or need to make a change. Self-honesty is a catalyst for positive action. While you may not see clearly what is coming next, having faith that the right opportunity will come always bears fruit.
How would you describe your ideal client?
My ideal clients are those that value self-honesty and want to always be improving. I look for newsrooms, editors, and journalists who want to improve their writing and ensure they are giving full and fair coverage of contentious issues, including perspectives they personally may disagree with.
Contact Info:
- Website: juliemastrine.com
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliemastrine/
Image Credits
AllSides.com.
