Hal Hodson is The Economist’s special projects writer, based in London. He started volunteering with PressPad in 2018.
Learn more about his experience below:
About Hal
Hal Hodson is The Economist’s special projects writer, based in London. He joined the paper in 2016 as science and technology correspondent, writing about facial recognition, tigers and the brain. In 2018 he was named Britain’s best science writer. In 2019 he moved to Hong Kong to take up a new role as Asia technology correspondent. He returned to London during the pandemic to join the paper’s Covid team, writing on the immune system, vaccine manufacturing and data science. He writes across the paper, focusing on innovation, technology trade and energy technology. He has appeared regularly on television and radio in Britain and America.
Before joining The Economist, Hal worked at New Scientist in Boston. He graduated in 2010 from Trinity College Dublin with a degree in astrophysics. Hal is the author of special reports on the ocean, technology in China and the pandemic.
Hal’s experience
“I hosted Preeti while living in a flat in Camberwell, South London. It was the early days of PressPad, and Preeti really needed somewhere to stay for a week. I spent a lot of time in my teens and 20s couchsurfing, and hosting couchsurfers, so it felt natural enough to me to have Preeti around. We spent lots of time talking about her ambitions, and how she could get from here to there.
“I know how hard it is to get good work in the media, and that it can often feel like hurling yourself against a brick wall, so a lot of it was about confidence, talking through scenarios with Preeti and instilling confidence.
“I’ve been following Preeti’s career ever since, offering small bits of guidance when she asked, which was never very much, and less and less over time. Today she’s a successful media booker, arranging guest interviews for big shows on Sky and CNN. If I played even a tiny little part in helping her make that happen, I couldn’t be more delighted about it.”
