Jesse Hicks Email and Phone Number

I write news and feature stories for Vice, often focusing on breaking news. I've covered the Guantanamo Bay trials, the opioid crisis, and (obviously) the pandemic. I bring my long experience with science and technology writing to every project.

For nearly two decades I've reported for major media outlets, contributing to Harper's, The New Republic, Vice, Jezebel, Politico, The Daily Beast, and others. I focus on longform narrative features, with an eye toward science and technology reporting, and on the stranger sides of digital life. I've also appeared in documentaries and podcasts to talk about, among other things, the long and winding history of amphetamine use, and whether we should all be taking lithium.

I joined the Daily Dot as the first dedicated editor of The Kernel, a "Sunday magazine" sub-brand the company had acquired. I established themes for each issue, commissioned freelance essays and articles from a roster of freelancers I'd developed, worked with writers on revisions, and managed the schedule and budget; I worked with the Daily Dot's art team to illustrate each piece, often doing final layout revisions in WordPress. I collaborated with the social media team on promotion and syndication. In addition to writing a weekly editor's note, I also contributed occasional features.Notable:* Developed a roster of recurring freelancers, with an eye toward increasing diversity and inclusion * Developed rolling 6-month editorial roadmap, including issue themes, potential stories, and key contributors* Served as a developmental and line-editor for Daily Dot staffers looking to branch into long-form work* Produced consistently well-received (Digg, social-media sharing) work on a budget of $1000/week

After beginning as a contributing feature writer at the November, 2011, launch of The Verge, I soon joined the editorial team in the features department. There I assigned, edited, and wrote feature articles that fit the site's brand of lifestyle-technology coverage. I wrote about a doctor who believed he could destroy all viruses, a group of medical students fighting depression in Palestine, and a man who wanted to use DNA to prove John Wilkes Booth was not Lincoln's assassin. I profiled machine artist Mark Pauline and covered the Chelsea Manning court martial from Fort Meade. In addition to writing and editing, I also served as video producer on several documentaries produced to complement our written coverage.

Turned breaking tech news into funny, approachable stories while providing context and background for a general audience.

While completing my Master of Fine Arts degree in creative writing, I taught courses in the English and Science, Technology, and Society departments at Penn State. Courses taught include: Effective Writing: Writing in the Social Sciences (ENGL 202A) – Instruction in writing persuasive arguments about significant issues in the social sciences. Aimed at seniors.Rhetoric and Composition (ENGL 15) – Instruction and practice in writing expository prose that shows sensitivity to audience and purpose. Aimed at freshmen.Introduction to Creative Writing (ENGL 50) Introduction to Article Writing (ENGL 215)Science, Technology, and Human Values (STS 101)Peace and Conflict Studies Seminar (STS 490)