This 20-year-old covers Apple like a pro
Mark Gurman began seriously covering Apple as a journalist when he was just 15.
At 17, he broke news about Siri. At 19, Business Insider named Gurman the “World’s Best Apple Reporter.”
Gurman says it was a natural progression.
“I’ve always been interested in Apple and technology,” Gurman says. “So, I thought it was a natural intersection to start digging around Apple. And here I am.”
Gurman, now 20, is a senior editor at 9to5mac.com — hustling day in and day out to break the next big story on one of the biggest companies in the world.
Oh, and he’s also a junior pursuing his bachelor’s from the School of Information at the University of Michigan.
“The way I look at it… is that lots of students have jobs,” Gurman says. “Some work in restaurants, others work in other places. People make music, they do what they love, and this is just what I like doing.”
Despite all he’s achieved, Gurman isn’t one of Apple’s trusted, favorite reporters and, as such, the company excludes him from Apple events and reviewing new products.” He says it used to get under his skin, “but then I realized being able to do this all on my own without the intervention of Apple PR has allowed me to do things that otherwise I wouldn’t be able to do being under the constant spotlight of not wanting to upset a company.”
It’s more challenging to find stories, he says, but the outcome is more rewarding.
His paycheck is dependent on page views. But with an exceptional source list and a record of breaking stories, Gurman says he could see as many as hundreds of thousands of clicks a day. Though he would not confirm, some reports have put his salary at six figures.
So, what’s next for the superstar reporter who is expected to graduate in two years?
“That is the golden question… To be honest, I’d like to move into something mostly different than what I do now,” Gurman says. “Instead of being the person who covers the companies, I’d like there to be someone like me, covering my company.”
This story was also reported by the Columbia Journalism Review and other outlets.
CLARIFICATION: An earlier version of this story did not accurately reflect Gurman’s relationship with Apple. The text has been modified.
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