Editor’s Note: Known for her offbeat CNN reports, Jeanne Moos has achieved cult status among news junkies. Here the veteran reporter discusses being authentic on camera, her frustrations with the 24-hour news cycle and Wolf Blitzer’s sense of humor.

wOw: Hey, Jeanne. How are you?

JEANNE: How are you doing?

wOw: I’m pretty good. I can’t complain.

JEANNE: Good. Good.

wOw: First and foremost, why did you choose to go into journalism? 

JEANNE: I worked for my high-school newspaper, my junior-high paper, I was editor of my middle-school paper. So it just seemed, from the beginning, like what I was going to do. I knew I was going to go into journalism. And television was just more glamorous than print, at the time, so that’s how I ended up in TV. It was really a straight path.

wOw: So there was no point, when you were a kid, when you wanted to be a pilot or anything of that nature?

JEANNE: No. Never. I wanted to be what I am, actually. And it makes it much easier when you know from the beginning. You’re not spending your early years wandering around wondering what to do with yourself.

wOw: Right. Your first job was at a local Plattsburg, NY, station, WPTZ, where you were the first female correspondent. I’m curious: Did you ever face any sexism?

JEANNE: I have to say, I don’t remember anything like that happening. Gender has never been an issue for me, from the beginning, really. I didn’t feel any kind of sexism. I felt like I was getting the job because I was a woman; it was sort of reverse sexism, in that first job. Although, obviously, that means they hadn’t had women for the first I-don’t-know-how-many years of television, so it’s not really like they were doing anyone any big favor. I knew I was the first woman, but after that it seemed to not be an issue. And it hasn’t, honestly, been an issue with me, because I think what I’m doing is pretty unique. I’ve got a real niche. So I don’t think I’ve had the problems some people might have. I operate in my own little world.

wOw: You are certainly unique and have a niche now, but you used to cover more “serious” news.

JEANNE: That’s true, I did. I guess I’m forgetting the first 15 years of my career at CNN. 

wOw:  But when you did that, did you have an itch to do more quirky styles?

JEANNE: It was very schizophrenic for the first 15 years. I would do serious news one day and funny stuff the next. But it’s fun to do that: to have that diversity. And I did that for a really long time. And then I hit the UN and covered the UN for CNN for a couple years, especially during the Gulf War. That was fascinating and I got a prize for my UN reporting. It was really enjoyable and interesting: to be at the UN when a war is going on is, like, an amazing thing. But at a certain point … you know, I’m a creative writer and my specialty is writing to video. And when you’ve got 15 guys around a round table, there is not a lot of room to roam when writing.

wOw: Do you miss that at all?

JEANNE: No. Not at all. Once I started doing this, the feedback is so great, and when you get your ego stroked … it’s just such great feedback. And it’s also my worldview; the way I look at the news is the way I look at the world. What you’re seeing, the final product, is the way I look at life. So, I’m perfectly suited for what I’m doing, because it is my worldview.

wOw: When you started at CNN, back in 1981, the station and format were relatively new. Did you have any idea that cable news would become what it has become today?