Ep 107: The Story Behind the Story - How a CNN Reporter Built Her Career | Michelle Toh (Writer & Reporter, CNN)

Michelle Toh is every Asian parents' dream child.


She's ambitious.

Has a strong sense of self.

And will do whatever it takes to succeed - including cold
pitching South China Morning Post & landing an
internship in her teens!






Her initial dream was to be in fashion (she's worked
at/for Elite Model Management, Hearst
Magazines & HuffPost too).


Then she pivoted and ended up becoming:


the Hong Kong Editor of Fortune; and


writer & reporter at CNN Business





Where she has: 


hunted down super yachts belonging to Russian oligarchs


covered some of the world's biggest IPOs -
e.g. Grab, DiDi, Coupang & Kuaishou
Technology


conducted interviews with:


Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel

Netflix COO Greg Peters

Grab Co-Founder Hooi Ling Tan 

A16Z partner Connie Chan

Impossible Foods President Dennis Woodside






And did I mention that Michelle is a Malaysian too?!





So:


How did Michelle go from studying with royalty (she saw her
classmate being fetched by helicopter to attend state events!) to
working with the top journalists in the world?

What is it like, really, to work at CNN?

How does CNN handle "fake news"?

How does she gain trust?

And how important is personal branding (+ LinkedIn) for a
journalist like Michelle?






You'll have to listen to Episode 107 of the So This Is My
Why Podcast to find out.





Highlights:


2:36 Having a strong sense of self

4:52 Where Michelle’s drive came from

7:04 Sense of inferiority

7:56 Working at South China Morning Post, Elite Model & a
law firm

9:23 Cold emailing for internships!

9:54 The secret to cold emails

10:50 “I hope this finds you well”

12:38 Going from Harper’s Bazaar to boring old news?!

17:24 Going from Fortune to CNN

19:09 The Morning Show

20:32 The behind-the-scenes of working at CNN

23:49 Asian discrimination

27:11 Deciding on which stories get shared

28:40 Fake news! How did you spot them?

32:23 Hunting down a superyacht worth USD 500 million!

36:21 Public image

38:24 Building a personal brand

41:30 Why LinkedIn

42:30 How do you craft a story?

44:21 Mentors

46:20 Do you need a journalism degree?

38:23 Hallmarks of star journalists

50:42 How Michelle gains trust

52:07 How listeners can help Michelle






Show notes: www.sothisismywhy.com/107 


 Weekly Newsletter that deconstructs how you can find
success & purpose on your own terms:
https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062


Leave a review on STIMY:
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442





Official Bio


Michelle Toh is an award-winning writer and reporter for CNN
Business, based at the network's Asia Pacific headquarters in
Hong Kong. She covers business and tech across APAC, writing
breaking news, features and analysis about companies, startups
and banks in the region.


Toh has covered some of the top stories in global business,
including the disruption and inequality caused by the coronavirus
pandemic, the corporate response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine,
the crackdown in China on private enterprise, the Evergrande
crisis, the US-China trade war, the fallout from the Hong Kong
protests, and Huawei's battle in the United States. She has also
covered the recent historic market turbulence and some of the
world's biggest public offerings, including those of Grab, Didi,
Kuaishou, and Coupang.


Toh has interviewed leaders of some of the world's top companies,
including Tiffany CEO Alessandro Bogliolo, Galaxy Entertainment's
billionaire Chairman Lui Che Woo, Netflix COO Greg Peters, Grab
Co-Founder Tan Hooi Ling, Tinder CEO Elie Seidman, Yum China CEO
Joey Wat, ex-Reddit CEO Ellen Pao, and Impossible Foods President
Dennis Woodside. Her reporting frequently appears across CNN's
digital and television platforms, and she often contributes to
the network's "Meanwhile in China" newsletter.


In 2021, she led a team across six CNN bureaus on an interactive
project about workplace discrimination of Asians around the
world, which won an Award of Excellence from the Society of News
Design.


Prior to joining CNN, Toh was the Hong Kong editor of Fortune
Magazine, where she led a breaking news team, reported on
business trends, and researched fundraising deals for its "Term
Sheet" newsletter. Her work has also featured in publications
including TIME, USA Today, the South China Morning Post and
HuffPost. She has moderated and covered panels at major
international conferences, such as CES in Las Vegas and Shanghai,
Most Powerful Women in Laguna Niguel, California, and RISE in
Hong Kong.