Welcome to The Backstory, an inside look at the news media and its influence. For several years, I’ve reported on top media outlets and journalists working in print, online, and on the air. Previously, I wrote the New York Observer's "Off the Record" column, started the political media beat for Politico, and launched "The Cutline," a media blog for Yahoo! News. I've appeared on CNN, MSNBC, Current, Al Jazeera English, and NPR. Send suggestions and tips to michael.calderone[at]huffingtonpost.com and follow on Twitter @mlcalderone.