Our Meeting with Dino

When I hear someone is a western journalist on a "permanent traveling assignment" I expect to meet a ramblin' man with stubbly jowls, a safari vest and a cigarette hanging off his lip.

Unless this journalist's name is Dino. Then I imagine him as a cast member of my favorite early-90s anamatronic series:



As it turns out this Dino (pronounced: dee-no) was neither a plaid-shirted triceratops nor a journalist. But he did have a pretty cool job.

He works for a company that provides ad supplements for English newspapers in Asia. Every four months he travels to a new country in Europe or Asia and persuades companies to advertise. It's the kind of deal where the size ad you buy determines how long the article about your business is.

Dino tells prospective clients he's a journalist from such-and-such newspaper. Then once he's in the door he gives the big pitch about what a great opportunity this is for exposure. Then at the end he names the price.

With four years at Annenberg behind me, the J-school Jiminy Cricket on my shoulder did much hand wringing throughout our meeting. I saw a sample of the section, it doesn't even say "special advertising section" at the top, as I believe is required in the U.S.

But the travel bug in my gut said, four months in Asia? Then four months in Europe? Then four months in Asia? Then - Sign me up!

Sidenote: We met Dino at Starbucks. Mine and James' coffee cost more than my delicious lunch and my ticket to see Red Cliff at a second-run theater combined. I plan on never going to Starbucks in Taiwan again.