Gavin Jenkins
I’m a writer and editor based in Pittsburgh. I also teach journalism at the Community College of Allegheny County. I write about jobs (with a focus on the restaurant and gas station industries), politics, criminal justice, human interest features, health, sports, and memoir. My work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, VICE, The Outline (rip), MEL (rip), Narrative.ly, Prevention, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and Beijing Review. I also have appeared as a guest on Word of Mouth, a New Hampshire Public Radio program hosted by Virginia Prescott, and Tech News Weekly, a podcast hosted by Megan Morrone and Jason Howell.
In 2020, two stories I wrote for Pitt Med Magazine earned three Golden Quill Awards from the Press Club of Western Pennsylvania. “Surviving Survival” won Excellence in Corporate, Marketing and Promotional Communications – Written, Medical/Health, while “Oct. 27, 2018: Pittsburgh’s Darkest Day, and the Mass Casualty Response” won Excellence in Written Journalism, Magazines – Medical/Health, as well as the Ray Sprigle Memorial Award: Magazines, a Best in Show award.
After graduating from the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown in 2003, I covered sports for the Bedford Gazette, in Bedford, Pa., and the Martinsville Bulletin, in Martinsville, Va. In 2006, I returned to suburban Pittsburgh, where I was born and raised, to write for Trib Total Media. Based out of the Kittanning Leader Times, I worked for the Trib for two years, and then I moved to Shenzhen, China, to teach English and freelance. After China, I earned an MFA in nonfiction from the University of Pittsburgh.
When I’m not working, I’m usually playing with Bob, my Border Collie mix. My Instagram is basically NBB (nothing but Bob). Follow me there to see pictures of a very good boy. My Twitter is used for scrolling sometimes. I used to tweet and retweet, but after Elon Musk changed it to X, posting stopped being fun.
Stuff I’ve Written
The New York Times
“We Didn’t See Our Kids for 109 Days”
Vice
“My Dad Tried to Tame a Wolf.”
“The Sessions Where Working-Class Democrats Learn to Take Down to GOP”
“Hanging Out with America’s Elite, Underappreciated Court Reporters.”
“An Exhausting Day in the Life of a Gas Station Employee”
“Addicted to the Lottery” Why People Buy False Hope and Lottery Tickets”
“What Happens When Your Military Record Burns Up in a Fire?”
“On-Demand Fuel Services Could Make Gas Station Go Extinct”
“Oklahoma Plans to Execute Richard Glossip Today Despite Doubts About His Guilt”
“Meet the Tattooed Populist Shaking Up Pennsylvania’s Senate Race”
“Meet the Canadian Activist Putting Climate Change Warnings on Gas Pumps”
“Talking to an Attorney for the Oklahoma Death Row Inmate Who Just Avoided Execution”
The Washington Post
“The First Step Act released them from prison. Then the government tried to lock them back up.”
“Coping with a pet’s accidental death - especially when you blame yourself”
“The Iditarod is hounded by cruelty allegations, infighting and a doping scandal”
Contributor Credit: “House Democrats in Trump districts resist liberal pressure on impeachment”
The Outline
“The rise of on-demand fuel means the poor will inherit gas stations”
“The anarchist who wants to abolish government…by joining it”
“Servers are making memes about us”
“The restaurant industry has a mental health crisis”
“Working in the restaurant industry will haunt your dreams”
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
2007 Golden Quill Award finalist": “Ethnic Taunts Follow Fox Chapel Player”
See my Tribune-Review archive here.
Beijing Review
The Atlantic
“Why Immigrant Business Owners Are Conflicted About Trump”
MEL
“Why are childhood chores a dying practice?”
“Axe Throwing is Everywhere Right Now.”
“Don’t Let Coronavirus Tattoos Get Under Your Skin”
“The Sadness and Thrill of Drinking Alone”
Narrative.ly
“The Hidden History of Gas Station Bathrooms, By a Man Who Cleans Them”
Prevention
“The Restaurant Industry Had a Contagion Issue Before the Pandemic”
New Yinzer
See my Bedford Gazette archive here.
Guest Appearances
In 2015, after writing “Hanging Out with America’s Elite, Underappreciated Court Reporters.” for Vice, I appeared on NPR’s Word of Mouth.
In 2018, after writing “The rise of on-demand fuel means the poor will inherit gas stations” for The Outline, I appeared on Tech News Weekly.
FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER
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RT @Zaron3: this lazy phrasing makes it seems like Republicans are acting reasonably to, you know, counter a threat because the… https://t.co/DYo9DAauR1
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RT @propublica: For decades, Justice Clarence Thomas has secretly accepted luxury trips from a major Republican donor, newly obtain… https://t.co/g1UyAPb1HQ
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RT @DKThomp: This is just silly. If NPR receiving less than 1% of its revenue from federal government programs makes it "state… https://t.co/mXhvH5Ikcu
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BREAKING: Former President Donald Trump farted in the courtroom. Sources are telling me it was loud and most likely wet in nature.
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The only way the GOP might budge on gun control is if mass shootings start happening at country clubs. And even the… https://t.co/utBf4Z3jJ5