INSIDE AZCENTRAL WITH E.J. MONTINI

We’re bringing you an inside view of the people and journalism behind Arizona’s largest newsroom. Weekdays, we’ll feature a questionnaire from a personality at azcentral.com, 12 News or The Arizona Republic.

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E.J. Montini has been a news columnist at The

Republic since 1986, proving that the principal of St. Titus Roman Catholic Grade School was correct all those years ago when she told his mother that her son’s smart mouth would get him nowhere. Twitter: @ejmontini Facebook: www.facebook.com/ejmontini E-mail: ed.montini@arizonarepublic.com

I never miss: Kent Somers’ Cardinals coverage, Nick Piecoro’s DBacks coverage or the dogged journalism of the best “sports” reporters in town — The Republic/ azcentral.com politics team.

If I weren’t a journalist: I’d be approximately three to five years from parole, or worse (for society), I’d be a teacher. My most memorable voice mail: An anonymous woman described how she and her husband lost their jobs to outsourcing. It broke my heart, and lingers 10 years later.

The most influential journalist in

Arizona: Clay Thompson. There is no close second.

The best part of an integrated news operation like The Repub

lic/12 News/azcentral.com: The immediacy. Video, photos and text of a news event are available in an instant. Then we get to add layer upon layer of context over time.