Steve Henn
Steve Henn is NPR's technology correspondent based in Menlo Park, California, who is currently on assignment with Planet Money. An award winning journalist, he now covers the intersection of technology and modern life - exploring how digital innovations are changing the way we interact with people we love, the institutions we depend on and the world around us. In 2012 he came frighteningly close to crashing one of the first Tesla sedans ever made. He has taken a ride in a self-driving car, and flown a drone around Stanford's campus with a legal expert on privacy and robotics.
But Steve's favorite technology stories are the ones that explain how little-understood innovations can change the way millions of us behave. Why do people buy cows in Farmville? Why are video games so compelling and why do some people have such a hard time setting Twitter aside? He is fascinated by how digital companies attempt to mold our behavior and study our every move in a world where we are constantly interacting with connected devices.
Prior to moving to Silicon Valley in 2010, Steve covered a wide range of topics for the public radio show Marketplace. His reporting kicked off the congressional travel scandals in late 2004, and helped expose the role of private military contractors at Abu Ghraib.
At Marketplace, Henn helped establish collaborations with the Center for Public Integrity and the Medill's School of Journalism.
Steve spent his early life on a farm in Iowa where his parents, who are biochemists, hoped to raise all their own food and become energy self-sufficient. It didn't work. During college Steve hoped to drop out and support himself by working in the fishing industry in Alaska. That also didn't work. After college he biked around the country with his sweetheart, Emily Johnson. He then followed Emily to Africa, volunteering at Soweto Community Radio. That did work out. He and Emily are now happily married with three daughters.
Steve graduated from Wesleyan University's College of Social Studies with honors and Columbia University's Graduate school of Journalism.
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As our world moves more and more into the digital realm, industries that used to be aligned with art and craft are becoming more scientific. Design in particular is increasingly done by the numbers.
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Security officials say the Paris attacks are an example why law enforcement needs to access encrypted data. Privacy advocates and the tech industry say such "back doors" are not the best solution. -
We've come to expect a steady stream of flashy new gadgets from the booming tech sector, but another area of innovation in Silicon Valley is how we work, mainly the structure of our offices and companies. Planet Money tells the story of a company that has no employees, doesn't pay any salaries, but has hundreds of extremely talented workers nonetheless.
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Shyamalan's film The Visit has earned more than $25 million so far. It cost $5 million to shoot. We examine why the new movie might be better because it was made on a micro-budget.
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Netflix is famous for pioneering a company culture that demands standout results from every employee. One of the architects of this philosophy ended up losing her job to the system she created.
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Netflix decision to offer unlimited paid leave to new parents grew out of a culture that already offered unlimited vacation. It's part of a plan to attract the most talented employees possible.
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Google has begun testing a new self-driving car this summer that is designed to work without a steering wheel. But as the Planet Money team reports, the company's biggest challenge may be convincing Americans to hop inside.
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These days, the idea of a driverless car makes a lot of people nervous. Our Planet Money team goes back in time when automatic elevators made people just as worried.
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Robots are really bad at many simple human tasks. One possible workaround: Combine the person with the machine. -
Ross Ulbricht, creator of the website Silk Road, was sentenced to life in prison Friday. The website was a sophisticated criminal enterprise that specialized in selling illegal drugs.
