There are two economic realities in America in 2016. There's been a record six straight years of job growth, and new census numbers show incomes have increased at a record rate after years of stagnation. However, income inequality remains significant, and nearly half of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck.

The challenge is right now, I call it the death of critical thinking in America. It's a very worrisome development. More and more people seem to be resisting the idea of standing back and asking questions about something, challenging their beliefs.

Race has been a big issue in this [presidency] campaign [2016].

You have to go where the story is to report on it. As a journalist, you're essentially running to things that other people are running away from.

Anybody who was in the military or a military family has a certain sensitivity to the separation. Everyone knows military wives have the hardest jobs. I was born into one. When I think back to those days, I didn't appreciate it then.

I think we're more relevant than ever because it is such a noisy environment out there. What's a journalist now? It's anybody with a way to get information out and you're sitting there with your smartphone in front of you. That's what we're up against now. There's a lot of unfiltered information. Some of it is accurate, some of it way off base. We're that safe port in the storm.

One of the most important skills at [reporting] is not so much what comes out of your mouth but what you hear. To listen. When you interview people, it's very important to understand the nuances of what they're saying and to understand when they have actually made news-when they've told you something that they haven't told anybody else.