About Me — Alastair Goldfisher
From venture reporting to exploring the Orkney Islands, I’m always searching for a good story
Hello! I’m Alastair Goldfisher, a longtime journalist turned content creator and storytelling trainer.
For over three decades, journalism was my calling. I began my career in 1989, covering local news and government in Montebello, California. Fast forward to the mid-1990s, and I found myself as a reporter for what is now called the Silicon Valley Business Journal.
At the Business Journal, I covered a variety of markets, people and stories, including one of the most transformative moments in tech history: the IPO of Netscape in 1995, which is when I first learned how to spell Marc Andreessen’s name. That would come in handy later when I began covering venture capital.
In the late 1990s, I reported on the upswell of news surrounding Silicon Valley, tech, IPOs, dot-coms, venture, entrepreneurship, small business, the business of sports and a host of other subjects. It was a path that took me from reporting at the Business Journal to serving as a journalist covering venture capital for multiple publications, including PE Week, PE Hub, Reuters Small Business and the Venture Capital Journal.
That dedicated venture reporting assignment lasted nearly two decades. I feel fortunate that throughout my career I interviewed politicians, founders, investors, industry leaders and other newsmakers at all stages of their life journeys.
Transition to storytelling & content creation
The pandemic turned out to be a turning point for me, as it did for many others. After years of telling the stories of others, I had to rethink my role. The publication I worked at had 4 different owners in six years. It was time for me to move on so in 2022, I transitioned to freelancing, embracing a more hands-on role as a content creator and storytelling trainer for entrepreneurs and investors.
This new direction has allowed me to leverage my business and venture reporting background to help people and teams develop their narratives, refine their messaging and amplify their voices in a crowded space. You can check out more of my work on my website.
Outside of work
I was born and raised in southern LA County and have lived in the SF Bay Area since 1989. I’m married to an elementary school teacher who works at the very school she attended as kid. In our 32 years of marriage, we raised two wonderful adult sons, one of which provides tech support at the kind of Silicon Valley company I used to report on, and the other is attending my alma mater, San Jose State University, studying kinesiology.
In my free time, I like to take photos, which would no doubt make my mom happy since she always wanted me to be an artist. I’m a longtime vegan and an advocate for animal rescue. My wife and I currently are the guardians of a dog and two cats, all rescues.
Beginning to Explore the World
Travel is a new passion. In June 2024, my wife and I took our first overseas adventure together to Scotland, where we stayed for 3 weeks, exploring much of the country, from the stunning view of the Orkney Islands, in the far north, to Edinburgh, Dundee, Thurso, the Isle of Skye and Glasgow, among other stops along the way. We can’t wait to take our next trip.
Here on Medium, my focus is a blend of topics that cover my career experience and personal interests. Professionally, I plan to write about venture trends, communications and storytelling. I also share reflections on my decades-long history in journalism, media relations and the nuances of the startup ecosystem.
I try to provide readers with insights, practical advice and engaging stories from the intersection of media and venture capital.
I’m recording podcasts and will be doing so much more with that media, in conjunction with my writing here on Medium and on Substack.
With this new chapter on Medium, I hope to connect with fellow writers, creators, and anyone curious about the world of venture and storytelling.
I look forward to learning, sharing and growing in this vibrant community, which I heard someone call the YouTube for writers. I like that!
