Christopher Null
Writer, Journalist, Editor
Technology, Business, Lifestyle, Wine & Spirits

ABOUT

Christopher Null is an award-winning journalist, editor, and novelist. He is widely known as the editor of the popular wine and spirits website Drinkhacker, launched in 2007, and was the founding editor of Filmcritic.com, which was launched in 1995 and was acquired by AMC Television in 2009.

Null has more than 25 years of experience working in business and technology journalism, having worked as a top editor for PC Computing, Smart Business, and New Architect magazines early in his career. He was the founding editor of Mobile PC magazine in 2003, the first ever periodical focused exclusively on mobile technology, and later spent over four years writing about tech daily for Yahoo! as “The Working Guy” and six years as the tech columnist for Executive Travel magazine. Today he continues to write regularly for Wired, TechHive, AAA’s Via Magazine, and numerous other publications. His commentary on the business and tech world has been featured by CNN, National Public Radio, The Wall Street Journal, and many other media outlets. He received a BBA from The University of Texas at Austin in 1993 and an MBA also from Texas in 1996.

Today, Null runs his own media company, Null Media LLC, which provides editorial consulting, strategic direction, and writing services for a range of organizations.

Null’s first novel, Half Mast, was published in 2002 and was heralded as “the best of contemporary American fiction” by the New York Resident. His 2005 book, Five Stars!, a how-to guide for aspiring film critics, has been used as a textbook for film criticism curriculum at a number of colleges and universities. It was reissued in 2013 in its second edition. His second novel, The Cul-de-sac, is set for publication in February 2025 by Tule Mystery and is now available for pre-order.

GIGS

2011-present, Founder and Editor in Chief, Null Media LLC
2007-present, Editor in Chief, Drinkhacker
2021-present, Editor in Chief, Hewlett Packard Enterprise Enterprise.nxt, The Doppler (contract)
2012-2024, Editor in Chief, Film Racket
2010-2015, Blog Editor, Intuit Small Business Blog (contract)
2010, Columnist/Blogger, Yahoo! News, Technology
2006-2010, Columnist/Blogger, Yahoo! Tech
2003-2005, Editor in Chief, Mobile magazine (formerly Mobile PC)
2002-2003, Editor in Chief, New Architect magazine
1998-2002, Reviews Editor & Executive Editor, Smart Business magazine (formerly PC Computing)
1997-1998, Managing Reviews Editor, LAN Times magazine
1995-2012, Founder, Editor in Chief, Publisher, & Director, Filmcritic.com (acquired by AMC Television in 2009)
1995-1997, Contributing Editor, Feedback magazine
1994-1997, Entertainment Forum Moderator, The Diner online service
1994-1996, Contributing Editor/Columnist/Film Critic, Texas Business Weekly
1991-1993, Associate Editor, Scream N Meme magazine
1991-1992, Editorial Columnist, The Daily Texan

SELECTED CLIPS

GREATEST HITS

“Hello, I’m Mr. Null. My Name Makes Me Invisible to Computers,” Wired, November 2015
“Google, Why Won’t You Let Me Forget My Divorce?,” Wired, May 2015
“Online Reviews Are Being Bought and Paid For. Get Used to It,” Wired, February 2024
“The Reality of Covid-19 Is Hitting Teens Especially Hard,” Wired, April 2020
“Don’t Mess with Texas Bourbon,” Distiller, November 2023
“Juiced: How to Make Mass-Produced Wine Taste Great,” Wired, May 2014
“One Man’s Quest to Reveal What’s Actually in Your Favorite Wines,” Wired, July 2014

FEATURES

“Can anti-bias efforts help women get their voices back?” Enterprise.nxt, December 2021
“Why is it so difficult to harness energy from the ocean?” Enterprise.nxt, October 2021
“Is it wrong to pay ransom?” Enterprise.nxt, August 2021
“6 Ways to Detect a Phishing Email or Text Message,” Via, July/August 2021
“The resilience quotient,” Microsoft WorkLab, April 2021
“5 Ways To Secure and Streamline the WFH Supply Chain,” Endpoint, January 2021
“How supercomputers are identifying Covid-19 therapeutics,” Enterprise.nxt, November 2020
“Protect Yourself From Identity Theft,” Via, November 2020
“Going Solar: My Year-Long Quest to Get Off the Grid,” Wired, November 2020
“How to Protect Yourself from a SIM Swapping Attack,” Via, June 2020
“The 10 Worst Tech Product Launches of the 2010s,” Wired, December 2019
“The Write Stuff: 4 College Admissions Essay Editing Services Reviewed,” Wired, October 2019
“Can a Test Tell You Which Pills to Pop with Just a Prick?,” Wired, May 2019
“Walmart Stocks Up on AI-Fueled Insights,” CA Modern Software Factory Hub, April 2018
“5 Tech Trends Changing the Way We Travel,” Via, Fall 2017
“Augmented reality: A catalyst for the coming cognitive revolution,” PricewaterhouseCoopers Tech Forecast, June 2016
“How will people create content for augmented reality?,” PricewaterhouseCoopers Tech Forecast, May 2016
“How will people interact with augmented reality?,” PricewaterhouseCoopers Tech Forecast, April 2016
“Re-creating Reality,” chapter from The Future of Making, Autodesk, 2016
“I Used Myself as a Guinea Pig for 8 Alternative Sleep Aids,” Wired, April 2015
“How to optimize your home lighting design based on color temperature,” TechHive, March 2015
“Why the fax still lives (and how to kill it),” PC World, January 2014
“The unreal deal: How to ID phony phones, counterfeit CPUs, and other tech traps,” PC World, September 2013
“The worst deals in tech: Are you being fleeced by these 7 overpriced products?,” PC World, August 2013
“Inside e-ployment: Online staffing services put temporary labor within reach of small businesses,” PC World, July 2013
“You’re Gonna Want to Sit Down for This: 6 High-End Desk Chairs Reviewed,” Wired, June 2013
“9 Social Media Mistakes Your Business Must Avoid,” PC World, May 2013
“8 Ways the Death of Cash Will Change Your Life,” Laptop, April 2013
“The 21 Worst Tech Habits–And How to Break Them,” PC World, April 2013
“8 Secrets to Super-Productive Telecommuting,” PC World, April 2013
“Make Your Business Shine Online: 8 Steps to Boost Visibility,” PC World, March 2013
“Do Social Media Ads Really Work? We Put Them to the Test,” PC World, February 2013
“How to Clean Up Your Business’s Online Reputation,” PC World, January 2013
“45,000 PC World Readers Name the Brands They Love (and Love to Hate),” PC World, December 2012
“Does Your Small Business Need a Mobile App to Stay Competitive?,” PC World, December 2012
“6 Kickstarter Nightmares, and How to Prevent Them,” PC World, November 2012
“Key Strategies for Your New Organized Office,” PC World, September 2012
“How to Improve Your Site’s Search Engine Ranking with SEO,” PC World, August 2012
“The 5 Best Online Marketplaces for Selling Handmade Goods,” PC World, May 2012
“How to Get Your Business Started on YouTube,” PC World, April 2012
“Beyond Yelp: Which User Services Matter?” PC World, February 2012
“Four Virtual Assistants Tackle Real-World Tasks,” PC World, October 2011
“15 Top Transportation Apps for Planes, Trains, and Cars,” PC World, October 2010
“Which Online Mapping Service Is Best?” PC World, October 2010
“10 Businesses You Can Start From Your Smartphone,” PC World, September 2010
“Defeat Tech Distractions,” PC World, May 2010
“Technology’s Most (and Least) Reliable Brands,” PC World, February 2010
“Technology We’ll Miss When It’s Gone,” PC World, November 2009
“How to Avoid Facebook and Twitter Disasters,” PC World, August 2009
“Facebook Etiquette: 10 Rules for Better Socializing,” PC World, July 2009
“How to Live Your Entire Life on Facebook,” PC World, March 2009
“How to Start an Online Business for $100,” PC World, November 2008
“15 Hot New Technologies That Will Change Everything,” PC World, October 2008
“25 Best Business Software Tools and Web Services,” PC World, September 2008
“What Does It Take to Get a PC with XP?” PC World, July 2008
“Top 50 Tech Visionaries,” PC World, May 2008
“Ten Great (but Fake) Tech and Science Videos,” PC World, September 2007
“The Best: Top Geek Vacations,” Wired, June 2007
“The 50 Best Tech Products of All Time,” PC World, April 2007 (Maggie Award winner)
“The 50 Most Important People on the Web,” PC World, March 2007
“Smart Phones Get Smarter,” PC World, February 2007
“The 15 Best Places to Waste Time on the Web,” PC World, December 2006
“The 13 Most Embarrassing Web Moments,” PC World, November 2006
“The Future of Your PC,” PC World, October 2006
“The Best: 10 Deadliest Poisons,” Wired, August 2006
“5 Hot Products for the Future,” Business 2.0, July 2006
“All-Star Tech Stores,” PC World, June 2006
“Broadband To Go,” PC World, March 2006
“23 Things to Do With a Thumb Drive,” PC World, February 2006
“Nice (Horizontal) Pants!” Business 2.0, December 2005
“23 Computing Cures,” Maximum PC, August 2005 [PDF]
“The Mobile Crash Kit,” Mobile, August 2005 [PDF]
“The Birth of the Notebook,” Mobile PC, April 2005 [PDF]
“Pseudo-Scientific Real World Testing: Is It Safer to Drive Drunk or On the Phone?” Mobile PC, February 2005 (reprinted in Maximum PC, July 2009)
“How Netflix is Fixing Hollywood,” Business 2.0, July 2003
“The Check is in the Car,” Business 2.0, July 2003
“Mess with the Bull, Get the Horns,” Smart Business, November 2001

TECH NEWS / ANALYSIS

“Everything You Need to Know About Microsoft Copilot+ PCs,” Wired, September 2024
“How visualization tools can unlock the potential of a truly data-driven organization,” Elastic, February 2022
“Can new machine learning model GPT-3 change AI for business?,” Workflow, May 2021
“Yes, the Robots Are Coming: Jobs in the Era of Humans and Machines,” Wired, May 2018
“Winning Over Boomers Online,” Rackspace CMO Digital Forum, October 2015
“The moral of the Twitter-GoDaddy breach: People are the easiest thing to hack,” PC World, January 2014
“The 9 Lessons of WikiLeaks,” eSecurity Planet, January 2011
“New Year’s Tech Resolutions for Small Businesses,” PC World, December 2010
“Top 10 Blowhards of the Web,” TechHive, September 2009
“Does Gaming at Work Improve Productivity?” PC World, December 2008
“The 411 on Your Next Cellphone,” Popular Science, July 2008
“The Computer That Reads Hand Signals,” Popular Science, June 2008
“Super Charged,” Popular Science, July 2007 [PDF]
“The Best: Web 2.0 Acquisition Bait,” Wired, January 2007
“No Longer Safe for Work: Blogs,” Wired News, October 24, 2005
“Musical Geeks Mine 8-Bit Sound,” Wired News, October 13, 2005
“Photoshop Magic Melts Prison Bars,” Wired News, October 5, 2005
“Buck Stops for Web Panhandlers,” Wired News, June 10, 2003
“Lamo Hacks Cingular Claims Site,” Wired News, May 29, 2003
“Online, Some Bloggers Never Die,” Wired News, April 22, 2003
“Misfired Messages Roil Businesses,” Wired News, April 1, 2003
“Paypal Tightens Transaction Reins,” Wired News, March 26, 2003
“Hackers Run Wild and Free on AOL,” Wired News, February 21, 2003
“Down and Out, South by Southwest,” Smart Business, July 2001
“Free Windows?” Smart Business, January 2001
“Web of Lies,” PC Computing, January 2000
“The Free Economy Goes Bankrupt,” PC Computing, December 1999
“Cyber Swindle,” Austin Chronicle, January 1997

OPINION

“I Monitor My Teens’ Electronics, and You Should Too,” Wired, January 2020
“Solving the Gadget Power Crisis: One Nuke at a Time” (prank), Mobile PC, April 2005 [PDF]
“A Few of My Favorite Gadgets,” Mobile PC, March 2005 [PDF]

INTERVIEWS

James Carville: “James Carville, New Spokesman for Maker’s Mark,” Drinkhacker, August 2012
Kevin Smith: “How To: Improve Your Home Movies,” Wired, August 2006
Mark Ecko: “What’s On Your Mobile?,” Mobile PC, October 2004 [PDF]
Michael Schrage (MIT Media Lab): “Inside Line,” Smart Business, December 2001/January 2002
Tony Romeo (Unilever): “Inside Line,” Smart Business, July 2001
Neil Armstrong: “From Spaceman To Chairman,” Smart Business, January 2001
Sky Dayton: “Inside Line,” PC Computing, March 2000
Barry Sonnenfeld: “Back in Black,” San Jose Magazine, April 1998

PRODUCT REVIEWS

“Apple AirPods Pro 2 With Hearing Aid Feature,” Wired, October 2024
“The Best All-in-One Computers,” Wired, August 2024
“The Best Hearing Aids,” Wired, August 2024
“Best robot pool cleaners of 2024: Less cleaning = more swimming,” TechHive, March 2024
“6 Popular Video Conferencing Tools Compared,” Wired, April 2020
“5 Best Gaming Laptops Under $1,000,” Forbes, December 2018
“Best Gaming Laptops You Can Buy Right Now,” Forbes, December 2018
“Best Universal Remote Control 2018,” TechHive, October 2018
“‘Tis But a Scratch: Misadventures in Automotive Scratch Repair,” Wired, February 2018
“iWalk2.0: The Crazy Pegleg of the Future,” Wired, April 2017
“TruMedic Instashiatsu+,” Wired, December 2016
“Sphero Battle-Worn BB8 with Force Band,” Wired, December 2016
“Furby Connect,” Wired, November 2016
“Best Color LED Smart Bulbs,” TechHive, December 2016
“Vaio Z Canvas,” Wired, November 2015
“Microsoft Surface Pro 4,” Wired, October 2015
“We Put 4 Home Weather Stations to the Test,” Wired, March 2015
“Super-Luxurious Office Chairs That’ll Keep Your Tushy Cushy,” Wired, August 2014
“Lenovo Thinkpad X1 Carbon Touch,” Wired, February 2013
“Best of the Mobile Web,” PC World, October 2007
“Two, Two, Two Chips in One,” (dual-core laptops), Wired, May 2006
“Battery Boosters,” PC World, April 2006
“Dell Inspiron XPS-2,” Mobile, May 2005 [PDF]
“The Best Software You’re Not Using,” PC World, October 2003
“Ultimate Bargain PCs,” Smart Business, June 2002
“Toshibo Libretto L1,” Wired, September 2001
“Multimedia Moguls,” (desktop PCs) Men’s Journal, June 2001
“Scan I Am,” (scanners), Working Woman, April 2001
“Flat Is Where It’s At,” (LCD monitors), Working Woman, February 2001
“Like to Watch? / The Search Is On,” (various reviews), PC Computing, August 1999 [alt link]

TECH HOW-TO STORIES

“Care for Your Pet While You’re Away with These Devices,” Via, October 2024
“Smart Home Security: Keeping Tabs on Your House,” This Old House, December 2021
“How to Ace an Online Job Interview,” Wired, April 2020
“How to Run Your Business in Evernote,” PC World, October 2012
“Hardware Speed Boosts for Your PC,” PC World, March 2011
“Software Speed Boosts for Your PC,” PC World, March 2011
“Networking Speed Boosts,” PC World, March 2011
“How Do You Know When Your PC Is Too Slow?” PC World, March 2011
“5-Minute Fixes for Windows PCs,” PC World, November 2010
“Fast Fixes for Office Annoyances,” PC World, November 2010
“The 25 Worst High-Tech Habits (and How to Fix Them),” PC World, November 2010
“Work Smarter in Windows: 55 Great Productivity Tips,” PC World, October 2010
“Search Engine Optimization for Your Web Site,” PC World, December 2008
“Step-by-Step: 5 Laptop Upgrades You Can Do Yourself,” also: GPU and CPU upgrades, PC World, August 2008
“50 Ways to Make Your Software Do More,” PC World, February 2008
“How to Survive the Worst PC Disasters,” PC World, May 2007
“35 Things Every PC Owner Should Know,” PC World, March 2007
“Networking Made Easy,” (how-to), PC Computing, September 1999

FOOD, WINE, & SPIRITS

“The Distillation Will Be Televised,” Distiller, August 2024
“Review: Coravin Sparkling,” Wired, July 2023
“Review: Moba Smart Barrel,” Wired, June 2023
“Review: Bev by Black & Decker Cocktail Maker,” Wired, December 2022
“Goldbelly’s Meat Cheat Sheet,” Instagram, May 2021
“Japanese Whiskey and the Art of Blending,” Distiller, October 2018
“Want the Nose of a Sommelier? Try a Wine Aroma Kit,” Wired, October 2018
“Review: Midwest Supplies ‘Beer. Simply Beer.’ Brewing Kit,” Wired, December 2016
“A Vintage Enterprise,” Comcast Business, April 2016
“One Too Many? These Breathalyzers Will Tell You,” Wired, October 2015
“Wine Sulfites Are Fine, But Here’s How to Remove Them Anyway,” Wired, June 2015
“This Guy Says He Can Make 20-Year-Old Rum in 6 Days,” Wired, March 2015
“Pocket Vino: We Review 5 Apps for Managing Your Wine Cellar,” TechHive, March 2015
“We Put 5 Instant-Read Meat Thermometers to the Test,” Wired, February 2015
“Scour Grapes: We Put 5 Wine-Stain Removers to the Test,” Wired, January 2015
“Two Pro-Level Blenders for the Smoothie Specialist,” Wired, May 2014
“Raise Your Spirits: 7 Clever Toys to Trick Out Your Bar,” Wired, October 2013
“Whisky Blender Provides Bespoke Potables by Mail,” Wired, March 2012
“Sangrita Recipe,” Food Republic, June 2011
“Baby It’s Cold Inside: One Man’s Search for the Perfect Ice Cube,” Wired, January 2011
“Winebloggin’,” Parts 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – 6. Wired, July 2008 – March 2009
“Brain Food,” Mobile, August 2005 [PDF]
“Vino a Go-Go,” Mobile PC, December 2004
“Brew It Yourself,” Silicon Valley Home, May 2004
“The Whine About Wine,” San Francisco Magazine, August 2003
“Read the Wine Print,” San Francisco Magazine, July 2003
“Bring on the Wine Glut,” San Francisco Magazine, May 2003
“The Hamburger, Deconstructed,” San Francisco Magazine, April 2003
Collected Drinkhacker.com posts, 2007-present

MISCELLANY

“5 Pricing Strategies to Maximize Profits,” Intuit White Paper [PDF], July 2014
“How Long Do You Need to Save Those Tax Files?,” Intuit Small Business Blog, May 2011
“How to Get Paid and Collect Money You’re Owed,” Intuit Small Business Blog, November 2010
“How to Ace a Press Interview / Multitask / Get Promoted / Get Fired,” Wired, August 2007
“The Best Geek Vacations: The South Pole, Chernobyl, Tatooine,” Wired, July 2007
“The Best: Deadly Poisons, Ingested or Inhaled,” Wired, August 2006
“The Worst: Stupid Engineering Mistakes,” Wired, June 2006
“Firing Line,” (virtual reality cop games), PC Computing, June 2000
“Bad Boys,” (SFPD ride-along), PC Computing, March 2000

OFFLINE / DISCLAIMER

By and large, stories from Smart Business, Working Woman, San Jose Magazine, PC Computing, Internet World, Computer Gaming World, and PC Week are not archived online. Older links may not work. Scans have been uploaded where available. Additional clips on request.

BOOKS

The Cul-de-sac – novel publishing February 2025, Tule Mystery
Five Stars! How to Become a Film Critic, The World’s Greatest Job – non-fiction published 2005, second edition 2013, Sutro Press
Half Mast – novel published 2002, Sutro Press
PricewaterhouseCoopers E-Business Technology Forecast, 2002-2004 – (co-author) nonfiction published 2002, PWC
Network Professional’s Library: Network Administrator’s Reference – (co-author) nonfiction published 1999, Osborne/McGraw-Hill

FILM AND SCREENPLAYS

Scoot! (director, co-producer, camera) – short film – 2001
“Streetwalker” (writer, producer) – commercial – 2001
Pressurecooker (writer, producer, actor) – short film – 1997

SELECTED APPEARANCES AND INTERVIEWS

WVXU Cincinnati, Cincinnati Edition With Lucy May, October 30, 2024
NBC News Now, Top Story With Tom Llamas, October 21, 2024
Radiolab, “NULL,” April 15, 2022
Eric Schwartzman Digital Marketing Podcast, B2B Lead Generation and Content Marketing, November 18, 2020
KCBS 740AM San Francisco, “Steep Tariffs On European Wine Will Hurt Domestic Industry, Expert Predicts,” January 9, 2020
BYURadio’s “Constant Wonder,” August 22, 2019
BBC’s QI Series 14, Episode 5, December 2017
NPR’s Wait, Wait… Don’t Tell Me,” Bluff the Listener,” April 2, 2016
CBS Chicago, “What’s in Your Wine?” February 5, 2016
CBS Channel 2 New York, News at 11 (wine additives), January 15, 2016
AP, “Distillers Get Hopping Mad for New Liquor Flavoring Trend,” January 28, 2015
This Week in Tech (TWiT), Tech News Today, November 25, 2013
This Week in Tech (TWiT), Tech News Today, June 25, 2013
Business Superstar (Interview), April 8, 2013
Hacking Media Production Podcast, April 3, 2013
This Week in Tech (TWiT), Tech News Today, December 13, 2012
This Week in Tech (TWiT), Tech News Today, August 30, 2012
NPR’s Marketplace, “Apple’s ‘Genius’ Manual for Customer Service” August 30, 2012
NPR’s Marketplace, “Paper or Digital? How Do You Want Your Map?” June 7, 2012
This Week in Tech (TWiT), Tech News Today, May 16, 2012
NPR’s Marketplace, “Where’d Nigeria Get So Many Princes, Anyway?” March 23, 2012
This Week in Tech (TWiT), Tech News Today, February 14, 2012
This Week in Tech (TWiT), Tech News Today, August 25, 2011
This Week in Tech (TWiT), Tech News Today, March 10, 2011
This Week in Tech (TWiT), Tech News Today, January 4, 2011
NPR’s Marketplace, “Apple’s New App Store: Coming to a Screen Near You,” December 17, 2010
This Week in Tech (TWiT), Tech News Today, July 22, 2010
On Garner Road, Episode 8: Film, Tech, and Whisky, May 6, 2010
KROQ’s The Kevin & Bean Show, April 5, 2010
wsRadio San Diego, April, 2010
ESPN2’s First Take, March 8, 2010
Osmosis Online, “Ingredients for a Drinkhacker: an Interview with Christopher Null,” February, 2010
NPR’s Marketplace, “Moment of Truth for MySpace,” June 17, 2009
G4TechTV’s Attack of the Show, January 10, 2009
Into Tomorrow with Dave Graveline, December 12, 2008
ABC 7 View from the Bay, September 18, 2008
ABC 7 View from the Bay, May 6, 2008
Computer America radio, January 17, 2008
NBC 5 Chicago, June 11, 2007
Fine Living Network, “Tech Check,” December 9, 2006
Cranky Geeks, August 17, 2006
G4TechTV’s Attack of the Show, August 5, 2005
CNN Live Sunday, February 19, 2005
The Travel Channel’s Travel Gear, November 6, 2004
CNN.com, “Rehashed Summer Smashes,” May 16, 2003
TechTV’s Call for Help, August 28, 2002
NPR’s All Things Considered, September 1, 2000
TechTV’s The Screen Savers, August 3, 1999

Null was on The Screen Savers about a dozen times from 1998 to 2000, but those shows appear tragically lost to time. Today he is a frequent guest on San Francisco TV newscasts, is interviewed regularly by a variety of print media, and is a regular guest on a variety of radio programs around the world.

AWARDS

2 National Magazine Awards, 1999, 2000 >>>
17 American Society of Business Publishing Editors Awards, 2000, 2001, 2002
Jesse H. Neal Award, 1999
3 Computer Press Association Awards, 1999, 2000
4 WPA Maggie Awards, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2008
Folio Award, 1999
3 Ozzie Awards, 2000, 2002
B2B Magazine Award, 2012

CONTACT

e-mail: null at nullmedia dot com
web: drinkhacker.com
web: nullmedia.com
personal blog: chrisnull.com
head shots