 Mathison was born in Baldwin, Nassau County, New York, earned his B.A.in international affairs and political science from the State University of New York at Brockport in 1984, and received a Masters degree in international affairs from Columbia University in 1995.After earning his B.A., he worked in the early software industry and, in 1994, joined Reuters NewMedia, where he pioneered online content syndication, creating and launching a service called "Target News" in 1998.