Does it matter if Joseph Mitchell embellished his journalism?

He is long known to have used composite characters and a new biography will reveal more embellishments – but perhaps that’s the magic of his workOver the weekend, the feathers of American literary journalists ruffled lightly in the breeze of a review that appeared in the New York Review of Books. The review, written by longtime New Yorker staff writer Janet Malcolm, was of an upcoming biography of another New Yorker staff writer, Joseph Mitchell, due to be published in the United States on 28 April. Malcolm’s review can be read as a pre-emptive defence of Mitchell’s legacy as one of the giants of American literary journalism. The biographer in question, Thomas Kunkel, has apparently found more evidence of what was already somewhat known: that Mitchell embellished his nonfiction, often condensing characters and facts to smooth out his stories. In one already well-known example, a long piece called Old Mr Flood condenses several men’s stories into the titular Mr Flood. Mitchell admitted this openly in a preface to the book later published under that name.He has mixed up nonfiction with fiction. He has made an unwholesome, almost toxic brew out of the two genres. It is too bad he is dead and can’t be pilloried. Or perhaps it is all right that he is dead, because he is suffering the torments of hell for his sins against the spirit of fact. And so on.Every writer of nonfiction who has struggled with the ditch and the bushes knows what Mitchell is talking about, but few of us... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-04-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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PW Notables 2023: Mitchell Kaplan

Mitchell Kaplan has been an influential fixture in publishing since he founded the bookstore chain Books & Books in Miami in 1982. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-12-15 05:00:00 UTC ]
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The 'Wall Street Journal' Drops Its Bestseller Lists

With this past weekend's edition, the 'Journal' has ended running weekly bestseller lists. The paper had carried a total of seven lists. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-07 05:00:00 UTC ]
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David Mitchell, Weekly Editor Who Exposed a Corrupt Cult, Dies at 79

His tiny California newspaper won a Pulitzer Prize for its exposé of Synanon, a renowned drug rehabilitation program that had turned into a violent operation. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2023-11-01 21:32:07 UTC ]
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From ancient Jewish texts to AI, a sequence of figures turns matter into meaning

Computer languages are ultimately rendered in ones and zeros, even AI programs. Though this technology is new, the concept it’s hinged on is not. Isaac Asimov’s iconic science fiction collection I, Robot, tells the story of androids created at U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men Inc. The androids... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2023-10-17 06:00:00 UTC ]
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Music, history and courageous journalism: Baillie Gifford prize shortlist announced

Judges praise the final six ‘exquisite and ambitious’ works in contention for the £50,000 award for nonfictionBooks tackling climate change, China, the NHS, European revolutions, ballet and music feature on the shortlist for this year’s Baillie Gifford prize for nonfiction.The six-long list... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-10-08 19:00:48 UTC ]
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Albanese says attacks on Dan Andrews ‘low point in journalism’ as News Corp vitriol continues after resignation

Murdoch papers declare the premier’s electoral popularity was a ‘cult’ and his legacy nothing but a state ‘deep in debt’Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastThe Sunday Herald Sun’s front-page photo of the... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-09-27 03:28:06 UTC ]
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Why It Matters That Marvel Comics Are Becoming Penguin Classics

This month, Penguin released the three latest titles in its Penguin Classics Marvel Collection. We spoke with the series editor, Ben Saunders, and two authors who wrote forewords to the books, Jerry Craft and Rainbow Rowell, about the importance of enshrining comics in the literary canon. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-09-20 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Métro Média to declare bankruptcy as local journalism takes another hit

Métro Média will declare bankruptcy this week, permanently ending its coverage of local government in parts of the province's two largest cities, the head of the Quebec newspaper publisher said Sunday. Continue reading at CBC

[ CBC | 2023-09-17 21:15:07 UTC ]
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Scientific journal retracts article that claimed no evidence of climate crisis

Publisher Springer Nature says 2022 article ‘not supported by available evidence’ as editors launch investigationOne of the world’s biggest scientific publishers has retracted a journal article that claimed to have found no evidence of a climate crisis.Springer Nature said it had retracted the... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-08-25 15:00:14 UTC ]
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Christopher Carduff, 'Wall Street Journal' Books Editor, Dies at 66

Carduff, who was named books editor at the 'Wall Street Journal' in 2017, was also a contributing editor for the Library of America Series and the publishing consultant to John Updike's literary trust. He died on August 14. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-08-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Google has a new AI tool for journalism—but should we trust tech to meddle in newsrooms?

Historically, big tech’s attempts to shape how the media operates have often done more harm than good. Google has a new plan to help save journalism—or at least make it easier for journalists to work. The company has been pitching a generative AI-powered product, nicknamed Genesis, to major... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2023-07-21 11:48:19 UTC ]
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It's Pulitzer Prize day, honoring journalism's best work

The Pulitzer Prizes will be awarded Monday to honor outstanding journalism during a violent year that included Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, mass shootings that targeted an elementary school and supermarket, and floods and flames fueled by clima... Continue reading at ABC News

[ ABC News | 2023-05-08 05:17:36 UTC ]
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‘Too greedy’: mass walkout at global science journal over ‘unethical’ fees

Entire board resigns over actions of academic publisher whose profit margins outstrip even Google and AmazonMore than 40 leading scientists have resigned en masse from the editorial board of a top science journal in protest at what they describe as the “greed” of publishing giant Elsevier.The... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-05-07 07:00:16 UTC ]
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Practice Makes Perfect, and Also Nothing Matters: Emily St. John Mandel on Revision and Recklessness

Emily St. John Mandel is the guest. Her latest book, Sea of Tranquility, is out now in paperback from Vintage. Subscribe and download the episode, wherever you get your podcasts!  From the episode: Brad Listi: As I was reading with my writer hat on and thinking about the challenges presented by... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-04-27 08:53:45 UTC ]
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'Halo Infinite' creative head Joseph Staten is leaving Microsoft

Joseph Staten, one of the creatives most closely associated with the Halo franchise, is leaving Microsoft. News of the departure was first reported on Friday by IGN. “We’re grateful for Joseph’s contributions to the Halo franchise and Xbox as a whole," Microsoft told the outlet. “We wish him all... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-04-08 19:10:51 UTC ]
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Springer Nature Partners with Germany’s EMBO Journals

A 'society publisher,' the European Molecular Biology Organization, announces an open-access agreement with Springer Nature. The post Springer Nature Partners with Germany’s EMBO Journals appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2023-03-30 15:11:10 UTC ]
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NYPL Announces 2023 Finalists for Bernstein Excellence in Journalism Award

The New York Public Library has announced its five finalists for the 36th Helen Bernstein Book Award for Journalism. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2023-03-15 15:31:16 UTC ]
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AWP23 in Seattle Showcases Presses, Journals, and Authors

The opening days of this year's Association of Writers and Writing Programs conference featured the presentation of its Small Press Publisher Award to Dzanc Books and a discussion between famed Seattle librarian and 'Book Lust' author Nancy Pearl with novelist Min Jin Lee. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-10 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Do box sets matter in the Spotify era?

Musicians and studios put loads of time and money into special edition commemorative releases, most of which will never be experienced by listeners. From The Velvet Underground to Joni Mitchell, it seems everyone is rolling out a special edition box set these days. Just look at the last few... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2023-01-28 03:00:00 UTC ]
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Big Names in Little Magazines: On Thomas Pynchon’s Very First Literary Journal Appearance

“Thomas Pynchon is a young writer, just twenty, who has previously published fiction in Epoch. He is a Cornell graduate and now lives in Seattle.” Writers know that the time between when a piece is accepted by a literary magazine and when it is actually published can be rather protracted—my... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-12-21 09:53:25 UTC ]
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