On Tuesday, Donald Rumsfeld—who, as defense secretary under George W. Bush, was a driving force behind the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq—died. Major outlets wheeled out pre-written obituaries. The AP’s, by Robert Burns, bordered on hagiography. Its headline initially declared Rumsfeld “a cunning leader undermined by Iraq war”; that language was later changed to “cunning leader who oversaw a ruinous Iraq war,” but the opening paragraph still says that “try as he might,” Rumsfeld “could not outmaneuver the ruinous politics of the Iraq war,” as if he had been forced to play chess against a supercomputer. The Iraqi death toll from the war is not noted; the American death toll is—but not before Rumsfeld’s charitable work on behalf of veterans, his “accomplished” college wrestling career, and colleagues’ recollections of his smarts and patriotism. The first words of the article’s URL are “Chicago Bears,” a reference to the football team Rumsfeld supported as a kid. Because the AP is a wire service, the obituary was republished widely. Other prominent efforts were better, but did not adequately foreground the human cost of Rumsfeld’s military aggression: The New York Times addressed Iraq only after mentioning the records he broke as defense secretary (he was the youngest person in that post, under Gerald Ford, then the oldest, under Bush) and his reputation as a “combative infighter” who challenged “military orthodoxies.” The Washington Post described him as “controversial,” but... Continue reading at 'Columbia Journalism Review'
[ Columbia Journalism Review | 2021-07-02 12:32:38 UTC ]
Charmaine Craig sells a novel to Grove Atlantic, Threshold Editions buys a memoir from Kellyanne Conway, and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-02-11 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Midwest publishers are optimistic sales gains in 2021 will carry into 2022 despite supply chain issues. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-02-11 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
In 'Home/Land: A Memoir of Departure and Return,' Rebecca Mead, who returned to England after decades as an expat, asks what it means to be home. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-02-09 14:00:23 UTC ]
More news stories like this
In They Said They Wanted Revolution: A Memoir of My Parents, Iranian American author and Vice journalist Neda Toloui-Semnani reconstructed the story of her parents as young, leftist Iranian activists radicalized at Berkeley in the late ’60s and who came to see communism as the political answer... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2022-02-08 12:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Sarah Blake's latest post-apocalyptic novel, Mellors' satirical debut about a couple's impulsive marriage, and Lavery's speculative memoir are new this week The post Tuesday New Release Day: Starring Manguso, Blake, Lavery, and More appeared first on The Millions. Continue reading at The Millions
[ The Millions | 2022-02-08 10:59:06 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Vera, a cello player and Scrabble devotee, has been a New York Times subscriber for the past 75 years, developing her print habit somewhere around the Truman administration. These days, she's reading stories about Eugene O'Neill, TV dinners, book publishing and "getting older without getting... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2022-02-07 11:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Containers full of books at the bottom of the ocean are just one problem for an industry facing a host of shortagesThe supply chain crisis over the last year has caused quite a splash for the book publishing industry – literally.In early January, a large shipping vessel coming from Taiwan was... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-02-07 07:00:04 UTC ]
More news stories like this
The former defense secretary dropped a lawsuit against the Defense Department after it reversed decisions on what parts of his memoir were to be redacted, his lawyer said. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-02-05 17:11:36 UTC ]
More news stories like this
In this memoir of his early career, Amartya Sen emphasizes the rewards of an open-minded approach to the world. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-02-04 13:00:36 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Former U.S. attorney general Eric Holder sells a book about voting rights to One World, Random House buys a memoir from Deadwood creator David Milch, and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-02-04 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
In “Enough Already,” the veteran actor dishes about marriage, motherhood and what really matters to her right now. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-02-03 10:00:02 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Swift Press has acquired Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me after its author and original publisher Picador ‘parted company’ last month following widespread criticism of the bookAn independent publisher, Swift Press, has acquired Kate Clanchy’s Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me,... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-02-01 10:50:18 UTC ]
More news stories like this
The Broadway star is writing a memoir with the help of a journalist who encouraged her to share what she’s really like, alter ego and all. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-01-28 20:55:08 UTC ]
More news stories like this
A Life With Footnotes, by the late author’s former assistant and friend, has been authorised by Pratchett’s estate and is due to be released in SeptemberRob Wilkins, Terry Pratchett’s former assistant and friend, is writing the official biography of the late Discworld author, which will move... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-01-26 11:21:41 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Stephen Rubin, a consulting publisher at Simon & Schuster US, has written a behind the scenes memoir, Words and Music: Confessions of an Optimist, to be published by Applause Books in the US in January 2023. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2022-01-24 03:29:19 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Penguin Press buys a new novel from Celeste Ng, William Barr sells a memoir to Morrow, and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-01-21 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Gill Books has pre-empted a "winding and bucolic" lockdown memoir by John Connell. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2022-01-18 15:05:08 UTC ]
More news stories like this
“Free,” by Lea Ypi, is a memoir about growing up in Albania amid the fall of communism. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-01-18 10:00:04 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Before he helped bring down Richard Nixon, the reporter grew up in a school of hard knocks. His memoir is a treasureFew reporters are synonymous with their craft. Bob Woodward of the Washington Post is one, his former partner, Carl Bernstein, another. Together, they broke open the Watergate... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-01-16 07:00:43 UTC ]
More news stories like this
A memoir by a man who has drawn caricatures for the greatest editors is a treasure trove of the American mid-century modernAt 92, Edward Sorel is the grand old man of New York magazines. For 60 years, his blistering caricatures have lit up the pages of Harper’s, the Atlantic, Esquire, Time,... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-01-15 07:00:17 UTC ]
More news stories like this