Merchants of Truth by Jill Abramson review – journalism’s troubles

A former editor of the New York Times takes an unsparing look at the decline of US journalismThis book about the commercial takeover of the news business is sure to make a lot of powerful people very angry. Jill Abramson takes an unsparing look at US journalism’s moral decline; as former executive editor of the New York Times, she is someone who knows where most of the bodies are buried and is prepared to draw the reader a detailed map. Names are named, mistakes are exposed, and the writing is unforgiving and unadorned, as befits a woman with “balls like iron cantaloupes”, as one veteran journalist tells her. It is a cracking read, and a complicated one, flawed in many places yet absorbing in its frank desire to hold journalism to account for becoming overly willing to sell out to advertisers and thereby endangering its own future.Abramson compares four media organisations: the New York Times; its longtime rival the Washington Post; BuzzFeed; and Vice. These last two digital media companies, born of early viral content and gonzo reporting, are often the madcap foils to the gravitas of the Times and Post – though by the end it’s clear that all four are closer to each other than they may think. In fact, both the digital and traditional publications have shown great adaptability; BuzzFeed and Vice have unquestionably succeeded, in a short time, in producing compelling journalism, even in Abramson’s telling. As well as a Pulitzer nomination, both have won highly respected... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2019-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #media organisations #longtime rival

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In ‘The World Doesn’t Require You,’ a fictional town delivers essential truths

Rion Amilcar Scott’s story collection is set in Cross River, founded by the members of a successful slave rebellion. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2019-09-09 22:09:32 UTC ]
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Headline Review bags Holsinger novel as Universal snaps up TV rights

Headline Review has scooped Bruce Holsinger's "electrifying" novel, The Gifted School, while rights for a TV version have been secured by Universal Television. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-09-09 04:08:06 UTC ]
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Can Bullet Journaling Save You?

Anna Russell on the Bullet Journal notebook-organization system and its inventor, Ryder Carroll, the author of the best-selling book “The Bullet Journal Method.” Continue reading at New Yorker

[ New Yorker | 2019-09-07 09:00:00 UTC ]
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Why do we assume people are telling us the truth?

Malcolm Gladwell examines the consequential mistakes we make in dealing with strangers. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2019-09-06 13:53:30 UTC ]
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The 50 Best One-Star Amazon Reviews of Goodnight Moon

Margaret Wise Brown’s classic children’s book Goodnight Moon was published on this day in 1947. It’s widely beloved, well-reviewed, and much parodied, and also hated intensely by a serious few. You know where this is going—I compile at least one of these one-star reviews pieces a month, but I... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2019-09-03 08:50:11 UTC ]
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Lost Girls by DJ Taylor review – love, war and literature 1939-51

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[ The Guardian | 2019-08-31 07:58:41 UTC ]
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Review: Two pros aim to make reading fun for kids in 'How to Raise a Reader'

Want your child to love reading? Two New York Times children's book editors give tips on making reading a pleasurable experience Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2019-08-30 18:10:32 UTC ]
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Review: George Takei's 'They Called Us Enemy' shows injustice through a child's eyes

George Takei's graphic memoir "They Called Us Enemy" depicts his childhood years in an internment camp during World War II. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2019-08-30 17:37:01 UTC ]
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Confessions of a Bookseller by Shaun Bythell review – a brilliant sequel

A heart-warming love letter to books and bookshops, by an amenable fellow turned antisocial old misanthrope“I was in here two years ago and you had a book by Roger Penrose. Do you know what happened to it?” Shaun Bythell – owner of the Book Shop in Wigtown, Galloway – has 100,000 books in stock,... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2019-08-24 10:58:38 UTC ]
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JT LeRoy review – a less surprising hoax the second time around

The fake author who fooled the publishing world is brought back to life in a diverting tale that treads familiar ground“Sometimes, a lie’s more truth than the truth,” drawls author JT Leroy, speaking down a crackling telephone line. This straightforward dramatisation of Savannah Knoop’s 2008... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2019-08-18 07:00:10 UTC ]
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Books in the Media: Children's books account for 4.9% of review space

Children's books account for just 4.9% of review space, despite making up a third of the market, according to data from Books in the Media.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-08-15 17:56:13 UTC ]
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After Jeffrey Epstein’s death, conspiracies—and journalism—flourish

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[ Columbia Journalism Review | 2019-08-12 11:54:50 UTC ]
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[ Los Angeles Times | 2019-08-10 01:55:56 UTC ]
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Yet another brutal week for American journalism

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[ Columbia Journalism Review | 2019-08-09 12:12:17 UTC ]
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Revisiting Jill Johnston’s Critique of Robert Bly and ‘Iron John’

In 1992, Jill Johnston wrote for the Book Review about Robert Bly’s 1990 book “Iron John,” in which he analyzed classic fairy tales and applied them to 20th-century masculinity. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2019-08-02 20:48:44 UTC ]
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Revisiting Jill Johnston’s Critique of Richard Bly and ‘Iron John’

In 1992, Jill Johnston wrote for the Book Review about Richard Bly’s 1990 book “Iron John,” in which he analyzed classic fairy tales and applied them to 20th-century masculinity. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2019-08-02 18:42:00 UTC ]
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A 20-year search for the truth behind the Manson Family murders

Journalist Tom O’Neill uncovers disturbing new details about the 1969 crime and its aftermath. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2019-08-01 21:02:12 UTC ]
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Amazon Kindle Oasis Review: Now Is the Perfect Time to Buy an E-Reader

In an era of smartphone addiction, a single-purpose device like an e-reader may help you unplug and focus on content that will bring you joy. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2019-08-01 09:03:32 UTC ]
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Review: Susan Straight's new memoir amplifies stories of strong women who survive and thrive

Susan Straight's new memoir, "In the Country of Women," depicts the tough, trauma-burdened women who have populated her life. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2019-07-30 19:40:36 UTC ]
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Truth in Fiction: Spotlight on Jeanne McWilliams Blasberg

An author’s second novel blends timely themes into a story of familial conflict. (Sponsored) Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-07-15 04:00:00 UTC ]
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