It was the day I finally got it — what it means to be an editor.
My first day as managing editor of the old News American in Baltimore was almost over. I was sitting alone in my office, looking … Read more
Ask great reporters to name their most powerful tool, and you just might hear this:
The question.
Not just any question, but one that is simple, open-ended and all but requires the subject to abandon the relative safety of … Read more
Miami Herald reporter Carol Rosenberg has been covering the Guantanamo Bay detention center in Cuba for twelve years.
“The only people who have been at Gitmo longer than me are the prisoners,” she said in a recent phone interview.
As … Read more
Some of our best ideas come when we’re taking a break from concentration. At least, that’s what recent research says. Since the concept for this column coalesced while I was sweating my way through a Zumba class, I’m prepared to … Read more
In “The Boys on the Bus,” Timothy Crouse’s fabled book about the press and the 1972 presidential campaign, Jim Naughton was the quiet and contemplative New York Times reporter who toiled alongside the outsized and flamboyant Johnny Apple.
After he … Read more
When the Toledo Police Department refused to release a gang map that showed which gangs claimed which neighborhoods in the small city 60 miles southwest of Detroit, crime reporter Taylor Dungjen decided to create her own.
That’s the short version … Read more
A story from the Boston Globe has been getting a lot of buzz, and rightly so. It was written by Eric Moskowitz, and describes the harrowing experience of a young Chinese man carjacked by the two Boston Marathon bombers. … Read more
Working with writers can be tough: from thinking of creative story ideas that haven’t been covered or written 10 times yet, to justifying a decision about running a particular photograph or identifying a source. Brainstorming with a diverse group of … Read more
While covering the Boston explosions and manhunt last week, journalists became part of the story. They did an admirable job covering many aspects of the tragedy, but they also made mistakes that caused confusion and led to widespread criticism.… Read more
Doug Feaver has no illusions about his new job.
“My primary mission is to respond to readers,” says the Washington Post’s new reader representative.
In other words, he is not an ombudsman.
“This is different — I’m not [charged with] … Read more