About book Hard News: Twenty-one Brutal Months At The New York Times And How They Changed The American Media (2005)
A clear, fair-minded, sharply written account of the 2001–2003 mismanagement of The New York Times and its consequences, including but not limited to the infamous behavior of one Jayson Blair. Mnookin uses the history of the paper (and of American journalism in general), firsthand interviews, and contemporary news accounts to give us a good context for understanding how the country's most respected paper, with all its money and resources, could be fooled and manipulated by a disturbed, charismatic sycophant. Mnookin breaks down the dysfunctional office politics, overtaxed editorial departments, and shameless cronyism that made it all possible. He also devotes plenty of space the reporters and editors at the Times who broke the Blair story, figured out just how much of his reporting had been invented or stolen, and ensured that the paper assumed accountability for the scandal. Neither a breathless tabloid account nor a dry report, this is a truly involving, important account of some of the worst and best things journalism of capable of.
I wanted to read all the details about the Jayson Blair scandal and how it could have happened at the premier newspaper in America. It took a hundred pages in before we got to it. I understand why we needed all the background, but there were so many names and issues to wade through. In fact the book was so full of briefly mentioned staffers that I kept wanting depth on the main players. Perhaps one could liken it to the scrolling down the nearly endless list of every single person who worked on a movie when you only wanted to know the names of the key players. At the end of the book I didn't really know what made Jayson Blair tick or Howell Raines, for that matter, either. Brief mentions of other writers who'd succumbed to unethical practices were mentioned without adding to the story. I finished the book, but it wasn't as satisfying as the promise before starting it.
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Completely compelling story. Fascinating look into the newspaper world. I do have to warn anyone ordering this through Amazon.com - because I ordered it, I was recommended a "Mr. Big FlexoFlesh Realistic Dildo (Mulato)" (I still have the screen grab because I thought it was so funny) - I couldn't tell if it was just because the word Hard was in the title, or if Amazon was insinuating a lifestyle suggestion for a woman ordering a non-fiction book about the New York Times. Either way they really need to work on their recommendations.
—Ryan
I literally could not put this book down. Seth Mnookin's Hard News is absolutely captivating. Even though we all know the outcome of Jason Blair's enormous fraud by now, Mnookin manages to make the tale so engrossing that you find yourself enmeshed in it right from the start. Mnookin's prose is like looking into a perfectly clear pool of water, and his honest, in-depth portrayal of the embattled Times manages to be both sympathetic and critical. I look forward to reading anything Mnookin chooses to write, but I hope he continues to tackle the biggest issue facing our ailing media today - telling the truth
—Erica Verrillo
