Is real journalism possible in a media world ruled by publicists, news corporations, flimsy web writing, and advertising dollars?
Ron Rosenbaum, a hero from the golden age of magazine writingjust published a long piece in Slate about the fine art of dodging publicists and writing the best story possible.
It's called the Write-Around, a trick of uncovering the most complex picture of your subject, even if they won't talk to you. The essay will teach you a graduate-level course on the art of profile writing. It's an invaluable lesson:
"Consider that the story some call the greatest magazine story ever written, Gay Talese's classic "Frank Sinatra Has a Cold," was a write-around. Talese painted a portrait of Sinatra from the outside, spending long, tedious hours with his flunkies and hangers-on, capturing the ripples and crosscurrents of influence and ego among the nine circles of sycophants who surrounded him that cumulatively told a story of raw power."
If you want more hard-hitting interview advice, check out my Robert Boynton feature, where we culled the best magazine writing advice from his book, The New New Journalism. Thanks to Caitlin for the link.
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