Want to open up some political space? Read a poem
A New York Times article about a poetry salon in Syria includes one of the more charming sentences I’ve read in the media lately:…
Read MoreEek, sorry for the intermittent upgrades
I’m told by my hosting service that they’re upgrading some fancy-word-or-other for a thing-I-don’t-understand, and that the upgrade is an emergency security upgrade after…
Read MoreWhy is it so dangerous to be a journalist in Uganda?
Ugandan journalist Allan Brian Ssenyonga, a frequent guest writer on this blog, says Ugandan journalists naively assume press badges and working for the public…
Read MoreHow to help readers trust you if you tweet about rape
Update: For more on earning readers’ trust in trauma stories, see my January/February 2011 article in the Columbia Journalism Review (PDF here with permission)….
Read MoreMy suggestion to @MotherJones on how to handle twitter and rape
Update: For more on this issue, see the following posts. For a broader look at constructing a relationship between readers and writers when covering…
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Should we tweet rape?
Update: This post includes content from a few others on the issue. Over the last few days, readers here and elsewhere have shared some…
Read MoreWriters wanted: Social injustice after 9/11
My erstwhile classmate and current literati Alia Malek is editing a book that needs contributions. Alia wrote A Country Called Amreeka: American Roots, Arab…
Read MoreTo Journalism, with love from Africa
In a break from a torrent of writing, I was reading a quick take on Adam Hochschild’s talk at a recent writer’s conference. He’s…
Read MoreOn Sept 11, thoughts from Afghanistan
Here’s a note from a friend of mine who’s working in Afghanistan. Today marks 9 years since volunteering at ground zero beside thousands of…
Read MoreOn September 11
I’m thinking about a Newsweek article I read recently, about two mothers, each of whom lost a son in New York on September 11….
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