Catching Up In The Blogosphere
James and Oprah
When I read an account like this one about James Frey and Oprah I wonder what people expect from this guy. I’m as concerned about truth as the next person, but I think we’re looking for it in all the wrong places now. This man was so messed up that he was one of the hardest cases in rehab. Is it so important that he recount his background perfectly, or what happened after? The entire situation was a horrible mess. I think this book would have done just as well in the Fiction category. Can imagine what it would be like to have a studio audience sitting there in judgement of you based on your retelling of how an ex-girlfriend killed herself? I can’t.
Why I Read Blogs
Art DeVany is an economist blogger, but that’s not why I’m writing about him today. Not often, but every once in awhile, in the span of a few days, you feel like you can learn everything you need to know about a person.
His span of posts (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) about the the final arc of his wife of 50 years and the death of his mother is devastating to read, but it is easy to sense his attitude is already appropriate. There is nothing that can ease the pain of grief, but there are elements in ourselves that can make the problem an intractable one. I know this won’t be the problem here.
Google, You Aren’t Half Smart
Censorship of the Internet is doomed to failure. Don’t get so worked up, guys.
JumpUpMy on Catching Up In The Blogosphere on Feb 03, 2006 at 07:44 PM
Regarding James Frey and Oprah, I really didn't care for the way that Oprah treated the book editor. She basically wouldn't accept that the editor was fooled also. She really gave off an attitude that said "I was fooled, I was conned, but there is no way anyone else was conned, everyone at the publishing house must be incompetent." She didn't really accept that maybe before she makes a book a part of her bookclub (thereby rocketing it to the top of the bestseller list and forever changing the life and pocketbook of an author) she should poke around and check it out. But, hey, there isn't anyone at Harpo, Inc. that ever failed to do their job that is just the rest of the world. I also think that one other thing that rocked Oprah is that this shook the foundation of the Cult of Oprah. That's right I said it. She has become a cult of herself and this episode only served to remind her followers of her fallibility.