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Article: Investigating his own dark story.(BOOKS)(The Night of the Gun)(Book review)
- Article from:
- American Journalism Review
- Article date:
- August 1, 2008
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2008 University of Maryland. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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For most journalists, the route to the New York Times doesn't generally include crack smoking, drug dealing, spouse beating and jail time. But all those activities preceded David Carr's arrival in the big time.
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Both enthralling and appalling, "The Night of the Gun" lays out in merciless detail Carr's rise from Minnesota's alternative papers to Times media columnist while wallowing in a dangerous double life.
Beyond the sensational story, fellow journalists will find something even more beneficial. Carr's method--the re-reporting of his own life--provides a humbling study of the fallibility of memory, the elu-siveness of ...