Why I'm a Journalist


Book Description

Why be a journalist? It can be a difficult job with long hours, hard work and an uncertain future. Journalists face relentless criticism and an industry in transition. Aaron Chimbel has put together a collection of essays from working journalists who answer the question — why be a journalist? — with their personal stories of coming up, toiling in the field and writing important, career-defining stories. These journalists come from different platforms, beats and locations, offering varying accounts of the travails and rewards of being a working journalist across changing landscapes and timelines. The essays in Why I’m a Journalist offer encouragement and wisdom about the path to being a reporter, a broadcaster, an editor or a media professional. This is a collection for students interested in the field, early upstarts engaged with building their careers and seasoned pros looking to learn from their colleagues.




That's Why I'm a Journalist


Book Description

News stories are like collective memories, encapsulating the most iconic moments in recent history around the world. But to those who work in journalism, up-close involvement with these stories can also be life-changing. In That’s Why I’m a Journalist, veteran broadcaster Mark Bulgutch interviews 44 prominent Canadian journalists, who each share their behind-the-scenes accounts of some of the most memorable stories of their careers and describe the moment that made them say to themselves, “That’s why I’m a journalist.” Although many of the contributors’ stories are related to their roles in the most high-profile events of the 20th and 21st centuries, from the fall of the Berlin Wall to 9/11, here too are reflections on quieter and more intimate moments that had a deep personal impact. Peter Mansbridge talks about a trip to Vimy Ridge on the hundredth anniversary of World War I, Adrienne Arsenault recalls bringing together old friends separated by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Terence McKenna recounts what it’s like to worry about being kidnapped as part of the job and Wendy Mesley reflects on the satisfaction of asking tough questions—and uncovering the truth. Together, these enthralling and varied accounts provide an intimate understanding of the people we see on camera and hear on the radio. As Bulgutch argues, modern journalism is undergoing existential threats. News has never been more accessible yet, paradoxically, important news has become harder to find, often buried by pseudo-news of celebrity, lifestyle tips and the latest viral video of a water-skiing squirrel. The stories in this book serve as reminders of the importance of real journalists and real journalism.




That’s Why I’m a Doctor


Book Description

Doctors hold a pretty special place in our lives. They’re often there when we’re born, and they’re usually there when we die. They’re there for a lot of the scary or weird stuff that happens in between, too. In That’s Why I’m a Doctor, award-winning journalist Mark Bulgutch brings together forty-six stories from a diverse group of physicians, including pediatricians, interventional radiologists, general surgeons, psychiatrists, family doctors, gastroenterologists, ophthalmologists, gynecologists, neurologists and more. Each doctor’s story describes the moment that left them thinking, “That’s why I became a doctor.” This volume includes stories of innovation (developing a treatment for cholera); rare and fascinating medical cases (the separation of conjoined twins); the less dramatic but still quietly satisfying times when the doctor was able to have a lasting positive impact on the life of a patient or their family; and, of course, those unexpected moments when the patient taught the doctor an important life lesson that would inform their practice for years to come. These stories, big and small, are tied together by a sense of caring. It’s impossible to read what these doctors have to say and not come away with a new understanding of what goes through the mind of the person on the other end of the stethoscope and how dedicated doctors must be to do what they do.




Look at Me!


Book Description

A compelling biography of SoundCloud sensation and rising star XXXTENTACION -- from his candid songwriting and connection with fans to his tragic death. At the age of twenty, rapper Jahseh Dwayne Onfroy-aka XXXTENTACION-was gunned down during an attempted robbery on the streets of Deerfield Beach, Florida, mere months after signing a $10 million record deal with Empire Music. A rising star in the world of SoundCloud rap, XXXTENTACION achieved stellar levels of success without the benefit of a major label or radio airtime, and flourished via his passionate and unfettered connection to his fans. In Look at Me!, journalist Jonathan Reiss charts the tumultuous life and unguarded songwriting of the SoundCloud sensation. Unlike most rap on the platform, XXXTENTACION's music didn't dwell on money, partying, and getting high. He wrote about depression, suicide, and other mental health issues, topics that led to an outpouring of posthumous appreciation from his devoted fanbase. It was XXXTENTACION's vulnerability that helped him stand apart from artists obsessed with being successful and "cool." Yet these insecurities also stemmed from-and contributed to-his fair share of troubles, including repeated run-ins with the law during his teen years, a disturbing proclivity toward violence, and a prison sentence that overlapped with the release of his first single. Through the memories of the people who knew him best, Look at Me! maps out the true story of an unlikely cultural icon and elucidates what it was about him that touched the post-millennial generation so deeply.




News and How to Use It


Book Description

A society that isn’t sure what’s true can’t function, but increasingly we no longer seem to know who or what to believe. We’re barraged by a torrent of lies, half-truths and propaganda: how do we even identify good journalism any more? At a moment of existential crisis for the news industry, in our age of information chaos, News and How to Use It shows us how. From Bias to Snopes, from Clickbait to TL;DR, and from Fact-Checkers to the Lamestream Media, here is a definitive user’s guide for how to stay informed, tell truth from fiction and hold those in power accountable in the modern age.




Press Reset


Book Description

From the bestselling author of Blood, Sweat, and Pixels comes the next definitive, behind-the-scenes account of the video game industry: how some of the past decade's most renowned studios fell apart—and the stories, both triumphant and tragic, of what happened next. Jason Schreier's groundbreaking reporting has earned him a place among the preeminent investigative journalists covering the world of video games. In his eagerly anticipated, deeply researched new book, Schreier trains his investigative eye on the volatility of the video game industry and the resilience of the people who work in it. The business of videogames is both a prestige industry and an opaque one. Based on dozens of first-hand interviews that cover the development of landmark games—Bioshock Infinite, Epic Mickey, Dead Space, and more—on to the shocking closures of the studios that made them, Press Reset tells the stories of how real people are affected by game studio shutdowns, and how they recover, move on, or escape the industry entirely. Schreier's insider interviews cover hostile takeovers, abusive bosses, corporate drama, bounced checks, and that one time the Boston Red Sox's Curt Schilling decided he was going to lead a game studio that would take out World of Warcraft. Along the way, he asks pressing questions about why, when the video game industry is more successful than ever, it's become so hard to make a stable living making video games—and whether the business of making games can change before it's too late.




The Solo Video Journalist


Book Description

It is becoming increasingly important for television reporters to be proficient in many, if not all, of the steps in production. The Solo Video Journalist will make handling all these responsibilities seem possible, and do so from the hands-on perspective of a current reporter with years of experience as a multimedia journalist. This book will cover all aspects of multimedia journalism, from planning for a segment, to dressing appropriately for one’s multiple roles, to conducting interviews and editing. The instruction and guidance in this text will help make readers valuable players in their field, and it is filled with real-world examples and advice from current professionals. Whether it be college students learning from the ground up or journalists early in their careers, The Solo Video Journalist ensures they will have all the materials they need to be successful multimedia journalists.




For the Love of Men


Book Description

A nonfiction investigation into masculinity, For The Love of Men provides actionable steps for how to be a man in the modern world, while also exploring how being a man in the world has evolved. In 2019, traditional masculinity is both rewarded and sanctioned. Men grow up being told that boys don’t cry and dolls are for girls (a newer phenomenon than you might realize—gendered toys came back in vogue as recently as the 80s). They learn they must hide their feelings and anxieties, that their masculinity must constantly be proven. They must be the breadwinners, they must be the romantic pursuers. This hasn’t been good for the culture at large: 99% of school shooters are male; men in fraternities are 300% (!) more likely to commit rape; a woman serving in uniform has a higher likelihood of being assaulted by a fellow soldier than to be killed by enemy fire. In For the Love of Men, Liz offers a smart, insightful, and deeply-researched guide for what we're all going to do about toxic masculinity. For both women looking to guide the men in their lives and men who want to do better and just don’t know how, For the Love of Men will lead the conversation on men's issues in a society where so much is changing, but gender roles have remained strangely stagnant. What are we going to do about men? Liz Plank has the answer. And it has the possibility to change the world for men and women alike.




Blood, Sweat, and Pixels


Book Description

NATIONAL BESTSELLER “The stories in this book make for a fascinating and remarkably complete pantheon of just about every common despair and every joy related to game development.” — Rami Ismail, cofounder of Vlambeer and developer of Nuclear Throne Developing video games—hero's journey or fool's errand? The creative and technical logistics that go into building today's hottest games can be more harrowing and complex than the games themselves, often seeming like an endless maze or a bottomless abyss. In Blood, Sweat, and Pixels, Jason Schreier takes readers on a fascinating odyssey behind the scenes of video game development, where the creator may be a team of 600 overworked underdogs or a solitary geek genius. Exploring the artistic challenges, technical impossibilities, marketplace demands, and Donkey Kong-sized monkey wrenches thrown into the works by corporate, Blood, Sweat, and Pixels reveals how bringing any game to completion is more than Sisyphean—it's nothing short of miraculous. Taking some of the most popular, bestselling recent games, Schreier immerses readers in the hellfire of the development process, whether it's RPG studio Bioware's challenge to beat an impossible schedule and overcome countless technical nightmares to build Dragon Age: Inquisition; indie developer Eric Barone's single-handed efforts to grow country-life RPG Stardew Valley from one man's vision into a multi-million-dollar franchise; or Bungie spinning out from their corporate overlords at Microsoft to create Destiny, a brand new universe that they hoped would become as iconic as Star Wars and Lord of the Rings—even as it nearly ripped their studio apart. Documenting the round-the-clock crunches, buggy-eyed burnout, and last-minute saves, Blood, Sweat, and Pixels is a journey through development hell—and ultimately a tribute to the dedicated diehards and unsung heroes who scale mountains of obstacles in their quests to create the best games imaginable.