This week, I read through the late David Carr’s articles. After reading through a decent amount of what was available on the New York Times, I selected two to write about; King of Their Crafts, but on Divergent Paths and At Front Lines, Bearing Witness in Real Time.

King of Their Crafts, but on Divergent Paths

This was the first article I read of David Carr’s after skimming through my options and choosing one at random. Having known much about the Brian Williams scandal and very little about Jon Stewart, I was curious to see where this article would lead.

The article proved to be an insightful analysis of both Brian Williams and Jon Stewart and their respective careers. While one had fallen from grace and the other had a successful career and retired, both started out relatively on the same path. Carr beautifully illustrates this then shifts between the history of Williams and Stewart, giving the reader insight while continuing to move forward in the comparison.

I was expecting Carr would eventually lean more heavily into the criticism and admonishment of Williams, and that time never really came. While he did mention it, it wasn’t with the heavy criticism I expected, but more with a feeling of pity and something akin to understanding. Throughout the piece, Carr does an excellent job of drawing the reader in, challenging the expectations that one might have set before reading the article. It doesn’t praise Stewart and rebuke Williams, but rather sets them as equals and reflects on the choices they made.

Bearing Witness in Real Time

This article grabbed my attention and pulled me in. He was able to capture and highlight all the intricacies that come with social media being a forefront of the news. This article was relevant in 2014 and is still very relevant in 2022. Throughout reading the article, there was nothing that I couldn’t apply to journalism and social media today. While it wasn’t written too long ago, usually eight years can change a topic in one way or another in an ever evolving society, but it was eerie to see that this was not the case.

I enjoyed how he structured this piece by beginning with how journalism has changed for the audience with the way we get our news. I think it helps to bring his opening paragraph or two into perspective. He also gives the reader examples of how journalists have changed. With the instantaneous nature of social media, journalists have the ability to directly report wherever they are at, for better or for worse. He conveys this sentiment with his examples of journalists Diana Magnay and Colin Brazier. It was interesting to see how social media both helps and hinders in the journalistic process. 

I think he perfectly captured the entirety of the situation, and how journalists and the audience have responded to the rise of social media in delivering news with this paragraph:

“Bearing witness is the oldest and perhaps most valuable tool in the journalist’s arsenal, but it becomes something different delivered in the crucible of real time, without pause for reflection. It is unedited, distributed rapidly and globally, and immediately responded to by the people formerly known as the audience.”