Mark Obbie's Blog, page 48
February 20, 2013
Grann on crime narratives
In a Google+ discussion hosted by The New Yorker, the great David Grann answered questions from his editor, Dan Zalewski, and the audience about true-crime journalism. It’s a feast for people who care about quality narrative journalism about crime, as Grann … Continue reading →
February 18, 2013
Seeing dark motives in a narrative
Over at the Crime & Consequences blog, Bill Otis — a consistent voice for a hard-line tough-on-crime approach — attacks this story by AP national writer Adam Geller in a way that clearly illustrates a disconnect over the proper role of … Continue reading →
February 16, 2013
Lessons from Columbine
Dave Cullen spent 10 years reporting and writing his book Columbine, so I figure it’s OK that I came to it three years late. I read it to help me think about the work I’m doing now to tell the … Continue reading →
February 12, 2013
Writer’s agenda and public good
The talk I gave last month at Syracuse University’s College of Law, in an event sponsored by the Institute for the Study of the Judiciary, Politics, and the Media in its annual lecture series on law, politics, and media, is now … Continue reading →
February 8, 2013
A mother’s questions go unanswered
Here’s a sad, stark reminder of how all the lip service about caring for crime victims can mean nothing when it comes time to provide real help to those victims. This week I met a woman from Rochester whose son … Continue reading →
February 1, 2013
Seven weeks, and still No. 7
Here’s a quick update for readers, seven weeks since the publication of God’s Nobodies. The book remains a best-selling Kindle Single, at this writing No. 7 in nonfiction and No. 22 overall, despite many new Kindle Singles’ debuts in the … Continue reading →
January 30, 2013
Click here to vote guilty
When emotions run high over a violent crime — as they understandably have since Christmas Eve, when a sniper ambushed volunteer firefighters in Webster, N.Y., shooting four and killing two — the natural impulse is to draw conclusions and make … Continue reading →
January 29, 2013
Author Q&A: “How could this have happened?”
The Post-Standard in Syracuse last Sunday published a story about God’s Nobodies with an accompanying Q&A with me. It’s now available online. The story by veteran reporter Hart Seely summarizes the book and provides a forum to Rev. Frank Giuliano … Continue reading →
Another kind of victim
This front-pager in The New York Times today provides an important perspective on what it means to be a first responder. By bravely and candidly opening up about their own pain from having been the first to enter Sandy Hook … Continue reading →
January 25, 2013
Halfway to freedom
Today marks the mathematical middle of Tim Ginocchetti’s prison term. Assuming state law doesn’t change the formula used to award good-time credits (currently it’s one-seventh of a sentence, or in Tim’s case a reduction of about two years and two … Continue reading →
